July 15, 2025 • 33 mins
If you're a business owner and expecting a baby, this episode is your permission slip to rest.
Host Kaitlin McGreyes sits down with Hannah Vasquez, founder of Your Favorite VA, to talk about how entrepreneurs can actually take a maternity leave—without their business falling apart. From scheduling content in advance to automating systems and delegating tasks, Hannah breaks down how to prepare your business to coast while you recover and bond with your baby.
They explore:
- How to “nest” your business just like you’d nest your home
- The difference between working on your business vs. in your business
- Why we often underestimate how demanding postpartum life really is
- How to focus your energy on revenue- and impact-generating activities
This conversation is practical, validating, and deeply necessary for any entrepreneur who’s navigating pregnancy and parenthood.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_01 (00:00):
Maternity leave brings this really, really
unique space for moms to becomecreative again in their
business.
We're not going to launch abrand new thing during maternity
leave.
Map it out.
What can be manual?
What can be automated?
What can be paused and what canbe scheduled?
What do you want?
Not what the world wants of you,not what you feel like you
should want, but like what doyou
SPEAKER_00 (00:21):
want for your maternity leave?
Welcome back to the Be HerVillage podcast.
I'm your host, Caitlin Magreas.
I'm a doula, a mom of three, andI'm the founder of Be Her This
is the podcast where we talkabout the real cost of having a
baby, not just the dollars andcents, but the emotional,
physical, and logistical supportit takes to truly thrive in
(00:43):
pregnancy, birth, andpostpartum.
Today's episode is part two ofmy conversation with Hannah
Vasquez, founder of YourFavorite VA.
We're diving into something somany entrepreneurs struggle
with.
How do you take a real maternityleave when you run your own
business?
(01:03):
We talk about preparing yourbusiness for maternity leave and
how it can be a lot like nestingin your home, cleaning out what
no longer serves you andpreparing yourself for life with
baby.
Make sure you subscribe to ourpodcast so you don't miss any
episodes.
And if you're a parent orparent-to-be, I want to make
sure to mention Be Her Village.
(01:24):
It's a free gift registry toolthat helps you build a maternity
leave fund or funds for theother supports you need in the
postpartum time.
for things like doulas,postpartum care, meals, and
more.
Instead of more baby stuff atyour baby shower, you can ask
your people to give you what youactually need to thrive.
(01:45):
Check it out in the show notes.
Enjoy this conversation withHannah.
SPEAKER_01 (01:51):
I feel selfish.
I can't take a maternity leave.
I'm bringing in income, and sowhy would I pay for a maternity
leave?
Or it's even...
I can pop on, like I work fromhome and the baby's just going
to be sleeping anyways.
So I can do that.
And it's like, well, you could,but should you?
(02:11):
Like, is that serving you best?
Is that serving your familybest?
Is that even serving yourbusiness best?
Because you may be sending anemail at 2 a.m.
And the next morning you'relike, why did I agree to that?
Like, that was 2 a.m., Hannah.
That is not...
9 a.m.
I've had a cup of coffee,Hannah.
(02:32):
Like, so I think that's a bigpart of the entrepreneur gets in
her own head
SPEAKER_00 (02:37):
and
SPEAKER_01 (02:38):
allows like some of those.
Just again, like some of thosepressures and unrealistic
expectations to kind ofcompound.
So I would say that's a bigthing.
But then from there, if you canmove past that.
it's actually really, reallydoable.
Because if you look at a lot ofour businesses, a lot of them
(03:01):
are like task oriented in a way.
And it's like, we're going tolet you have your maternity
leave.
We're going to come up with theplan even before you go.
So we can batch things.
We can automate things.
We can schedule things out.
And like the parts of yourbusiness, like if you're a
coach, yeah, there's like thatpersonal touch of you that But
(03:22):
let's get creative and thinkthrough different ways that we
can just have your maternityleave, like have it coast.
You know, we're not going tolaunch a brand new thing during
maternity leave because we doneed you for that.
Like, you are your business.
But like, We can bring people into make sure they're checking in
on your clients.
(03:43):
We can bring people in to makesure that that social media post
that was scheduled before youleft actually went out.
We can follow up on emails andjust say like, hey, so and so is
on maternity leave, but how canI help you?
Like, those are all doable.
And I think maternity leavebrings this really, really
unique space for moms to becomecreative again in their
(04:05):
business.
You get to stop, pause, andrethink your whole business.
It's actually in my maternityleave guide.
It's called We Map It Out.
So we're going to go througheverything in your business.
What needs to be manually done?
What needs to be automated?
What do you want to pause?
(04:25):
This is also a really good time.
If there are things in yourbusiness you're like, I don't
like doing it or this is notturning out the way I wanted or
I just want to stop it.
Great.
Let's pause that.
Like this is a really, reallygood time to like to prune
everything, whatever you want todo.
And then whatever we canschedule ahead of time.
Let's schedule those newnewsletters.
(04:46):
Let's schedule that social mediaposts.
Let's schedule anything that wecan.
And we can create something new.
So maybe it's you create a minicourse.
Maybe it's you start to recordsome of your calls for
trainings.
Whatever it is, we can do that.
And we can make sure the lightsare still on in your business
while you're on a maternityleave.
(05:07):
So I think that's the big partis like you got to get out of
your head however you can.
Bring other mom entrepreneursaround you to help you see that.
And then...
brain dump and then like map itout what can be manual what can
be automated what can be pausedand what can be scheduled if you
can break it down into thosesteps it's going to help a lot
(05:30):
and then there may be like thismiscellaneous section you're
like i don't i don't know thisis what i have i don't know how
like what this works how thisgoes okay great at least we know
here's this bucket that we don'tknow what to do with but we can
create a plan and a systemaround it but you're holding a
(05:50):
lot right now.
You're thinking about yourfamily.
You're trying to figure out, doI set up the nursery now or
later?
Like, did I remember to pack mykids lunch?
And you know, you're thinking ofall these things.
So it can be hard just to beable to see the bigger picture
because you're focused on allthe little tasks right now.
So I would say like, that's beenjust a huge roadblock of what
(06:12):
I've noticed.
And again, like once we canfigure out like, what do you
want?
Not what the world wants of you,not what you feel like you
should want, but what do youwant for your maternity leave?
What are your roadblocks?
How can we map out yourbusiness?
(06:32):
Then we can come up with thosenext steps, whether that's
bringing in help, whether thatis, yeah, I'm going to pause
some of this stuff, or I'm goingto launch this before I go on
maternity leave, and that'sgoing to be another source of
income while I'm out.
Passive income is going
SPEAKER_00 (06:48):
to become your best friend.
Yeah.
So Hannah, I'm listening to you.
And as a business owner, as anentrepreneur, as someone who
works at this every day, whatyou're talking about is what we
should be doing in ourbusinesses anyway.
And it's almost like when...
(07:09):
You going on maternity leave,you know how you nest while
you're pregnant, how you nestand you like wash the walls and
you clean under the bed and youclean out under your dresser and
you like go through every drawerand you get rid of all this
stuff that you've been holdingon to.
And it's not that you've beenholding on to it in a like in an
angsty kind of way.
You're holding on to it becauseyou just haven't looked at it in
(07:30):
a while.
And when we purge and we nestand we lighten and we make sure
everything's in its place in ourhouse, think about how good that
feels.
I have been purging in my house,like spring cleaning, right?
My kid's spring break is nextweek and we've been just like
ripping through the house andlike, you know, vacuuming and
dust bunning, like all thecorners that haven't been
(07:51):
touched and all the kids'dressers.
And we've been taking garbagebags full of stuff out of our
house that like We didn't have abunch of garbage around our
house.
It's just the purge hashappened.
And- Anytime.
It's one of my favorite thingsto do.
But that purge, the lightnessthat happens after that physical
(08:12):
purge in a home where likeliterally the home feels
lighter, it feels cleaner andeveryone knows where things go
and how they operate and all ofour processes and systems and
routines and rituals have goeasier and smoother now.
Putting laundry away is easier.
Putting, you know, cleaning upbefore bedtime for my kids
(08:35):
easier because there's just lessstuff and everything feels
great.
That same principle of whatwe're doing to our homes has to
be done for our businesses.
And it's sort of like springcleaning.
It has to happen whether or notyou are pregnant, but it
definitely happens when you'repregnant, right?
It like, I love that.
It's your business.
(08:55):
Yeah.
Yes.
It's deep cleaning.
It's spring cleaning for yourbusiness.
And it, it helps you get, I liketo call it debris because we
find it all the time at BeerVillage.
Like there's just like thesethings that you create and maybe
stop working on, or it wasn'tthe thing.
And it's just there.
And like, there's just theselittle leftover things that you
can tidy up.
And, and this moment ofintrospection, which is not
(09:18):
always comfortable And it alsodoesn't always feel like the
important thing to do.
It's actually so important tosit and take an honest look at
your business and look at wherethe money is coming in and look
at where your time is going.
And if those things are notaligned so that your time is
optimized and your revenue isoptimized, then you're not doing
(09:39):
this right.
And it can be uncomfortablebecause sometimes our, and I'm
speaking really from personalexperience here, but sometimes
the thing that we think isimportant is actually not...
It's taking up the most amountof time and it's not bringing in
revenue.
It's not actually like...
And...
I'm speaking in revenue becausewe're talking about
entrepreneurs, but for mom-basedand mom-focused and business,
(10:03):
it's impact.
If it's not making revenue, it'snot being impactful, and it's
not helping your business grow.
It's not sustaining your family.
It's not giving you back thatenergy.
At the end of the day, and I'vehad a long and still
ever-evolving relationshiparound money, which is probably
a whole other podcast episode weshould talk about, is this- It
(10:24):
is an energy exchange.
When I'm pouring into mybusiness, when I'm spending all
this time on this task, and it'snot bringing back the energy
that I need to go live my lifeand be the mom I want to be and
be the breadwinner I want to beand afford my family the
luxuries that I would like us tohave, there's something really
off balance there.
And so what an incredibleopportunity that maternity leave
(10:47):
offers us.
And I have to say, like, ormaternity leave, but also just
like birth.
Like, I feel so strongly afterbeing at hundreds of births as a
doula, after just supporting allthese families, like, birth is
this incredible thing because itjust...
puts us under the microscope itputs us to the test our bodies
(11:07):
are physically tested ourrelationships are tested our
self-care is more vital thanit's ever been our birth oh it
just it unfolds us in reallyuncomfortable ways and really
beautiful ways depending on thework we've done you know the
trauma that comes up the traumathat happens the beauty the joy
it's all wrapped up and the factthat it also can do that for our
(11:32):
business that it gives us thisopportunity Thank you so much.
how can we optimize this so thatwe don't need to be a hundred
percent hands-on all the time?
That feels like a big deal.
And it feels like a big dealthat moms should be doing with
(11:53):
their businesses, whetherthey're about to have a baby or
not.
Like I want to go like do thisfor my business, even though I'm
not having a maternity leaveanytime soon slash ever again,
because I'm done having mybabies.
It's like, yes, everybody shouldbe doing this.
This is such a big deal, Hannah.
I told moms
SPEAKER_01 (12:09):
like, While we're prepping for your maternity
leave, it is going to be themost, your business will be the
most organized it has ever beenbecause it does, it forces you
to, okay, hey, I mapped out mybusiness now.
I'm going to create those SOPs.
I'm going to have these plans.
And then what's really nice isyou get your business to the
spot where it's like, okay.
(12:30):
It's set.
It's ready.
So then when you come back, ifyou decide, like, I need to hire
some help.
Like, I've got this newborn.
I've got this.
I've got that.
Now you can hire a VA and belike, here are the SOPs.
There you go.
Like, it just creates this.
But even back to what you'resaying, like, just what having a
(12:50):
baby, like this new birthexperience, like what it brings
for you, I think at least thisis what it did for my husband
and I.
It had us stop and reevaluateevery single aspect of our life
because we had something biggerthan ourselves to live for.
Like, we have to be our best forthis baby.
(13:13):
We need to have these systemsand routines in place for our
baby and everything.
Gosh, this is even going back tothings you said earlier, like
the female entrepreneur and howif you look at most of them, I'm
not going to say all of thembecause I haven't talked to all
of them.
But if you look at most of them,they've either started a
business for their babies orbecause of their babies, because
(13:35):
they wanted the flexibilitybecause they didn't want to be
told what to do anymore.
And they wanted to be at everysoccer game and every game.
I don't know, play, whatever.
My baby is still a baby.
So I don't
SPEAKER_00 (13:47):
know.
You don't know what the mom is
SPEAKER_01 (13:48):
doing, but you know, they seem very busy.
They do.
And I know you are, but like youwanted to go to the park.
You wanted to do all thesethings.
Yeah.
So a female entrepreneur in herbusiness, it is so powerful
because of their why and theroot of their why it is their
family and it is their babies.
And that's why I'm like, takethis maternity leave.
(14:09):
Like your business was built forthis, right?
For this moment.
And just because you're able totake a maternity leave and your
business is able to functionwithout you doesn't mean it
doesn't need you.
And I don't know about you, butlike that's a fear for me.
I don't know if you're intoEnneagram.
I'm an Enneagram 2 with a strongwing 3.
(14:29):
But like I need to be needed.
I want to be needed.
Like any way you need me, I'm
SPEAKER_00 (14:34):
here.
I'm here.
I'm really okay not beingneeded.
I've never felt more needed inmy life being a mother.
I'm like, could you guys need meslightly less?
And
SPEAKER_01 (14:43):
that's like, even there are times I'm like, I need
a break from my son.
And so like, my parents areamazing.
They'll take them.
And I'm like, but does he needme?
Like, right.
Don't you love me?
And then when he's like, no, youcan leave.
I'm like, okay.
My heart just fell apart, butthat's fine.
But like, I don't know for someof these moms out there, the
idea of leaving their business,does that mean my business
(15:05):
doesn't need me?
And if so, yeah.
then like, why am I doing this?
And it's like, no, no, no, no.
Your business can functionwithout you, but it needs you.
It like, you are the heartbeatof your business and your reason
why is why your business issuccessful.
SPEAKER_00 (15:26):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (15:26):
Why behind it?
And like, nothing's strongerthan a mother's love.
We both know that.
And so if that's at the root ofour businesses and us taking a
maternity leave is allowing usjust to like, water that plant,
like to keep filling up thatcup, that's gonna, our business
is going to be the overflow ofthat.
And our clients are going tofeel that the world is going to
(15:47):
feel that.
And I think that's just going tobe such an incredibly powerful
thing.
It already is like you see it.
And there's nothing greater thanlike, women coming together and
supporting one another andloving one another and
connecting and like, yeah, weget it.
We are We're crazy and chose toenter like this beautiful chaos
(16:09):
of motherhood andentrepreneurship, but we
wouldn't change it for theworld.
Because look at what it's givingus and what it's giving others.
SPEAKER_00 (16:16):
Right.
One of my earlier mentors in mybusiness, he told me like
probably the third time we evermet, he said, You have to work
on your business, not in yourbusiness.
And it was such an importantmindset switch because we can
feel as business owners and asmoms and as women who sort of
(16:39):
like feel like we have to takeeverything on.
We can feel like I have to workin the business.
I have to answer the email.
I have to fulfill the order.
I have to book the call.
I have to like everything sortof these like little tasky
things have to get done.
And it's true.
They have to happen.
It's not necessarily by us,though.
What we as CEOs, as founders, asbusiness owners need to do is we
(17:01):
need to work on our business.
We need to think about where amI growing my impact?
Where am I growing my revenue?
What partnership am I executing?
What is the market looking like?
Where's the next space I'mmoving into?
What's my next offer?
What's my next thing that'shappening?
And that is working on yourbusiness.
(17:24):
And you cannot work in yourbusiness 100% of the time doing
all the little tasky things andalso work on your business.
And I have found that so manytimes that we're– and I'm about
to take a week and a day off andI know my business is going to
grow so much both while I'm awaybecause somehow the energetic
(17:45):
shift– my business always doesvery well when I step away from
it.
I do have a team that helps moveit forward.
Maybe I'm holding them back therest of the time.
Nobody knows.
It's okay.
And– And also when I come backwith my cup full and my brain in
the background, thinking aboutmy business and connecting dots
in this really relaxed statethat I get into when I'm away
(18:07):
from my business, focusing on myfamily, focusing on myself,
having alone time, whatever I'mdoing, it, it grows.
I come back with new energy,with new invigoration, with new
ideas and with a different ideaof like where we should steer
the ship.
And so, Part of it is that,right?
The best case as an owner and abusiness owner and an
(18:33):
entrepreneur is we have to growour business and we have to keep
growing our impact.
And the way to do that is not bydoing every single task.
It's not.
Maternity leave andentrepreneurship, it's almost
like using this opportunity as away to do the things in our
business we might have needed todo the whole time.
(18:55):
You like cleaning out the sockdrawer, right?
And like vacuuming under yourdresser.
Like you needed to do that thewhole time.
And now you have an excuse to.
And I think it's absolutelybrilliant.
SPEAKER_01 (19:05):
And I think like, goodness, even what you're
talking about, like taking timeaway and you have a team.
I think there are like...
different stages of leadershipthere is the leader that's like
in front of like we're goingthis way let's go team um but
then that's only going to getyou so far if you're doing all
like you're doing all the workand then you have your team
(19:28):
behind you and they're like hilike we're here we want to help
you and you're like nope we'regoing this way and you're in
front of them so you'reconstantly looking back
wondering what they're doing andyou're like well i gotta keep my
eyes forward otherwise we'regonna fall back um But I think
like two of the best places aleader can be is either
alongside or behind.
Or alongside, you're working inthat team and it's like, hey
(19:51):
guys, like let's do thistogether.
Let's move forward together.
Here's the thought, but I'mright here next to you and we're
going to do this.
And then I think like the sweetspot for a leader is when they
are able to move from the sideand go in the back and say, no,
go.
Yes.
Move it forward.
I trust you.
I believe in you.
You got this.
(20:11):
Let's go.
And so then you're in the backand you're still able to steer,
but you're able to see otherpeople doing it.
And you're able to steer bypaying attention to the market,
partnerships, collaborations,and you're able to do the bigger
picture things while they're inthe weeds.
And they want to be in theweeds.
Like that's why the role of aVA, it's like, We want to take
those tedious tasks that you allhate.
(20:33):
We want to do them for youbecause we believe in you and in
your business.
And if you're stuck in all ofthat, you're going to get
tangled up.
We need you to be able to belike that blue sky thinker and
dream all the dreams and thenwe'll help those dreams come
true.
But you can't dream those dreamsif your head is filled with, did
I respond to that email?
(20:54):
Did I book this?
Did that invoice get paid?
Did this happen?
Did that happen?
Like...
your brain can only hold somuch.
That is absolutely true.
Did I feed my kids?
What did they eat?
I don't even remember.
Or did they just eat applesaucebecause that's the only thing
they would eat today?
Like, you know, it's, there's somuch and that mental load is
(21:18):
such a real, real thing.
And
SPEAKER_00 (21:20):
that is an important point that I feel like we have
not touched on yet.
And I would, I do not want tosign off until we touch on it,
which is, Which is that I thinkone of the reasons why moms
might not plan a propermaternity leave for their
business is because, especiallyif it's their first go around,
but also we have a way offorgetting even for the second
(21:42):
and third, is we don't realizehow much mental and physical and
emotional and spiritual energytaking care of a newborn takes,
especially after giving birthourselves.
Honestly, Take the newborn outof it for one second.
Just remove them from the room.
Taking care of ourselves afterbirth is such an endeavor.
(22:04):
Like the body is doing thingsthe body's never done before.
The body is leaking and there'snew liquids and feelings.
This
SPEAKER_01 (22:14):
could
SPEAKER_00 (22:14):
happen.
It's like a whole experience.
And that's a recovery all on itsown.
Then add that newborn back in.
You have to feed it.
You have to take care of it.
You have to like worry about it.
You have to look at it.
It's like the whole, you I knowthere's this whole you're
falling in love with it.
Then add in like you're notsleeping, right?
There might be an older child inthe house.
Everyone's adjusting.
(22:35):
It's a huge endeavor.
And so- It literally takes 24hours a day to take care of that
baby.
And I loved how you said it.
I'm trying to get through thenext 10 minutes.
That's how most of us in thatnewborn time, we're trying to
get through the next 10 minutesthrough the feeding, through the
diaper change, through the 10minute awake window you get in
(22:55):
the very early days, throughtrying to get them down for
their next nap, through tryingto take a shower, trying to pee
alone.
Like there's just, let alonelooking and making eye contact
with your partner, let alonecooking a meal, let alone eating
a meal.
I mean, it's, The task of takingcare of a newborn is, in my
opinion, harder than anyprofessional job out there.
(23:16):
And, like, listen, I'm surethere's exceptions.
And please tell me all of theexceptions.
Tell me what jobs you're doing.
Write into me and tell me thejob you're doing that's harder
than motherhood.
I will concede the point if it'svalid.
But, like, I think that's a fairgeneralization to make.
And that is part of it is, like,you– Can't really anticipate how
difficult, lovely, wonderful,enjoy every moment.
(23:39):
Sure.
But like, it's hard.
Taking care of a newborn ishard.
Taking care of a newborn aftergiving birth is hard.
Taking care of a newborn aftergiving birth while running your
business, it's near impossible.
And without taking...
the steps to set yourself upwith support, a proper maternity
leave, the care that you needfor yourself, the care you need
(24:02):
for your household, for the restof your family, for your pets,
for your own recovery andnourishment.
Like you have to do thisplanning in order to get through
that hole and to actually beable to enjoy it, which we
should.
We should enjoy it.
It's really hard.
But like if you set that up foryourself, it's it's not it's
it's supposed to be hard.
(24:22):
It's not supposed to be torture.
Like there's a
SPEAKER_01 (24:25):
balance.
It's And I mean, it's hard, butlike the benefits are unmatched
when, you know, when you seethat first smile or they open up
their eyes and they look at you,you're like melting inside as
you should, because this is yourthat you're holding.
And something I've told someclients, it's like, okay, it's
(24:46):
going to feel like a lot of workbeforehand because it kind of
is, you're running a business,you're creating the SOPs, you're
going through this process, butBut, and we know this because
growing up, our parents told usthis.
If you already have kids, you'retelling your kids this.
It's like you work hard now toreap the reward later.
And so it's, oh my goodness, ifyou, and this is why you can
(25:11):
have help.
Like if we can together set thisup for you so you are able to
actually detach for yourmaternity leave, You are, like,
the way that you are lovingyourself, your baby, your
business, your family, anything,it's so good.
And the last thing you want tobe worrying about is, like, the
(25:34):
hormones are kicking in, you'recrying, and you don't know why.
Your baby is crying, and theydon't know why.
The whole household is crying,and no one knows why, but you
were supposed to be on a meeting10 minutes ago, and you're like,
no.
Like...
I'm still wearing my diaper andI'm crying and I need to change
my baby's diaper and my baby'scrying.
I can't jump on a meeting rightnow.
(25:55):
The best gift you can giveyourself is maternity leave.
And again, you don't have toprove anything.
You don't have to earn it.
It's not a matter of can youhandle it or not.
And if you can't, then thatmeans I'm not enough.
It's not any of those things.
It's the mere fact of you...
(26:16):
You are in the thick of it, andthis is one way that you can
just love yourself.
And that's okay.
It's not selfish.
Maternity leave, it's not avacation.
It's not that.
And if you want a vacation, takethe dang vacation.
Like, someone was telling methat...
The way I mother best is bycaring for myself.
(26:38):
Because if I get low on thatself-care, then that ripples out
into my mothering.
And if my daughter can see theway that I care for myself, the
way that I fill my cup, and thatI see value in myself enough to
do those things, then that'sgoing to communicate to herself.
I have value.
I have worth.
It's okay for me to want torest.
(26:59):
It's okay for me to want to carefor myself because I'm important
too.
And so our kids are going tolook back and see these things,
whether, I mean, our babiesaren't going to remember
maternity leave, but they'regoing to hear us talk about it.
They're going to see thepatterns that we exhibit in our
life from the moment they'reborn for the rest of their
(27:20):
lives.
And so what do we want to showour kids?
I don't want my son to grow upthinking he has to prove himself
all the time and that he has toearn every thing that...
Things that don't need to beearned.
Things that are just like, no,this is like a basic human
SPEAKER_00 (27:35):
right.
Like, this is something...
You don't want him to think thathe has to earn rest.
Like, you earn it by givingbirth.
You earn it by having a newborn.
You earn it by existing.
Absolutely.
Basic human rights and thingsthat are part of rituals for...
eons and every other culture andancient cultures had rituals
(27:57):
around rest right that you don'twant our kids because I hear I
heard that moment in that whereyou're like wait no I do want
him to know he has to earnthings right it's like you're
not just gonna get everything
SPEAKER_01 (28:08):
handed to you but like things like this it's like
different no you earned it thesecond Again, the second you
decide you're going to starttrying for that baby, you earned
this maternity leave.
The second you saw the two pinklines, you earned it.
Through the nine months ofhowever it was for me, it was
not great.
(28:29):
But you
SPEAKER_00 (28:29):
earned it.
You gave birth.
You earned it.
And not for nothing, just to beinclusive here, you also earned
it if you adopted or had asurrogate or fostering.
We've had moms on Beer Villagethat fostered and had a whole
registry and got all the supportbecause they were fostering a
newborn.
The newborn, I think, is the orthe kid or the adjustment.
(28:51):
It is It is wildly difficult andwe do deserve it.
And I think it's such animportant note and one that's
really great to end on this ideathat like of all the things we
discussed, you deserve to havethis and you deserve to have it
all, right?
You don't have to choose betweenwork and family.
You don't have to choose betweenyour business and rest.
(29:11):
You can have all of thosethings.
Hannah, thank you so much forcoming and having this
conversation.
Can you please tell us how to bein touch with you If someone's
listening to this and thinkingto themselves, well, okay, first
of all, I'm not even having ababy and I want to do what
Hannah's doing.
I want to spring clean mybusiness.
Let's talk about that.
(29:33):
But also, how can someone who isan entrepreneur who falls into
that 40% of people who can'taccess any of the FMLA,
short-term disability, any ofthe current measures that we
have for maternity leave, howcan they have you help them
create a maternity leave?
How are they going to get intouch with you?
SPEAKER_01 (29:54):
Absolutely.
I think the best way is followme on Instagram, your favorite
VA.
That's where I run a majority ofmy business.
So that's where you can find mynewsletter.
Get on there.
That's where we're putting upour services, any...
Any discounts, specials, or justinformation about maternity
leave, it's all right there.
(30:15):
And we have different offerings.
So I know each mom is different.
Some of them are like, I justwant to go at my own pace.
I need some help.
Or please just do the wholething for me.
We have all that.
We have a maternity leave guide.
That is a great first step.
And it walks you through thesesteps of even financial
planning, mapping out yourbusiness, email communication
(30:36):
with clients and like, what do Isend?
When do I send it?
Here's a timeline, a checklist.
All of that is there.
That is, I would say, the numberone best place to start.
And then going through that, ifyou're like, please talk to me,
please, I need to verballyprocess.
Let's set up a strategy call.
And then from there, if you'relike, okay, just girl, Run, run
it.
(30:56):
Then great.
We have a service where we willdo your maternity leave on your
terms.
So it's completely customizable.
We'll come in before your duedate so we can learn your
business.
Then we will run your maternityleave for however long you
choose.
And then my favorite part is wehelp you reintegrate back in.
So it's not going to be thatwhiplash of yesterday I was on
(31:17):
maternity leave.
Today I'm back in full-timework.
No, no, no, no, no.
Like we're going to create thatplan together and we will help
you for a for you to settle backin and get used to whatever this
new life is going to look likefor you.
SPEAKER_00 (31:38):
Check out the show notes.
All of her links are there.
If you want to do this on yourown, her guide is worth every
single penny.
It has all the things you needto think through for your
business, but she also offershands-on help.
You can consult with her or youcan hire her to take over and
take a full-blown maternityleave.
She's incredible and doingreally, really important work.
(32:01):
I hope today's episode and ourconversation gave you not only
the tools you need to thinkabout creating maternity leave,
but also the permission to restand plan and prioritize yourself
both as a parent, but also as abusiness owner.
Don't forget to hit subscribeand leave us a review.
(32:22):
Every review helps us gain morevisibility with the parents and
birth workers that need to hearthis information.
I really, really appreciate yousupporting us in that way.
If you're thinking about howyou're We are here.
(33:03):
I am here to make sure thathappens.
Thank you so much for listening.
Catch you next week with more BeHer Village podcast.
Maternity leave brings this really, really
unique space for moms to becomecreative again in their
business.
We're not going to launch abrand new thing during maternity
leave.
Map it out.
What can be manual?
What can be automated?
What can be paused and what canbe scheduled?
What do you want?
Not what the world wants of you,not what you feel like you
should want, but like what doyou
SPEAKER_00 (00:21):
want for your maternity leave?
Welcome back to the Be HerVillage podcast.
I'm your host, Caitlin Magreas.
I'm a doula, a mom of three, andI'm the founder of Be Her This
is the podcast where we talkabout the real cost of having a
baby, not just the dollars andcents, but the emotional,
physical, and logistical supportit takes to truly thrive in
(00:43):
pregnancy, birth, andpostpartum.
Today's episode is part two ofmy conversation with Hannah
Vasquez, founder of YourFavorite VA.
We're diving into something somany entrepreneurs struggle
with.
How do you take a real maternityleave when you run your own
business?
(01:03):
We talk about preparing yourbusiness for maternity leave and
how it can be a lot like nestingin your home, cleaning out what
no longer serves you andpreparing yourself for life with
baby.
Make sure you subscribe to ourpodcast so you don't miss any
episodes.
And if you're a parent orparent-to-be, I want to make
sure to mention Be Her Village.
(01:24):
It's a free gift registry toolthat helps you build a maternity
leave fund or funds for theother supports you need in the
postpartum time.
for things like doulas,postpartum care, meals, and
more.
Instead of more baby stuff atyour baby shower, you can ask
your people to give you what youactually need to thrive.
(01:45):
Check it out in the show notes.
Enjoy this conversation withHannah.
SPEAKER_01 (01:51):
I feel selfish.
I can't take a maternity leave.
I'm bringing in income, and sowhy would I pay for a maternity
leave?
Or it's even...
I can pop on, like I work fromhome and the baby's just going
to be sleeping anyways.
So I can do that.
And it's like, well, you could,but should you?
(02:11):
Like, is that serving you best?
Is that serving your familybest?
Is that even serving yourbusiness best?
Because you may be sending anemail at 2 a.m.
And the next morning you'relike, why did I agree to that?
Like, that was 2 a.m., Hannah.
That is not...
9 a.m.
I've had a cup of coffee,Hannah.
(02:32):
Like, so I think that's a bigpart of the entrepreneur gets in
her own head
SPEAKER_00 (02:37):
and
SPEAKER_01 (02:38):
allows like some of those.
Just again, like some of thosepressures and unrealistic
expectations to kind ofcompound.
So I would say that's a bigthing.
But then from there, if you canmove past that.
it's actually really, reallydoable.
Because if you look at a lot ofour businesses, a lot of them
(03:01):
are like task oriented in a way.
And it's like, we're going tolet you have your maternity
leave.
We're going to come up with theplan even before you go.
So we can batch things.
We can automate things.
We can schedule things out.
And like the parts of yourbusiness, like if you're a
coach, yeah, there's like thatpersonal touch of you that But
(03:22):
let's get creative and thinkthrough different ways that we
can just have your maternityleave, like have it coast.
You know, we're not going tolaunch a brand new thing during
maternity leave because we doneed you for that.
Like, you are your business.
But like, We can bring people into make sure they're checking in
on your clients.
(03:43):
We can bring people in to makesure that that social media post
that was scheduled before youleft actually went out.
We can follow up on emails andjust say like, hey, so and so is
on maternity leave, but how canI help you?
Like, those are all doable.
And I think maternity leavebrings this really, really
unique space for moms to becomecreative again in their
(04:05):
business.
You get to stop, pause, andrethink your whole business.
It's actually in my maternityleave guide.
It's called We Map It Out.
So we're going to go througheverything in your business.
What needs to be manually done?
What needs to be automated?
What do you want to pause?
(04:25):
This is also a really good time.
If there are things in yourbusiness you're like, I don't
like doing it or this is notturning out the way I wanted or
I just want to stop it.
Great.
Let's pause that.
Like this is a really, reallygood time to like to prune
everything, whatever you want todo.
And then whatever we canschedule ahead of time.
Let's schedule those newnewsletters.
(04:46):
Let's schedule that social mediaposts.
Let's schedule anything that wecan.
And we can create something new.
So maybe it's you create a minicourse.
Maybe it's you start to recordsome of your calls for
trainings.
Whatever it is, we can do that.
And we can make sure the lightsare still on in your business
while you're on a maternityleave.
(05:07):
So I think that's the big partis like you got to get out of
your head however you can.
Bring other mom entrepreneursaround you to help you see that.
And then...
brain dump and then like map itout what can be manual what can
be automated what can be pausedand what can be scheduled if you
can break it down into thosesteps it's going to help a lot
(05:30):
and then there may be like thismiscellaneous section you're
like i don't i don't know thisis what i have i don't know how
like what this works how thisgoes okay great at least we know
here's this bucket that we don'tknow what to do with but we can
create a plan and a systemaround it but you're holding a
(05:50):
lot right now.
You're thinking about yourfamily.
You're trying to figure out, doI set up the nursery now or
later?
Like, did I remember to pack mykids lunch?
And you know, you're thinking ofall these things.
So it can be hard just to beable to see the bigger picture
because you're focused on allthe little tasks right now.
So I would say like, that's beenjust a huge roadblock of what
(06:12):
I've noticed.
And again, like once we canfigure out like, what do you
want?
Not what the world wants of you,not what you feel like you
should want, but what do youwant for your maternity leave?
What are your roadblocks?
How can we map out yourbusiness?
(06:32):
Then we can come up with thosenext steps, whether that's
bringing in help, whether thatis, yeah, I'm going to pause
some of this stuff, or I'm goingto launch this before I go on
maternity leave, and that'sgoing to be another source of
income while I'm out.
Passive income is going
SPEAKER_00 (06:48):
to become your best friend.
Yeah.
So Hannah, I'm listening to you.
And as a business owner, as anentrepreneur, as someone who
works at this every day, whatyou're talking about is what we
should be doing in ourbusinesses anyway.
And it's almost like when...
(07:09):
You going on maternity leave,you know how you nest while
you're pregnant, how you nestand you like wash the walls and
you clean under the bed and youclean out under your dresser and
you like go through every drawerand you get rid of all this
stuff that you've been holdingon to.
And it's not that you've beenholding on to it in a like in an
angsty kind of way.
You're holding on to it becauseyou just haven't looked at it in
(07:30):
a while.
And when we purge and we nestand we lighten and we make sure
everything's in its place in ourhouse, think about how good that
feels.
I have been purging in my house,like spring cleaning, right?
My kid's spring break is nextweek and we've been just like
ripping through the house andlike, you know, vacuuming and
dust bunning, like all thecorners that haven't been
(07:51):
touched and all the kids'dressers.
And we've been taking garbagebags full of stuff out of our
house that like We didn't have abunch of garbage around our
house.
It's just the purge hashappened.
And- Anytime.
It's one of my favorite thingsto do.
But that purge, the lightnessthat happens after that physical
(08:12):
purge in a home where likeliterally the home feels
lighter, it feels cleaner andeveryone knows where things go
and how they operate and all ofour processes and systems and
routines and rituals have goeasier and smoother now.
Putting laundry away is easier.
Putting, you know, cleaning upbefore bedtime for my kids
(08:35):
easier because there's just lessstuff and everything feels
great.
That same principle of whatwe're doing to our homes has to
be done for our businesses.
And it's sort of like springcleaning.
It has to happen whether or notyou are pregnant, but it
definitely happens when you'repregnant, right?
It like, I love that.
It's your business.
(08:55):
Yeah.
Yes.
It's deep cleaning.
It's spring cleaning for yourbusiness.
And it, it helps you get, I liketo call it debris because we
find it all the time at BeerVillage.
Like there's just like thesethings that you create and maybe
stop working on, or it wasn'tthe thing.
And it's just there.
And like, there's just theselittle leftover things that you
can tidy up.
And, and this moment ofintrospection, which is not
(09:18):
always comfortable And it alsodoesn't always feel like the
important thing to do.
It's actually so important tosit and take an honest look at
your business and look at wherethe money is coming in and look
at where your time is going.
And if those things are notaligned so that your time is
optimized and your revenue isoptimized, then you're not doing
(09:39):
this right.
And it can be uncomfortablebecause sometimes our, and I'm
speaking really from personalexperience here, but sometimes
the thing that we think isimportant is actually not...
It's taking up the most amountof time and it's not bringing in
revenue.
It's not actually like...
And...
I'm speaking in revenue becausewe're talking about
entrepreneurs, but for mom-basedand mom-focused and business,
(10:03):
it's impact.
If it's not making revenue, it'snot being impactful, and it's
not helping your business grow.
It's not sustaining your family.
It's not giving you back thatenergy.
At the end of the day, and I'vehad a long and still
ever-evolving relationshiparound money, which is probably
a whole other podcast episode weshould talk about, is this- It
(10:24):
is an energy exchange.
When I'm pouring into mybusiness, when I'm spending all
this time on this task, and it'snot bringing back the energy
that I need to go live my lifeand be the mom I want to be and
be the breadwinner I want to beand afford my family the
luxuries that I would like us tohave, there's something really
off balance there.
And so what an incredibleopportunity that maternity leave
(10:47):
offers us.
And I have to say, like, ormaternity leave, but also just
like birth.
Like, I feel so strongly afterbeing at hundreds of births as a
doula, after just supporting allthese families, like, birth is
this incredible thing because itjust...
puts us under the microscope itputs us to the test our bodies
(11:07):
are physically tested ourrelationships are tested our
self-care is more vital thanit's ever been our birth oh it
just it unfolds us in reallyuncomfortable ways and really
beautiful ways depending on thework we've done you know the
trauma that comes up the traumathat happens the beauty the joy
it's all wrapped up and the factthat it also can do that for our
(11:32):
business that it gives us thisopportunity Thank you so much.
how can we optimize this so thatwe don't need to be a hundred
percent hands-on all the time?
That feels like a big deal.
And it feels like a big dealthat moms should be doing with
(11:53):
their businesses, whetherthey're about to have a baby or
not.
Like I want to go like do thisfor my business, even though I'm
not having a maternity leaveanytime soon slash ever again,
because I'm done having mybabies.
It's like, yes, everybody shouldbe doing this.
This is such a big deal, Hannah.
I told moms
SPEAKER_01 (12:09):
like, While we're prepping for your maternity
leave, it is going to be themost, your business will be the
most organized it has ever beenbecause it does, it forces you
to, okay, hey, I mapped out mybusiness now.
I'm going to create those SOPs.
I'm going to have these plans.
And then what's really nice isyou get your business to the
spot where it's like, okay.
(12:30):
It's set.
It's ready.
So then when you come back, ifyou decide, like, I need to hire
some help.
Like, I've got this newborn.
I've got this.
I've got that.
Now you can hire a VA and belike, here are the SOPs.
There you go.
Like, it just creates this.
But even back to what you'resaying, like, just what having a
(12:50):
baby, like this new birthexperience, like what it brings
for you, I think at least thisis what it did for my husband
and I.
It had us stop and reevaluateevery single aspect of our life
because we had something biggerthan ourselves to live for.
Like, we have to be our best forthis baby.
(13:13):
We need to have these systemsand routines in place for our
baby and everything.
Gosh, this is even going back tothings you said earlier, like
the female entrepreneur and howif you look at most of them, I'm
not going to say all of thembecause I haven't talked to all
of them.
But if you look at most of them,they've either started a
business for their babies orbecause of their babies, because
(13:35):
they wanted the flexibilitybecause they didn't want to be
told what to do anymore.
And they wanted to be at everysoccer game and every game.
I don't know, play, whatever.
My baby is still a baby.
So I don't
SPEAKER_00 (13:47):
know.
You don't know what the mom is
SPEAKER_01 (13:48):
doing, but you know, they seem very busy.
They do.
And I know you are, but like youwanted to go to the park.
You wanted to do all thesethings.
Yeah.
So a female entrepreneur in herbusiness, it is so powerful
because of their why and theroot of their why it is their
family and it is their babies.
And that's why I'm like, takethis maternity leave.
(14:09):
Like your business was built forthis, right?
For this moment.
And just because you're able totake a maternity leave and your
business is able to functionwithout you doesn't mean it
doesn't need you.
And I don't know about you, butlike that's a fear for me.
I don't know if you're intoEnneagram.
I'm an Enneagram 2 with a strongwing 3.
(14:29):
But like I need to be needed.
I want to be needed.
Like any way you need me, I'm
SPEAKER_00 (14:34):
here.
I'm here.
I'm really okay not beingneeded.
I've never felt more needed inmy life being a mother.
I'm like, could you guys need meslightly less?
And
SPEAKER_01 (14:43):
that's like, even there are times I'm like, I need
a break from my son.
And so like, my parents areamazing.
They'll take them.
And I'm like, but does he needme?
Like, right.
Don't you love me?
And then when he's like, no, youcan leave.
I'm like, okay.
My heart just fell apart, butthat's fine.
But like, I don't know for someof these moms out there, the
idea of leaving their business,does that mean my business
(15:05):
doesn't need me?
And if so, yeah.
then like, why am I doing this?
And it's like, no, no, no, no.
Your business can functionwithout you, but it needs you.
It like, you are the heartbeatof your business and your reason
why is why your business issuccessful.
SPEAKER_00 (15:26):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (15:26):
Why behind it?
And like, nothing's strongerthan a mother's love.
We both know that.
And so if that's at the root ofour businesses and us taking a
maternity leave is allowing usjust to like, water that plant,
like to keep filling up thatcup, that's gonna, our business
is going to be the overflow ofthat.
And our clients are going tofeel that the world is going to
(15:47):
feel that.
And I think that's just going tobe such an incredibly powerful
thing.
It already is like you see it.
And there's nothing greater thanlike, women coming together and
supporting one another andloving one another and
connecting and like, yeah, weget it.
We are We're crazy and chose toenter like this beautiful chaos
(16:09):
of motherhood andentrepreneurship, but we
wouldn't change it for theworld.
Because look at what it's givingus and what it's giving others.
SPEAKER_00 (16:16):
Right.
One of my earlier mentors in mybusiness, he told me like
probably the third time we evermet, he said, You have to work
on your business, not in yourbusiness.
And it was such an importantmindset switch because we can
feel as business owners and asmoms and as women who sort of
(16:39):
like feel like we have to takeeverything on.
We can feel like I have to workin the business.
I have to answer the email.
I have to fulfill the order.
I have to book the call.
I have to like everything sortof these like little tasky
things have to get done.
And it's true.
They have to happen.
It's not necessarily by us,though.
What we as CEOs, as founders, asbusiness owners need to do is we
(17:01):
need to work on our business.
We need to think about where amI growing my impact?
Where am I growing my revenue?
What partnership am I executing?
What is the market looking like?
Where's the next space I'mmoving into?
What's my next offer?
What's my next thing that'shappening?
And that is working on yourbusiness.
(17:24):
And you cannot work in yourbusiness 100% of the time doing
all the little tasky things andalso work on your business.
And I have found that so manytimes that we're– and I'm about
to take a week and a day off andI know my business is going to
grow so much both while I'm awaybecause somehow the energetic
(17:45):
shift– my business always doesvery well when I step away from
it.
I do have a team that helps moveit forward.
Maybe I'm holding them back therest of the time.
Nobody knows.
It's okay.
And– And also when I come backwith my cup full and my brain in
the background, thinking aboutmy business and connecting dots
in this really relaxed statethat I get into when I'm away
(18:07):
from my business, focusing on myfamily, focusing on myself,
having alone time, whatever I'mdoing, it, it grows.
I come back with new energy,with new invigoration, with new
ideas and with a different ideaof like where we should steer
the ship.
And so, Part of it is that,right?
The best case as an owner and abusiness owner and an
(18:33):
entrepreneur is we have to growour business and we have to keep
growing our impact.
And the way to do that is not bydoing every single task.
It's not.
Maternity leave andentrepreneurship, it's almost
like using this opportunity as away to do the things in our
business we might have needed todo the whole time.
(18:55):
You like cleaning out the sockdrawer, right?
And like vacuuming under yourdresser.
Like you needed to do that thewhole time.
And now you have an excuse to.
And I think it's absolutelybrilliant.
SPEAKER_01 (19:05):
And I think like, goodness, even what you're
talking about, like taking timeaway and you have a team.
I think there are like...
different stages of leadershipthere is the leader that's like
in front of like we're goingthis way let's go team um but
then that's only going to getyou so far if you're doing all
like you're doing all the workand then you have your team
(19:28):
behind you and they're like hilike we're here we want to help
you and you're like nope we'regoing this way and you're in
front of them so you'reconstantly looking back
wondering what they're doing andyou're like well i gotta keep my
eyes forward otherwise we'regonna fall back um But I think
like two of the best places aleader can be is either
alongside or behind.
Or alongside, you're working inthat team and it's like, hey
(19:51):
guys, like let's do thistogether.
Let's move forward together.
Here's the thought, but I'mright here next to you and we're
going to do this.
And then I think like the sweetspot for a leader is when they
are able to move from the sideand go in the back and say, no,
go.
Yes.
Move it forward.
I trust you.
I believe in you.
You got this.
(20:11):
Let's go.
And so then you're in the backand you're still able to steer,
but you're able to see otherpeople doing it.
And you're able to steer bypaying attention to the market,
partnerships, collaborations,and you're able to do the bigger
picture things while they're inthe weeds.
And they want to be in theweeds.
Like that's why the role of aVA, it's like, We want to take
those tedious tasks that you allhate.
(20:33):
We want to do them for youbecause we believe in you and in
your business.
And if you're stuck in all ofthat, you're going to get
tangled up.
We need you to be able to belike that blue sky thinker and
dream all the dreams and thenwe'll help those dreams come
true.
But you can't dream those dreamsif your head is filled with, did
I respond to that email?
(20:54):
Did I book this?
Did that invoice get paid?
Did this happen?
Did that happen?
Like...
your brain can only hold somuch.
That is absolutely true.
Did I feed my kids?
What did they eat?
I don't even remember.
Or did they just eat applesaucebecause that's the only thing
they would eat today?
Like, you know, it's, there's somuch and that mental load is
(21:18):
such a real, real thing.
And
SPEAKER_00 (21:20):
that is an important point that I feel like we have
not touched on yet.
And I would, I do not want tosign off until we touch on it,
which is, Which is that I thinkone of the reasons why moms
might not plan a propermaternity leave for their
business is because, especiallyif it's their first go around,
but also we have a way offorgetting even for the second
(21:42):
and third, is we don't realizehow much mental and physical and
emotional and spiritual energytaking care of a newborn takes,
especially after giving birthourselves.
Honestly, Take the newborn outof it for one second.
Just remove them from the room.
Taking care of ourselves afterbirth is such an endeavor.
(22:04):
Like the body is doing thingsthe body's never done before.
The body is leaking and there'snew liquids and feelings.
This
SPEAKER_01 (22:14):
could
SPEAKER_00 (22:14):
happen.
It's like a whole experience.
And that's a recovery all on itsown.
Then add that newborn back in.
You have to feed it.
You have to take care of it.
You have to like worry about it.
You have to look at it.
It's like the whole, you I knowthere's this whole you're
falling in love with it.
Then add in like you're notsleeping, right?
There might be an older child inthe house.
Everyone's adjusting.
(22:35):
It's a huge endeavor.
And so- It literally takes 24hours a day to take care of that
baby.
And I loved how you said it.
I'm trying to get through thenext 10 minutes.
That's how most of us in thatnewborn time, we're trying to
get through the next 10 minutesthrough the feeding, through the
diaper change, through the 10minute awake window you get in
(22:55):
the very early days, throughtrying to get them down for
their next nap, through tryingto take a shower, trying to pee
alone.
Like there's just, let alonelooking and making eye contact
with your partner, let alonecooking a meal, let alone eating
a meal.
I mean, it's, The task of takingcare of a newborn is, in my
opinion, harder than anyprofessional job out there.
(23:16):
And, like, listen, I'm surethere's exceptions.
And please tell me all of theexceptions.
Tell me what jobs you're doing.
Write into me and tell me thejob you're doing that's harder
than motherhood.
I will concede the point if it'svalid.
But, like, I think that's a fairgeneralization to make.
And that is part of it is, like,you– Can't really anticipate how
difficult, lovely, wonderful,enjoy every moment.
(23:39):
Sure.
But like, it's hard.
Taking care of a newborn ishard.
Taking care of a newborn aftergiving birth is hard.
Taking care of a newborn aftergiving birth while running your
business, it's near impossible.
And without taking...
the steps to set yourself upwith support, a proper maternity
leave, the care that you needfor yourself, the care you need
(24:02):
for your household, for the restof your family, for your pets,
for your own recovery andnourishment.
Like you have to do thisplanning in order to get through
that hole and to actually beable to enjoy it, which we
should.
We should enjoy it.
It's really hard.
But like if you set that up foryourself, it's it's not it's
it's supposed to be hard.
(24:22):
It's not supposed to be torture.
Like there's a
SPEAKER_01 (24:25):
balance.
It's And I mean, it's hard, butlike the benefits are unmatched
when, you know, when you seethat first smile or they open up
their eyes and they look at you,you're like melting inside as
you should, because this is yourthat you're holding.
And something I've told someclients, it's like, okay, it's
(24:46):
going to feel like a lot of workbeforehand because it kind of
is, you're running a business,you're creating the SOPs, you're
going through this process, butBut, and we know this because
growing up, our parents told usthis.
If you already have kids, you'retelling your kids this.
It's like you work hard now toreap the reward later.
And so it's, oh my goodness, ifyou, and this is why you can
(25:11):
have help.
Like if we can together set thisup for you so you are able to
actually detach for yourmaternity leave, You are, like,
the way that you are lovingyourself, your baby, your
business, your family, anything,it's so good.
And the last thing you want tobe worrying about is, like, the
(25:34):
hormones are kicking in, you'recrying, and you don't know why.
Your baby is crying, and theydon't know why.
The whole household is crying,and no one knows why, but you
were supposed to be on a meeting10 minutes ago, and you're like,
no.
Like...
I'm still wearing my diaper andI'm crying and I need to change
my baby's diaper and my baby'scrying.
I can't jump on a meeting rightnow.
(25:55):
The best gift you can giveyourself is maternity leave.
And again, you don't have toprove anything.
You don't have to earn it.
It's not a matter of can youhandle it or not.
And if you can't, then thatmeans I'm not enough.
It's not any of those things.
It's the mere fact of you...
(26:16):
You are in the thick of it, andthis is one way that you can
just love yourself.
And that's okay.
It's not selfish.
Maternity leave, it's not avacation.
It's not that.
And if you want a vacation, takethe dang vacation.
Like, someone was telling methat...
The way I mother best is bycaring for myself.
(26:38):
Because if I get low on thatself-care, then that ripples out
into my mothering.
And if my daughter can see theway that I care for myself, the
way that I fill my cup, and thatI see value in myself enough to
do those things, then that'sgoing to communicate to herself.
I have value.
I have worth.
It's okay for me to want torest.
(26:59):
It's okay for me to want to carefor myself because I'm important
too.
And so our kids are going tolook back and see these things,
whether, I mean, our babiesaren't going to remember
maternity leave, but they'regoing to hear us talk about it.
They're going to see thepatterns that we exhibit in our
life from the moment they'reborn for the rest of their
(27:20):
lives.
And so what do we want to showour kids?
I don't want my son to grow upthinking he has to prove himself
all the time and that he has toearn every thing that...
Things that don't need to beearned.
Things that are just like, no,this is like a basic human
SPEAKER_00 (27:35):
right.
Like, this is something...
You don't want him to think thathe has to earn rest.
Like, you earn it by givingbirth.
You earn it by having a newborn.
You earn it by existing.
Absolutely.
Basic human rights and thingsthat are part of rituals for...
eons and every other culture andancient cultures had rituals
(27:57):
around rest right that you don'twant our kids because I hear I
heard that moment in that whereyou're like wait no I do want
him to know he has to earnthings right it's like you're
not just gonna get everything
SPEAKER_01 (28:08):
handed to you but like things like this it's like
different no you earned it thesecond Again, the second you
decide you're going to starttrying for that baby, you earned
this maternity leave.
The second you saw the two pinklines, you earned it.
Through the nine months ofhowever it was for me, it was
not great.
(28:29):
But you
SPEAKER_00 (28:29):
earned it.
You gave birth.
You earned it.
And not for nothing, just to beinclusive here, you also earned
it if you adopted or had asurrogate or fostering.
We've had moms on Beer Villagethat fostered and had a whole
registry and got all the supportbecause they were fostering a
newborn.
The newborn, I think, is the orthe kid or the adjustment.
(28:51):
It is It is wildly difficult andwe do deserve it.
And I think it's such animportant note and one that's
really great to end on this ideathat like of all the things we
discussed, you deserve to havethis and you deserve to have it
all, right?
You don't have to choose betweenwork and family.
You don't have to choose betweenyour business and rest.
(29:11):
You can have all of thosethings.
Hannah, thank you so much forcoming and having this
conversation.
Can you please tell us how to bein touch with you If someone's
listening to this and thinkingto themselves, well, okay, first
of all, I'm not even having ababy and I want to do what
Hannah's doing.
I want to spring clean mybusiness.
Let's talk about that.
(29:33):
But also, how can someone who isan entrepreneur who falls into
that 40% of people who can'taccess any of the FMLA,
short-term disability, any ofthe current measures that we
have for maternity leave, howcan they have you help them
create a maternity leave?
How are they going to get intouch with you?
SPEAKER_01 (29:54):
Absolutely.
I think the best way is followme on Instagram, your favorite
VA.
That's where I run a majority ofmy business.
So that's where you can find mynewsletter.
Get on there.
That's where we're putting upour services, any...
Any discounts, specials, or justinformation about maternity
leave, it's all right there.
(30:15):
And we have different offerings.
So I know each mom is different.
Some of them are like, I justwant to go at my own pace.
I need some help.
Or please just do the wholething for me.
We have all that.
We have a maternity leave guide.
That is a great first step.
And it walks you through thesesteps of even financial
planning, mapping out yourbusiness, email communication
(30:36):
with clients and like, what do Isend?
When do I send it?
Here's a timeline, a checklist.
All of that is there.
That is, I would say, the numberone best place to start.
And then going through that, ifyou're like, please talk to me,
please, I need to verballyprocess.
Let's set up a strategy call.
And then from there, if you'relike, okay, just girl, Run, run
it.
(30:56):
Then great.
We have a service where we willdo your maternity leave on your
terms.
So it's completely customizable.
We'll come in before your duedate so we can learn your
business.
Then we will run your maternityleave for however long you
choose.
And then my favorite part is wehelp you reintegrate back in.
So it's not going to be thatwhiplash of yesterday I was on
(31:17):
maternity leave.
Today I'm back in full-timework.
No, no, no, no, no.
Like we're going to create thatplan together and we will help
you for a for you to settle backin and get used to whatever this
new life is going to look likefor you.
SPEAKER_00 (31:38):
Check out the show notes.
All of her links are there.
If you want to do this on yourown, her guide is worth every
single penny.
It has all the things you needto think through for your
business, but she also offershands-on help.
You can consult with her or youcan hire her to take over and
take a full-blown maternityleave.
She's incredible and doingreally, really important work.
(32:01):
I hope today's episode and ourconversation gave you not only
the tools you need to thinkabout creating maternity leave,
but also the permission to restand plan and prioritize yourself
both as a parent, but also as abusiness owner.
Don't forget to hit subscribeand leave us a review.
(32:22):
Every review helps us gain morevisibility with the parents and
birth workers that need to hearthis information.
I really, really appreciate yousupporting us in that way.
If you're thinking about howyou're We are here.
(33:03):
I am here to make sure thathappens.
Thank you so much for listening.
Catch you next week with more BeHer Village podcast.
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