Entrepreneur School

NOW ENROLLING: THE VISIBILITY REVOLUTION! 

Meet my friend, Tabitha Crocker aka The Present Profitable Mom!

I hope you love this conversation as much as I did. We covered productivity tips and business models that work best for moms. Listen in for:

  • why a membership model helps you be a more present mom
  • what kinds of businesses a membership would work for
  • how to create theme days to get more done in less time
  • why you don’t need to follow guru’s morning routines

About the Guest: 

Tabitha is a Membership Coach and founder of Present Profitable Mom and she is obsessed with the membership model because it empowers us to multiply our income but NOT our work hours. She was able to transform her business to be more profitable with sustainable, recurring revenue while being a present mom and wants to help you do the same! She’s also a podcaster with a B.A. Psychology and Masters in Business, raising her kiddos with her husband in Alaska.

Check out her show: https://presentprofitablemom.com/podcast-2/ 

Connect with Tabitha on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/presentprofitablemom

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@presentprofitablemom

Find her online: https://presentprofitablemom.com/

Grab Tabitha’s free masterclass by using code “KSCO” at this link: https://themamamatters.vipmembervault.com/products/courses/view/1150280” 

Free gift! With this Membership Success Roadmap you’ll learn the10 simple steps you need to start creating your membership NOW to experience the shift in your business for more clarity, fun, ease, and profit! bit.ly/membershiproadmap 

Free gift!

Grab the FREE guide: 33 Simple Visibility Strategies you can do in less than 10 min a day: https://ksco.activehosted.com/app/forms/11 

About the Host: 

Kelly is an award-winning marketer and brand strategist, visibility maximizer, and a small-town, girl mom of 2.

Kelly did the corporate thing for over 10 years, climbing the ladder and building a successful career in PR, managing reputations for global companies.

After losing her mum to breast cancer in 2017, she became immensely aware of how short life really is. And when you experience loss like that, you think about life differently. She realized how important it is to do what you love and spend time on what really matters. 

That’s why she started KS&Co. and Entrepreneur School, supporting other mom entrepreneurs chasing their dreams and passions. 

You deserve to be successful in your business! Kelly wants you to make your dreams come true!

She’s your Fairy Brand-mother waving the magic wand to give you the confidence, guidance and support you need to get to your next level of success. 

With an authentic brand and the right marketing strategy customized to you, you will feel unstoppable momentum to make your passion a success!

Connect with Kelly:

Instagram – Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/entrepreneurschoolpodcast/ 

Instagram – Kelly: https://www.instagram.com/ksco_kelly/  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KSComms 

YouTube: youtube.com/@ksco_entrepreneurschool

Website (subscribe to our emails!): www.entrepreneurschool.ca

The Simplified Content System: www.entrepreneurschool.ca/content

Join our community: www.entrepreneurschool.ca/community

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Transcript
Kelly Sinclair:

Hey, I'm so excited for you to listen in on this conversation today that I had with my guest, Tabitha, she's a membership coach and founder of the present profitable mom. And she's obsessed with a membership model, because of how it empowers entrepreneurs to multiply their income without working more hours. She's also a productivity nerd. And we got into that a lot. Because it's like such an important area to focus on figuring out how to actually like, use the time you have in your day wisely, especially when you have constant interruptions by children who are either needing to go somewhere or needing a snack, or whatever it is, right. So Tabitha was able to transform her business and be more profitable with sustainable recurring revenue, while being a present mom, and she wants to help you do the same. She's also a podcaster. And she has a BA in psychology and a master's in business. And she's raising her kiddos with her husband in Alaska. So tune into this conversation because we actually talk about like, tips around how to like, manage your workflow ways two ways your brain works, she dropped some mind blowing statistics and research based facts on us in this episode, and I am all about it because I have personally felt like the juggling act of running a business trying to be a mom trying to be all the other roles fitting in, you know, working out and eating healthy and all the other things that I care about into a day, which seems overwhelming and impossible, and she shows you exactly how to do it. So check out this episode, and let us know how you can apply this in your business.

Kelly Sinclair:

This is The Entrepreneur School Podcast where we believe you can run a thriving business and still make your family a priority. This show is all about supporting you the emerging or early stage Entrepreneur on your journey from solopreneur to CEO while wearing all of the other hats in your life. My name is Kelly Sinclair and I'm a brand and marketing strategist who started a business with two kids under 3am, a corporate PR girl turned entrepreneur after I learned the hard way that life is too short to waste doing things that burn you out. On this show, you'll hear inspiring stories from other business owners on their journey, and learn strategies to help you grow a profitable business while making it all fit into the life that you want. Welcome to Entrepreneur School.

Kelly Sinclair:

Welcome to entrepreneurs school tab. I'm excited to see you.

Tabitha Crocker:

Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to connect with you and chat about all the things

Kelly Sinclair:

Yes, I know, we have had like a an internet friendship for a number of years now. So it's been really awesome to watch you evolving and shifting into different areas. And like maybe even just start with talking about because my first area of interest in having you on this podcast is one your mom and you're all about like being a present mom and running a business, which is something we're always striving for. And we're like, Is that even a thing we can do? And you have like this unique way of looking at productivity and like sharing out how people can actually plan their days and structure their business around around the goals that they have as as a mother too. So can we like start by diving into that?

Tabitha Crocker:

Yes, absolutely. I think the first step, the very first thing is really believing that it's possible. First of all, because I think we get a lot of mixed messages like, Oh, if you want to be a good mom, you have to be with your kids all the time and devote all of your energy. And actually, for me personally and I mean, if you are a stay at home mom, like no shade, like that's amazing. But for me, I'm a better mom when I also have something else that nurtures me and which is my business. I've designed it that way though, so that I work with people that I genuinely love and connect with. And they're all fellow moms. I work with moms who are entrepreneurs. And so I feel like being a mom is a unique journey. And being an entrepreneur is a unique journey. And they're both things that you do not understand unless you've experienced them yourself. And finding fellow moms who are both is like a, you know, a diamond in the rough. It's hard to find, especially in your day to day life. I have very few friends actually none of them that have an online business. And so connecting with that, and yeah, first of all, deciding that you want to be a mom and an entrepreneur believing it's possible to be awesome at both things is really, really the first step.

Kelly Sinclair:

Yeah, I love how you said that about like something that nerd yours you. Because that's for me, what it's always been about is like, I have always known that I need something else where I can feel like, I'm using my brain and my knowledge and my skills and like this, like, career that I built up for all this time before I had children. And I don't want to throw that away, because I still love doing those kinds of things. And I also want to have relationships with my kids. And it's been like an evolving juggling act ever since becoming an entrepreneur for me, like six years ago.

Tabitha Crocker:

Yeah. And I think the part of the story that gets left out is that I really believe in the power of leading by example, and do you want your kids to sacrifice everything for someone else, like I don't like I want my kids to chase their dreams and to live their best life and do work that they love and that they feel passionate about, and that they enjoy and enjoy the journey. And so in order for me to teach my kids that I need to be an example of that. So I think there are definitely some advantages to moms who are also entrepreneurs.

Kelly Sinclair:

Oh, that's such a good point. That's like, we're constantly looking for a permission slip, really, all of us. So there's that one permission to be the role model that you want to be to demonstrate the life that you want your kids to be able to see that as possible. And like let's be honest, being a mom entrepreneur is, is doing the most. It I think I was in denial for a long time about about it, I don't know whether it was that I didn't want to like carve myself out as something different because I have both of these roles. But in reality, I'm trying to run a business, manage clients, do projects, figure out all of the like technology and marketing strategies and blah, blah blahs and arrange a hockey schedule, make sure we know when there's library day at school, fill out the school field trip parms make sure everyone gets enrolled in their sports activities, you know, arrange playdates all of it at the same time out and eat healthy, make sure we have. Let's just throw that in there. Right?

Tabitha Crocker:

Yes, right. And so I want to give you guys, your audience, some really tangible tips for how to do this. So I personally, I feel like I've tried everything, I've had a really long winding journey. And finally, the business model that has served me best in creating that flexibility in my life that I have to have like, can't survive without it, like sick kid can't throw my day off, like because Sick Kids happen all the time. So you have to have that built in. And I really believe that a membership model is a great way for us to leverage our time in our business, but then also give us the flexibility that we need in mom life. And honestly, even if you're not a mom, you still want to exercise and have other priorities and travel and all of these other things. So just as humans, we really, really need that flexibility and freedom to enjoy our life. In addition, in addition to the time that we enjoy, hopefully, in our business,

Kelly Sinclair:

Mm hmm. Yeah. So let's talk about that a little bit more. What does having a membership look like? What are some of like, who are and who are you talking to? Like, who who is a membership good for what kind of business owner?

Tabitha Crocker:

Yes, I think a membership, the way that I teach it can fit a lot more different niches than you might expect. So I think the thing really is going to be something that's ongoing, right. So a membership probably isn't great if you maybe just train people to run a marathon, because maybe they're just going to do that once that was like a bucket list item and they're done. But if you have people who want to be in shape, like you're never like, oh, we had a marathon in Shape for Life, check that box like not how that works like exercise and moving your body needs to be a consistent priority over time and life changes and seasons change. So how are you going to help people navigate over time, you need to be able to give them that accountability, maybe even like coworking a ko workout session. I mean, there's a lot that you can do to encourage people to have that consistency. So really niches that require consistency or accountability, or that done with you approach like from a another perspective, like someone who doesn't want to pay for, for example, I have a client who is a bookkeeper, and she is creating a membership around bookkeeping, because in your business, that should be something you are doing all the time. That's part of kind of you're making money spending money, you need to be doing your bookkeeping, right. So she is really helping people to have that accountability and that like co working session to sit down and do it. But this is really for people who are entrepreneurs who maybe don't want to straight up how I hire done for you bookkeeping services. And they really want to understand the numbers. And honestly, even if you want to be hands off and hire someone to do everything, they're not going to understand your business like you do. So you being in there, doing your own numbers is really critical. But at the same time, you are going to need help. And so it's that beautiful blend of done with you type services that you can incorporate into a membership also. So like the done with you and the the community element, a lot of times like really believing something is possible for you seeing other people doing it and making it work. So niches where you need those things, which in my opinion, is really a lot of different fields, you could almost find that you need community learning and done with you in anything that you need to be consistent. So that's going to be anything usually around wealth, health and happiness. Because, you know, you don't just get married and you're like check done Healthy Marriage is good to go like, Nope, it takes work like these are things that are most important to us. They all take work consistently over time. And I really feel like a membership is the thing that has been overlooked as being able to be the best of both worlds. You get the coaching, you get the content, you get the community. And that those are the three pieces that I really believe are key. And just so happens to conveniently for you leverage your time because the community adds additional value that doesn't require necessarily much more of your time. And then you can do kind of this one to many type models so that you're helping more than one person at a time. And I just feel like it fits beautifully. For moms especially.

Kelly Sinclair:

So how does that work inside of your business? Like what does that look like? For you tell me what a day in the life are like a week?

Tabitha Crocker:

Yes, that is the perfect question. This was not scripted. So the way that I love to do this is to really have themed days. So my background, I actually am a total productivity nerd. So that's kind of like a bonus, you're getting membership and productivity. So I love having theme days, because when it comes to being productive, when we switch tasks, we will people think that we can do multitasking. But we actually can't with really high thinking high intensity tasks like you can walk and talk. But you can't probably like run and have a philosophical discussion. So you can pair a low focus task with a high higher or focus task, but really high focus tasks, you're switching between them, you might think you're doing them simultaneously multitasking that you are not. And what happens when you switch between tasks, you are losing all of your momentum, it's called Startup inertia. So instead of switching back and forth from very different tasks, you can design your week to batch similar type tasks that you do at the same time. So that you build up that momentum and you get into the flow, which is a Mihail check, send me highest flow theory where you're completely engaged in the activity, and you are going to think about it so much deeper, and you're gonna get a lot more done in a shorter period of time. Versus like, Oh, we're recording this podcast, I'm just let me like, check this text on my phone really quick. I mean, that's going to completely distract the flow of what we're talking about. And actually, research says that a disruption as brief as three seconds can distract you enough that it takes 23 minutes to get back into the flow of what you were doing. And if you're a mom and an entrepreneur, you know that feeling well, because unfortunately, we can't always have distraction free work time. But by batching, similar tasks, we can get into that flow, limit distractions, and really maximize our time.

Kelly Sinclair:

Oh, okay, first of all, that's a scary scary statistic. Three minutes of distraction and goals during seconds. 23 minutes of getting your stuff back together and trying to figure out what you were doing, which makes total sense because I feel like that's a lot. Yes, and I also know the difference in like, feeling, like influence something right? Like I I've been sending some video messages to people, but I batch them like, I made like 20 at a time and it just like started flowing out versus like once this grip, what do I say? And trying to remember how to do it all again. It was like I see the value of this for sure. Hey, I just want to pop in for a second and chat with you a little bit about content creation. You know that thing that you know that you're supposed to do in order to get visibility and find clients online and you know, you're just not finding time to actually do that thing? Because it can be overwhelming to think about what am I supposed to write, what videos should I be sharing? Where am I going to have the time to make all of the beautiful graphics that go along with having a lovely Instagram page, all of the things? Well, I made for you a tool called the simplified content system. And inside of this, you're gonna find exactly what I use to be able to plan and create all of my content in an hour a week. So it's a calendar that you can edit, that you can put in what you're doing, where for any kind of platforms, whether you're using Instagram, other social medias, whether you're doing email marketing, whether you're on YouTube, all of it can go in one place that links nicely to this beautiful caption document. And I've also created a number of trainings and templates for you to make it even easier to get your content out and into the world. So that you can be seen, so that you can get clients and so that you still have time to go to all of your kids sports activities. Okay, so you can grab it at entrepreneur school.ca forward slash content. So you're talking about theme days, what are some of the theme days like how you run your business?

Tabitha Crocker:

Yes. So I for my example, I do like Monday is a CEO slash CFO day. So it's really that big visionary, like creative thinking about like, what's on my broader vision. And then I also do my finances, which those two are interrelated, because then I can look and see what's going well, what isn't. And so that all works really nicely together. And then Tuesdays, for example, are my content days. So this is like, you can batch so many different ways. Actually, I have an awesome master class about all of this that goes into greater detail that I'll give you a code for, so people can check it out for free, because I feel like I can't just give you a piece of this, like if you want to dig deeper into it. But so then Tuesdays are content days where you can batch things by right and left brain. So like if I were to do my bookkeeping on Tuesday, but then you know, that's very left brain versus like, switching to that from trying to write like an awesome podcast script like, that is going to take me a lot longer to switch flow, if you will. So I like Tuesdays to be content. So I script out some podcast episodes, I do my social media. If I have any sort of collaboration that I'm doing, I could outline a podcast episode that I'm doing for someone else's show or a summit or things like that. So that's all very similar type work. And then Wednesday's, for me is really community care, this is going to be going live in my membership, this is going to be maybe creating content for my membership, or maybe the tech of uploading stuff for my membership, checking in on members, really member community focused. And then Thursdays for me are the tech like, do I have some weird little website updates that need to be done that I never get to, because let's be honest, for me, that's like, where I really procrastinate. But it helps me to make those most urgent things a priority and find time for them. And then it's not something because I checked little updates on my website, that would be on my list Monday, then I'd be like, Oh, I didn't get to it, move it to Tuesday. Oh, I didn't get to it. You know, I just would move that sucker and never do it until I'm finally like, obviously, I'm never doing it, we'll just delete it. I think Thursdays I'm like, okay, like, I gotta like, drink extra coffee that day. And like, we're gonna dig into those tech items. And then, once you're in it, you'll for me, I'll be like, Gosh, I really goofed that up, that doesn't all fit together. Versus if I was just trying to like, go in and fix something really quick, I wouldn't notice what that thing was in the greater context of all the other pieces. So it makes you just do a much better job in a much shorter amount of time, when you can focus these things each week. And then Fridays for me is like admin, I'm wrapping up the week and I'm, you know, maybe it's scheduling, maybe it's sending out some pitches to be on other people's podcasts or pitching people to be on my podcast, and really those little admin pieces. And I never scheduled anything on Mondays or Fridays. And that's another thing this helps you with is building out that consistency, like, Okay, we record podcasts on Tuesday and Thursday, where I do my client calls on Wednesday so that you're never switching from week to week, like oh, this is supposed to be my admin day, but I got to record a podcast and it goofs up your flow. So this builds over time to make you more and more productive because as you build out these systems and put these little rules in place, it gets more and more efficient.

Kelly Sinclair:

Mm hmm. I love that I have some of those similar like Monday, CEO Friday no meetings as well. And I've one time and like it's about Testing to what actually feels good for you. Because that was when I was like, oh, Friday will be a day where I'll do content. But I'm like, Friday is actually a day where I don't want to shower. Or I want to work out in the morning. Yeah, you wanna, like, I don't really want to get ready. So I don't feel like being like camera ready, which typically I like to feel put together if I want to do video stuff. So that doesn't work. So I'm gonna start like switching that to Thursday. Yes, video thing. So how many hours do you work a week.

Tabitha Crocker:

So my base is usually 10 hours is my standard I work. I'm a morning person. And this is another thing where you have to follow your energy and batch the type of tasks that makes sense for you. So I wake up at 415, most mornings during the week, and I work in my business 5am to 7am. Alaska time, so don't worry, most of my clients aren't in Alaska, they're most mostly on the east coast. So like nice, 9am. That's doable, because I'm probably one of the only people that I know who's crazy enough to wake up this early, but it works because the kids aren't up yet. So talking about minimizing those interruptions. That's a very strategic time, I'm a morning person, I feel high energy like that's when I can get it all done. I love just having a couple of minutes to myself. And so I do that five to 7am. Monday through Friday, I do plan on Sunday, I like to know what's coming up. But I don't count that I guess a standard work hours because I'm planning everything like I'm meal planning, I'm setting my priorities for the week, which includes and that's like 30 minutes to an hour, it's not a big deal. And I meet with my husband, so he knows what's coming up and all these little things. So that's kind of my standard, like at the time of this recording, like full transparency, I'm in the middle of a launch. So I'm working more than usual. And I also have started a podcast in November of last year. And so I'm doing a little bit more with that. But as far as running my membership, planning the content, doing the social media, all of those pieces are pretty well contained within a 10 hour workweek.

Kelly Sinclair:

I think that's amazingly aspirational for people to like, know that you can actually do that many things. And and have that much like progress in a short amount of time. And if you have 20 hours, like my kids are both full time in school, yeah. Which gives me about 20 to 30 hours easily per week, depending on when they don't have school, but she's all next week, and all summer and all of that. So things like Shift as you go, right? And I'm not a morning person. So like, you will not find me rolling out of bed any more than five minutes before my children because I just don't want to. I am much happier if I just wake up on my own time. Yeah. And yeah, totally love that. It's got to be flexible for for different people, right?

Tabitha Crocker:

Well, exactly. And I a lot of my clients, members, friends, they work in the evenings after their kids go to bed. And so that's a good fit for them. And it's kind of funny, because of some people that like are helping me with the launch right now. I think two of them are on the East Coast. And I will be like getting ready for bed at like 830 like messaging them really quick. And they're like working there for hours ahead of me. And they're not even in bed yet. And I but it works like I have a morning person but they're night owls. And so like it works perfect. So I can wrap up the day, anything that's outstanding, I send off to them before I go to sleep and it gets done. And when I wake up the next morning, it's good to go.

Kelly Sinclair:

You know, this is making me think of a lot of a lot of the personal development growth people out there will talk about like morning routines and setting your day up for success. And I tried so many of these things. And I'm like, I'm not I'm not getting up. I'm not doing the thing early. I don't have the time then like, this is not what works for me. So I think I just really appreciate that you're pointing out the need to identify what it is for you individually. And not like it's a rule that needs to be followed.

Tabitha Crocker:

Yeah. And like you said, you have to go trial and error, see what fits for you. And this, like I gave you an example of my week. And that has evolved and changed over time. And I'm just giving that as an example and maybe a starting point for people. But if something totally different works for you. That's awesome. But I just think that the batching specifically with theme days is amazing because of the ability to make fewer decisions because decision fatigue is a thing like we have a finite amount of willpower when we start our day. Like for example, if you've ever been on a diet like do you usually break it when you first wake up and have ice cream for breakfast? Probably not. It's after you've had a long day. And it's like nine o'clock at night. Maybe later for those of you who are a night owl and you're watching Netflix and you just don't care anymore, you just don't Don't have any willpower left, then you know, you've dig out the Ben and Jerry's. And so the thing about willpower too, is that it's a finite resource that is tapped through everything that we do. So if you're on a diet, and you're trying to do all this client work, and you're trying to do all of these things, you're going to make worse and worse decisions in every area as the day goes on. So when you don't have to think about, like, what do I work on tomorrow, like, I've got so much to do, I don't even know where to start. And then you can be like, Oh, tomorrow's Friday, it's admin day. That's where I'm gonna start with my high priority administrative tasks. And it's fewer decisions that you have to make, which makes life in general a lot easier.

Kelly Sinclair:

Mm hmm. Yeah, that sounds incredibly helpful for overwhelm.

Tabitha Crocker:

Yes, yes. And then, you know, back to how we talked about the decision fatigue, and that, you know, tapping that, that willpower in that resource, like whenever you can skip that you can dive right in faster. And if you've ever had a day where you're just like, I have been so busy and gotten nothing done, that's probably what you did. You switched, you switched from like, one thing to the other without batching similar tasks, and you're just thinking about everything. And maybe you started 10 things and finished nothing, which is not going to help you at all, it's much better to do start to finish which takes some willpower to keep yourself going on one task until it's done, which you're going to have more of, if you know what you're doing, and you're not wasting a bunch of time and mental effort, like trying to decide what you're going to do. And even like, to your point, there's another thing that is the same similar as that, well, it taps into that decision fatigue as well. So it's that task switching, but context switching also. So like you said, Okay, I did my hair and makeup, and I've got my tripod and my ring light setup. Let's record all the videos instead of one video. And then oh my gosh, tomorrow, I've got to do my hair, do my makeup setup my ring light set up my tripod. You cut that out? You don't have to do that work on repeat if you batch all of that together.

Kelly Sinclair:

Mm hmm. Yeah, that makes total sense. And I think it's interesting, like maybe as a challenge for people to just go through a week and observe where you're doing this. Because I like I know. Like, for example, one one thing is going from, you know, being here and the interviewer seats, versus being in the hot seat being the coach as well versus, you know, being on part of the groups that I'm part of as a student, like, flopping back and forth between those different roles. Like, I always imagine this whole, like all the hats, right? Right. wear different hats in your business, and you wear different hats in your day. Because there's a part of the day where you're like yourself, and then you're the business owner, and then you're this part of the business. And then you're the mom, Sherpa. And then you're the chef, and then you're the homework like, yeah, improviser. And like, it is exhausting to keep taking off the hats but like, now I'm like making up his whole and I'm just visualizing, there's a stack of hats, imagine you like, put them on nicely, one at a time, then they go back on like a hat rack versus they're getting thrown and you're trying to hatch and you have to go put the hat back on. And you don't know where it went because you frantically took it off.

Tabitha Crocker:

Yes, I love that analogy. I think it's a perfect, it is so so true. And especially like you said, if you have the hats stacked up in order, you're just like, Okay, this one now this one, and it's like a flow. So that's another thing is, so I gave you kind of themes for batching. Throughout the week, you can also batch throughout your day doing similar tasks, like my similar task, for example, is my working block five to 7am. And then after that, I batch similar tasks, which is lunch, getting the kids up, getting them ready for school, and all of those pieces. And if you can have systems for your theme days, and routines for your time blocks throughout the day, those are fewer decisions that you have to make. And that's going to make it smoother and smoother. And like you said, there's some trial and error to find what's the best fit and makes the most sense. But when you find that it makes it so easy. There's so fewer decisions, you do it on autopilot. You don't have to use your willpower to like, oh my gosh, I've got to get up and do this morning routine that I hate. That doesn't work for me because it's not a good fit. But the experts say I have to have a morning routine. Right now I need to meditate now. Right? And then you're like I really would have loved to sleep in and that's not going to serve you at all.

Kelly Sinclair:

So can you just just to contextualize a little bit because you're talking about for you know how you work and then your kids are up and like switching back and forth between work and momming to me is one of the hardest parts about running a business as a mom and And like I said, for me, my kids are in school for a good chunk of the day. But when they come home, I've played around with like trying to work again while they're at home, because they're not in child care anymore. But they're old enough that they don't want me to, like, sit and play with them, but they like, but I don't want them to be on their like tablets all the time. There's this constant, like I'm thinking about what they're doing, and I'm trying to work in it's not really working. So like switching gears between momming and business owning business stuff. And so like, what are your tips around that?

Tabitha Crocker:

I think it's really kind of a mindset getting into things. And then you have to evaluate because if your kids are constantly nagging you for things, and maybe they don't want to sit and play with you, but they're like, I need a snack or, you know, just little ways where they're interrupting. If you're not able to be productive during that time, work will expand to fill time. So maybe there's a way that you could do your workday while they're at school, wrap it up by the time they get home, if possible, and then do other things around the house. Like maybe that's when you start doing the house chores, or prepping for dinner and those type things that can be interrupted, so that you aren't, you know, having all of those distractions while you're trying to do your focus work in your business. And another thing that I feel like is a huge relief is that you can work in what I call points of connection into your date with your kids, because you need to be fully present with them during these key times that I actually just read the other day, which is so funny, because I've always felt this and taught it for like literally years and then felt so validated. But this child expert was saying that there are actually nine minutes during the day that are most critical for you to be present with your kids. And that is when they first wake up for three minutes fully present. When you first see them again, like if they left for school, and they come home connecting with them when you first see them again, for three minutes, at least. And then at night right before they go to bed connecting with them. So you know if you don't have a lot of time, because sometimes you don't if you're in a busy season, or maybe you like working more to like you don't have to only work 10 hours, like my daughter goes to kindergarten this fall, and I am excited to work more, I will definitely miss her. But I'm excited to work more. And so 10 hours has been great and given me all the flexibility that I need right now. But like you said, different moms are in different seasons. And so if you just have those critical nine minutes each day, then you can kind of prioritize that and fit in other things as it works for you and your energy and your family lifestyle. Because you know, if your kids are doing sports after school that might give you more time if they're, you know, not needing a ride somewhere that might give you less time, if that turns you into like mom with the chauffeur hat. So just really releasing that pressure. And I know that a lot of people struggle with guilt. And it's easy to struggle with the guilt around needing more time. But it really is quality, over quantity. And if you think about it, you could be a full time stay at home mom, and never be present with your kids. You can distract yourself with a million different things. And so just if you can rewrite that limiting belief around the guilt, like you still have these important points of connection, you build a business where you can be there for your kids when you need to be and really just making sure that it feels good for you. And then if you are feeling guilty, is it something in your personal values? Or is it something that you view as a societal expectation? Because that's different, you know, what society says you should do? Like, you know, being a rule follower and a people recovering people pleaser. This is easier said than done, but just really evaluating what are my priorities? What matters to me and my family? versus what is the societal, you should expectation?

Kelly Sinclair:

Oh, absolutely. That's so good. And I actually think, in what you were just saying, I just uncovered something for myself, which is that I don't think anything is important, except for my poor. But then I remind myself, I actually do think it's important that I have that I make healthy meals, like it is important to me that we eat, like to gather as much as possible. Yeah, do home cooked meals as much as possible. And so it's almost a way that I have to like think about it differently to give myself permission to do that. Sort of those activities, like their stuff. It's stuff is to do. It's on a list as well. Even if I don't write it down like that I have to make dinner every day. I don't write that on my to do list, but I do make I do it. Right. And like you're talking about that period in my day where it's like the kids came home and now I have like two and a half hours before dinner. So am I going to work with distractions or am I going to like focus on those things? So that's, that was enlightening. I just wanted to reflect that back to you.

Tabitha Crocker:

Awesome. Yeah. And like you said, it's fitting what works for you and I actually Read a book recently that was so cool because it was talking about the power of family dinners, because it is that point of connection all coming together. But what was really cool in this research was that some people, instead of doing dinner, they do family breakfasts, or like they one person had kids who were in high school and had sports and everything. So they do like family snack, when the kids got off school before they all went off to sports, because dinner was going to be on the run. But they had that touch point where they would do kind of like tapas, appetizer style, quick snack, but altogether connecting. So that's again, something where you can build your own family traditions, which I also love traditions, because then they're basically routines, right? Like routines that you look forward to, don't have to think about, and they build in that priority of having those moments of connection. And, you know, it can be your morning, bedtime, you know, morning or bedtime routine, or just really being fully present with snuggling your kids, when they first get home from school and you know, older kids, that could be a meal. Like maybe that's the only way you're gonna get to draw them out of their room is if you're like, Okay, you have to come into the kitchen to eat or something.

Kelly Sinclair:

Yeah. Such a good point. And actually, it's reminding me to like, place value on these things. Like we're doing them on purpose for a reason. Yes, because we care about them. And, you know, the, the little moments do matter. And I love that, that boiled down like nine minutes a day that so attainable, and impactful. I love it. I know we talked a lot more about like productivity hacks today than maybe you were initially planning but I love it. All right. Is there anything else that you wanted to share before we wrap up?

Tabitha Crocker:

Well, I just think like, I think the big key takeaway for being a mom and an entrepreneur and really being able to be good at both to be a present mom and a profitable entrepreneur, you just have to have the systems in place that serve you, and really be intentional and you know, have priorities and set boundaries around those priorities. And really define success for yourself, like, what are you going for? Are you trying to achieve something that is either unattainable or something you don't even want? Or, you know, what is it that you want? And how can you build a foundation in your life and business that gets you to your life, purpose and mission, and whatever makes you feel like, this is what you're meant to do. And I do love, like I mentioned, the membership model has been great for me and being able to create all of these things, because it has really supported 10 hour workweeks and things like that. But I think that yeah, like you said, we talked about a lot of things that can help mom entrepreneurs in any type of business model.

Kelly Sinclair:

Mm hmm. Awesome. Well, let everyone know where they can connect with you. And I will make sure to put links to things that we talked about and make sure that it's easy for them to get it in our show notes. But where's your favorite place to hang out?

Tabitha Crocker:

Awesome. Well, I also have a podcast present profitable mom and I'm on Instagram the most probably at PresentProfitableMom. And like I said, I will I will make a coupon code for you guys to have the maximizing your membership in 10 hours a week. But again, this really works for any type of business model, depending on how many hours you want to work, etc. And and Yeah,

Kelly Sinclair:

Awesome. Thank you. Thank you for sharing your wisdom today. I found that like super helpful just thinking about my own, you know, business flow and the things that that these are things that will be challenges that you'll face in every stage. Like, no matter how long you've been in business, like it's how do we figure it out? When we're starting? How do we figure it out when it's different? And like I think about it, even in seasons where it's like kids are in school because they're not in school? Yes. hockey season ball season. Like this is how I write work in my life now.

Tabitha Crocker:

Yes, yeah. Yeah. And it is you've got those seasons of motherhood, seasons of business, and you have to have these tools and systems that are flexible, and can still give you the freedom no matter what stage you're at.

Kelly Sinclair:

Absolutely. Okay. Well, everybody run and connect with Tabitha because she has amazing resources. And I love following you and staying connected with you.

Tabitha Crocker:

Awesome, thank you so much for having me, Kelly.