The Blog

89. Planning for the Summer Break

As a mom and business owner, breaks are the hardest thing about running a business.

You want to take time to be with your kids, that’s why you started your own business so you can be with your kids and set your own schedule and not have to work that 9-5. But at the same time, you have a big business that you need to keep moving forward. It can’t just stop for breaks.

Planning for Summer Break

I personally take off most breaks, like winter break and spring break and all the little ones in between. But I just can’t take off all four months of summer break. So planning for summer break is just like the time blocking episode from a few weeks ago, but on a bigger scale.

Planning for Summer Break

So first, ask yourself what days/times do you want to block off for your family?

Right now I keep nights and weekends available because that’s when my family is together. When I was an early business owner and doing family photography, nights and weekends were usually booked up for family sessions and I blocked off mornings and weekdays to be with my kids and take them to splash pads and the parks and the pools.

So choose when you’re going to work. Then when you’re not working, block that off as family time so nothing can interrupt time with your kids. You’ll have to think about what profession you’re in and what’s important to your family.

Then ask yourself the questions below IN ORDER and calendar in those activities one at a time so you can work around them rather than schedule things over them:

  • What activities and holidays do you need to block off?

  • What activities will your kids do this summer?

  • What trips do you have planned?

That’s all the family stuff scheduled and done! Now you can turn to your business and blocking off time for work. So ask yourself these three things:

  • How much do you want/need to make each month of summer?

  • How many clients/products is that per month?

  • How many hours does each client take you?

From there, you’re going to schedule how many days you’re going to work and for how long. It’s different for everyone and just depends on how many hours you need to work.

And maybe consider outsourcing to free up your time so you can be with your kids. If you have to work 40 hours a week, consider sharing the load by getting an editor or an assistant to answer emails and post to social media. There are so many options because your business needs to run and move forward, but you also need to be present for your family.

Okay, last thing! After you’ve timeblocked family time and work time, make a list of all the fun things you usually do in the summer with your kids, and all the new things you want to try. All the parks you want to go to, trails, splash pads, parades, camping trips…write it all down. Then you’re going to fill in the blank spaces on your calendar with those fun things. And involve the kids in this, make it a family thing. It will be so fun for them to be included and see what they come up with for their summer bucket list.

Planning for Summer Break

Because you time blocked, you’re going to have the best summer! Go work on your business and make lots of money during the break BUT also do all the fun things and be present for your kids.

Listen to the full episode here:

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