September 26, 2025 • 13 mins
We don't need perfect balance between business and motherhood – we need harmony. After having my daughter during COVID, I learned that some days my personal life takes 80% of my energy, while other days my business needs more, and that's okay.
• As entrepreneurs, we're drawn to flexibility but struggle with the reality of juggling responsibilities
• Having a baby completely changed my priorities in unexpected ways
• Returned to work just three weeks after giving birth as the main breadwinner
• Initially resisted daycare but discovered it helped both me and my daughter thrive
• Learning to embrace vulnerability instead of always being "boss bae"
• Letting go of perfectionism opens doors to growth personally and professionally
• Children can understand when we communicate honestly about our work needs
• Being authentic with clients about motherhood strengthens business relationships
• We can integrate our business and mother identities rather than compartmentalizing
If you're struggling with finding harmony between motherhood and business, reach out to me on Instagram or Facebook. We're badasses and can do anything we put our minds to!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey guys, what's up?
It's Shelby here with MarketingHappy Hour Podcast.
So glad that you tuned in toanother episode with me.
I love doing these weekly.
It gets me a little time toshare some of my skills.
It gives me time to share someof my recommendations for your
marketing.
But today we're going to diveinto a little bit more of a
personal side of my life,because I talk a lot about
(00:22):
business.
But you know, honestly, asbusiness owners we have a really
big juggle or balance, orharmony and I'll get into that
between our personal life andour business life.
And today I want to talkdirectly to my mamas, who are
CEOs.
Or maybe you're running abusiness, maybe you're an
executive in a business, maybeyou have a nice little side gig
(00:44):
that you're trying to make yourfull time and you're just like
how the heck do I actuallybalance all of this?
So I'm going to dive into alittle bit about how I guess the
beginning of all of this workedfor me.
I never have been great atbalancing personal and business
life and when I talked to mybusiness coach about this a few
years ago, he told me to stopusing the word balance and start
(01:11):
using the word harmony, becausethere is no way that you can
get 50-50 on both sides right.
Every day is different when itcomes to percentages.
It's going to be like well, mypersonal life took about 80%.
Today, business got about 20%of my energy, or maybe the
business took about 75% of yourenergy, so you only had 25 when
you got home or with your kid,and they're just going to have
to acknowledge that and be okaywith it.
(01:32):
And so when I became a mom mybaby is four right now and she's
a little COVID baby but when Ibecame a mom, my entire life
totally changed.
It was something that I reallywanted my entire life, and then
found out some news that Iprobably wouldn't have a kid.
Anyways, long story short,obviously ended up having a kid.
(01:56):
She is a miracle baby and Ilove her, but I will.
I would be wrong to say thatshe didn't completely change my
entire life.
At the time that I had gottenpregnant with her, I was really
into my work, my business was,my baby.
Obviously COVID had just hitand I didn't even know if, like,
(02:18):
I was going to be able tosurvive COVID, like when it came
to business or whatever.
And then finding out I waspregnant.
On top of that is a lot tohandle mentally.
But the moment that I had herand was holding her in the
hospital, I was like why do Ifeel like I can do this?
I just had, like this sudden,like responsibility come about
(02:39):
me.
Things in this world that Ithought mattered didn't matter
anymore, things in this worldthat I thought mattered didn't
matter anymore.
I was very, all about business.
I was very honed into thatlifestyle where I worked a lot.
Some people called me aworkaholic and it was weird
(03:02):
because I was like how issomething more important than
the thing that's always beenmost important in my life and
that's my business?
But if you think about it,business was my baby to begin
with, and I always tell peoplelike, yeah, it's always been my
first born.
I mean, I'm coming up on 10years of business and that's a
really long time One to be inbusiness for as a self-employed
person, which I'm super gratefuland honored and blessed.
And two, it's a really longtime and effort and a lot of
(03:26):
energy and a lot of seasons ofdrought and a lot of seasons of
good and going up and down, andso really having a business is
just like having a child.
You have to make sure it's fed,you have to make sure it's
sleeping, you have to make surethat it's got the
responsibilities that it needs,that it handles itself.
You've got to mature with thebusiness.
(03:48):
So, back to whenever I had mybaby, I was going to take off
about three months.
That ended up not being able towork out, and so I ended up
having to go back into work, ofcourse, because I was literally
all.
The only thing that kept mybusiness afloat was me, and I do
look back and regret that,because I did not set up my
(04:10):
business correctly and I hadliterally nine months to set it
up but I did not set it upcorrectly so that way I could
take the right amount of restfor me and for Mackenzie and
making sure that I would likejump back in and really be
rested and like ready to go.
But instead that didn't happen.
(04:30):
So I started working againabout three weeks after having
her and making sure that, likesign jobs were getting done, my
social media clients were beinghandled, I was trying to sell,
because I was the mainbreadwinner of the family and so
if I didn't sell anything, thenwe weren't going to eat very
well that day or that week andso we just had a baby.
(04:52):
I had to make sure that we hadmoney in the bank and we had
savings coming in, um anyways.
So all of that to say, I reallyjust kind of want to give you
what a typical week looks likefor me as a CEO and a mom, and,
right now, full-time single momand I am.
(05:14):
Some days I'm really great, somedays I'm really not, and I've
learned as an Enneagram 8 Iusually steer away from emotions
.
I try to just tough it out.
I try to just tough it out.
I try to just really pushthrough the things that are not
very fun.
But once I started realizingthat I'm not allowing these
emotions to come through andthat it was really hindering me
(05:34):
more, I now allow myself to rest.
I allow myself to feel weak.
I allow myself to just havethose emotional breakdowns with
my kid when she has thoseemotional breakdowns, and to
understand that she has thoseemotional breakdowns and to
understand that it's okay thatI'm not always okay as annoying
as that saying is, but it's trueit's okay that you are not
(05:57):
always a boss bitch, like I havealways been called boss bae.
That's literally on all of myInstagram tags, facebook.
I also have a bunch ofnicknames as boss babe and I
just had this persona beforehaving Kenzie that I couldn't
let anything weak come out.
And I kind of regret that nowtoo, because I feel like I could
(06:19):
have advanced a lot more as aperson.
I could have advanced a lotmore in my business if I would
have let those vulnerablemoments come through earlier.
But I am grateful that my kidcame into my life and has helped
me really understand all ofthis.
So when she was first born, Itook her to sign jobs with me.
(06:40):
She was with me every day in mykangaroo pouch, which is a
little front pouch.
She went to meetings with me.
She, I guess, started learningfrom day one and I had it in my
mind that I was going to be likethis amazing superwoman of a
mom.
I was going to work full time.
I was going to take care of mykid full time.
(07:01):
I was not ever going to letanybody else take care of her.
Like I used to think daycareswere disgusting and a complete
waste of money and I was like,why would I drop my kid off with
somebody else and let themraise them when I'm not going to
see her.
And, wow, did my mindcompletely change about that
situation.
(07:22):
It was the hardest thing I'veever done trying to run a
business, trying to raise her,making sure because she like
wanted to be held every daywhenever she napped.
A lot of times I tried to sleepwhen she did because I was so
exhausted from having her allnight.
But then, about 14 months, Ilooked into daycares and started
(07:43):
out part-time two days a weekand I, of course, was super
emotional the first couple oftimes it happened.
And then I started being likeokay, I've got like me time.
Like okay, I can like go and doa little bit of shopping, which
is easier without a 14 monthold.
I can do some work, I can go tomeetings, I can actually like
dress up and feel pretty for theday, rather than always being
(08:06):
in like workout clothes orsweatpants.
And those two days a week endedup turning out full time and
she completely thrived indaycare.
In that moment is when Irealized that we are all gifted
in certain areas and I was notgifted to be a full time mother.
I can tell you I was not giftedto make sure that my kid knows
(08:27):
her ABCs, or one, two, threes oranything like that.
So the school and the teachersreally helped out on that aspect
, because that's what they'regifted in and now that she's in
pre-K four, like it is justamazing.
She loves school, she loves togo Her social, she's a little
social butterfly.
She does so well and she'sthriving in that area because I
(08:48):
have taken my pride out of it,put her into something that was
going to help her succeed morein the future, and then I get to
focus on my first baby in mybusiness.
So I mean, now I really lovethat I have the flexibility of
it.
Right, as entrepreneurs, we gointo this with this idea of like
(09:10):
, oh, I can work whenever I wantto, I can go on vacation
whenever I want to.
Like, I make my own scheduleand that's the glory and the
amazing part about being abusiness owner is you do have
the flexibility.
Yes, I have to answer to 50plus clients every week when it
comes to, like, digitalmarketing stuff, but I get to
choose when I answer my phone,when I text them back, when I
(09:31):
email.
I set those boundaries betweenme and my clients and so that's
what makes it great.
So, when she's on break or ifshe's maybe sick one day, then I
always have the opportunity tobe that mom for the day and
understand that that 80% isgoing to my mom life versus 80%
going to business.
I also have noticed that sheloves to work with me and that
(09:58):
part makes me so proud because Igrew up with a dad that owned
his own business and I watchedhim grow and be successful in
his life and I know what I feltlike towards my dad, like really
like just looked up to him alot and I really hope that
Kenzie does the same thing, andy'all have heard her on the
(10:19):
podcast.
She loves to go take pictureswith me.
She has a little camera of herown.
I let her take pictureswhenever we are out at photo
shoots.
She, if I have to take her toone of my client meetings,
they're always okay with itbecause she sits there like
really, really quiet.
She's very, still, um and,honestly, they love to have her
(10:39):
around because it's just showingmy authentic self to my clients
that are here local.
They love to know, like youknow, what Shelby is definitely
professional, but look at her onthe other side and I really
think that it shows theauthenticity of me and how I run
my business and run my life,and I always share a lot about
her on social media becausepeople that have been my clients
(11:02):
for almost 10 years or eightyears they have.
They knew me before Kenzie andso they love to see her on there
and like how she's thriving andhow, like what we do in our
personal life and things likethat.
So I just want to encourage youif you are a mother in business,
maybe you're the CEO, maybeyou're an executive, maybe you
have that side hustle that wetalked about.
(11:24):
I want you to let go ofperfection and just trust the
process of being a mother and abusiness person and that's
coming from someone that is aperfectionist.
So know that you are not alone.
If you have those days whereyou just want to lay on the
couch.
If I've had a long day at workand Kinsey comes home from
school and I really just want tolay on the couch, I tell her
(11:47):
listen, mama's had a really longday.
I'm going to lay on the couch,let's turn on a movie.
Or if you want to go play inyour room, you're more than
welcome to.
I want to have that opencommunication with her rather
than always feeling like I haveto be on all the time for her
because I can't, because I wason all day at work and so I had
to give less of myself to herand she had to understand that.
(12:10):
So if you're struggling with it, feel free reach out, connect
with me on Instagram, onFacebook, and I would love to
talk about anything that youneed help with, or maybe just
more of the harmony of thatmother life plus the business
owner life.
But just know y'all, we arebadasses and we can do anything.
We put our mind to Catch you onthe next one.
Hey guys, what's up?
It's Shelby here with MarketingHappy Hour Podcast.
So glad that you tuned in toanother episode with me.
I love doing these weekly.
It gets me a little time toshare some of my skills.
It gives me time to share someof my recommendations for your
marketing.
But today we're going to diveinto a little bit more of a
personal side of my life,because I talk a lot about
(00:22):
business.
But you know, honestly, asbusiness owners we have a really
big juggle or balance, orharmony and I'll get into that
between our personal life andour business life.
And today I want to talkdirectly to my mamas, who are
CEOs.
Or maybe you're running abusiness, maybe you're an
executive in a business, maybeyou have a nice little side gig
(00:44):
that you're trying to make yourfull time and you're just like
how the heck do I actuallybalance all of this?
So I'm going to dive into alittle bit about how I guess the
beginning of all of this workedfor me.
I never have been great atbalancing personal and business
life and when I talked to mybusiness coach about this a few
years ago, he told me to stopusing the word balance and start
(01:11):
using the word harmony, becausethere is no way that you can
get 50-50 on both sides right.
Every day is different when itcomes to percentages.
It's going to be like well, mypersonal life took about 80%.
Today, business got about 20%of my energy, or maybe the
business took about 75% of yourenergy, so you only had 25 when
you got home or with your kid,and they're just going to have
to acknowledge that and be okaywith it.
(01:32):
And so when I became a mom mybaby is four right now and she's
a little COVID baby but when Ibecame a mom, my entire life
totally changed.
It was something that I reallywanted my entire life, and then
found out some news that Iprobably wouldn't have a kid.
Anyways, long story short,obviously ended up having a kid.
(01:56):
She is a miracle baby and Ilove her, but I will.
I would be wrong to say thatshe didn't completely change my
entire life.
At the time that I had gottenpregnant with her, I was really
into my work, my business was,my baby.
Obviously COVID had just hitand I didn't even know if, like,
(02:18):
I was going to be able tosurvive COVID, like when it came
to business or whatever.
And then finding out I waspregnant.
On top of that is a lot tohandle mentally.
But the moment that I had herand was holding her in the
hospital, I was like why do Ifeel like I can do this?
I just had, like this sudden,like responsibility come about
(02:39):
me.
Things in this world that Ithought mattered didn't matter
anymore, things in this worldthat I thought mattered didn't
matter anymore.
I was very, all about business.
I was very honed into thatlifestyle where I worked a lot.
Some people called me aworkaholic and it was weird
(03:02):
because I was like how issomething more important than
the thing that's always beenmost important in my life and
that's my business?
But if you think about it,business was my baby to begin
with, and I always tell peoplelike, yeah, it's always been my
first born.
I mean, I'm coming up on 10years of business and that's a
really long time One to be inbusiness for as a self-employed
person, which I'm super gratefuland honored and blessed.
And two, it's a really longtime and effort and a lot of
(03:26):
energy and a lot of seasons ofdrought and a lot of seasons of
good and going up and down, andso really having a business is
just like having a child.
You have to make sure it's fed,you have to make sure it's
sleeping, you have to make surethat it's got the
responsibilities that it needs,that it handles itself.
You've got to mature with thebusiness.
(03:48):
So, back to whenever I had mybaby, I was going to take off
about three months.
That ended up not being able towork out, and so I ended up
having to go back into work, ofcourse, because I was literally
all.
The only thing that kept mybusiness afloat was me, and I do
look back and regret that,because I did not set up my
(04:10):
business correctly and I hadliterally nine months to set it
up but I did not set it upcorrectly so that way I could
take the right amount of restfor me and for Mackenzie and
making sure that I would likejump back in and really be
rested and like ready to go.
But instead that didn't happen.
(04:30):
So I started working againabout three weeks after having
her and making sure that, likesign jobs were getting done, my
social media clients were beinghandled, I was trying to sell,
because I was the mainbreadwinner of the family and so
if I didn't sell anything, thenwe weren't going to eat very
well that day or that week andso we just had a baby.
(04:52):
I had to make sure that we hadmoney in the bank and we had
savings coming in, um anyways.
So all of that to say, I reallyjust kind of want to give you
what a typical week looks likefor me as a CEO and a mom, and,
right now, full-time single momand I am.
(05:14):
Some days I'm really great, somedays I'm really not, and I've
learned as an Enneagram 8 Iusually steer away from emotions
.
I try to just tough it out.
I try to just tough it out.
I try to just really pushthrough the things that are not
very fun.
But once I started realizingthat I'm not allowing these
emotions to come through andthat it was really hindering me
(05:34):
more, I now allow myself to rest.
I allow myself to feel weak.
I allow myself to just havethose emotional breakdowns with
my kid when she has thoseemotional breakdowns, and to
understand that she has thoseemotional breakdowns and to
understand that it's okay thatI'm not always okay as annoying
as that saying is, but it's trueit's okay that you are not
(05:57):
always a boss bitch, like I havealways been called boss bae.
That's literally on all of myInstagram tags, facebook.
I also have a bunch ofnicknames as boss babe and I
just had this persona beforehaving Kenzie that I couldn't
let anything weak come out.
And I kind of regret that nowtoo, because I feel like I could
(06:19):
have advanced a lot more as aperson.
I could have advanced a lotmore in my business if I would
have let those vulnerablemoments come through earlier.
But I am grateful that my kidcame into my life and has helped
me really understand all ofthis.
So when she was first born, Itook her to sign jobs with me.
(06:40):
She was with me every day in mykangaroo pouch, which is a
little front pouch.
She went to meetings with me.
She, I guess, started learningfrom day one and I had it in my
mind that I was going to be likethis amazing superwoman of a
mom.
I was going to work full time.
I was going to take care of mykid full time.
(07:01):
I was not ever going to letanybody else take care of her.
Like I used to think daycareswere disgusting and a complete
waste of money and I was like,why would I drop my kid off with
somebody else and let themraise them when I'm not going to
see her.
And, wow, did my mindcompletely change about that
situation.
(07:22):
It was the hardest thing I'veever done trying to run a
business, trying to raise her,making sure because she like
wanted to be held every daywhenever she napped.
A lot of times I tried to sleepwhen she did because I was so
exhausted from having her allnight.
But then, about 14 months, Ilooked into daycares and started
(07:43):
out part-time two days a weekand I, of course, was super
emotional the first couple oftimes it happened.
And then I started being likeokay, I've got like me time.
Like okay, I can like go and doa little bit of shopping, which
is easier without a 14 monthold.
I can do some work, I can go tomeetings, I can actually like
dress up and feel pretty for theday, rather than always being
(08:06):
in like workout clothes orsweatpants.
And those two days a week endedup turning out full time and
she completely thrived indaycare.
In that moment is when Irealized that we are all gifted
in certain areas and I was notgifted to be a full time mother.
I can tell you I was not giftedto make sure that my kid knows
(08:27):
her ABCs, or one, two, threes oranything like that.
So the school and the teachersreally helped out on that aspect
, because that's what they'regifted in and now that she's in
pre-K four, like it is justamazing.
She loves school, she loves togo Her social, she's a little
social butterfly.
She does so well and she'sthriving in that area because I
(08:48):
have taken my pride out of it,put her into something that was
going to help her succeed morein the future, and then I get to
focus on my first baby in mybusiness.
So I mean, now I really lovethat I have the flexibility of
it.
Right, as entrepreneurs, we gointo this with this idea of like
(09:10):
, oh, I can work whenever I wantto, I can go on vacation
whenever I want to.
Like, I make my own scheduleand that's the glory and the
amazing part about being abusiness owner is you do have
the flexibility.
Yes, I have to answer to 50plus clients every week when it
comes to, like, digitalmarketing stuff, but I get to
choose when I answer my phone,when I text them back, when I
(09:31):
email.
I set those boundaries betweenme and my clients and so that's
what makes it great.
So, when she's on break or ifshe's maybe sick one day, then I
always have the opportunity tobe that mom for the day and
understand that that 80% isgoing to my mom life versus 80%
going to business.
I also have noticed that sheloves to work with me and that
(09:58):
part makes me so proud because Igrew up with a dad that owned
his own business and I watchedhim grow and be successful in
his life and I know what I feltlike towards my dad, like really
like just looked up to him alot and I really hope that
Kenzie does the same thing, andy'all have heard her on the
(10:19):
podcast.
She loves to go take pictureswith me.
She has a little camera of herown.
I let her take pictureswhenever we are out at photo
shoots.
She, if I have to take her toone of my client meetings,
they're always okay with itbecause she sits there like
really, really quiet.
She's very, still, um and,honestly, they love to have her
(10:39):
around because it's just showingmy authentic self to my clients
that are here local.
They love to know, like youknow, what Shelby is definitely
professional, but look at her onthe other side and I really
think that it shows theauthenticity of me and how I run
my business and run my life,and I always share a lot about
her on social media becausepeople that have been my clients
(11:02):
for almost 10 years or eightyears they have.
They knew me before Kenzie andso they love to see her on there
and like how she's thriving andhow, like what we do in our
personal life and things likethat.
So I just want to encourage youif you are a mother in business,
maybe you're the CEO, maybeyou're an executive, maybe you
have that side hustle that wetalked about.
(11:24):
I want you to let go ofperfection and just trust the
process of being a mother and abusiness person and that's
coming from someone that is aperfectionist.
So know that you are not alone.
If you have those days whereyou just want to lay on the
couch.
If I've had a long day at workand Kinsey comes home from
school and I really just want tolay on the couch, I tell her
(11:47):
listen, mama's had a really longday.
I'm going to lay on the couch,let's turn on a movie.
Or if you want to go play inyour room, you're more than
welcome to.
I want to have that opencommunication with her rather
than always feeling like I haveto be on all the time for her
because I can't, because I wason all day at work and so I had
to give less of myself to herand she had to understand that.
(12:10):
So if you're struggling with it, feel free reach out, connect
with me on Instagram, onFacebook, and I would love to
talk about anything that youneed help with, or maybe just
more of the harmony of thatmother life plus the business
owner life.
But just know y'all, we arebadasses and we can do anything.
We put our mind to Catch you onthe next one.
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