Managing Stress and Anxiety: 5 Tips for Home-Based Mompreneurs

Between their businesses, families, and personal goals, mompreneurs juggle a ton of obligations each day. And while it can be empowering to be your own boss in many areas of life, having to stay on top of so many responsibilities will likely take a toll on even the most resilient mind. Stress and anxiety are normal side effects of living a busy life, and struggling with them is nothing to be ashamed of. 

Indeed, there’s no single, magical key to running a successful business, raising a happy family, and looking after your mental health all at the same time. That being said, there are plenty of effective stress management strategies that can help busy mompreneurs weather any challenges they might face. For many, it comes down to finding the perfect combination of productivity tools, inspiration, and interpersonal support.

If you’re a home-based mompreneur battling stress and anxiety on the daily, the following tips may help you out:

Choose A Trustworthy Partner Bank

No matter what kind of enterprise you run, managing your business finances alongside your household expenses is sure to be one of your biggest sources of stress every day. Connecting with a trustworthy banking partner is crucial to ensuring that your information and hard-earned money are well-protected. Choosing a bank that specializes in serving small businesses ensures that you get access to the services, solutions, and financial advice that’s most appropriate for your enterprise.

You’ll also want to avail yourself of online banking services to simplify financial management for both your business and your household. A reputable bank with an efficient, accessible, and feature-rich digital banking platform will help you stay on top of bills, customer orders, and other money-related tasks from the comfort of your own home. Not having to visit a physical bank branch to attend to your financial needs will surely save you plenty of time, energy, and peace of mind.

Stop Trying to Multitask

The world today is increasingly fast-paced and achievement-oriented, particularly when it comes to work. Many people can feel under pressure not only to attend to a lot of tasks at once but also to excel at all of them. However, trying to do too many different cognitively demanding activities at once can take a toll on your mental and physical well-being. Furthermore, multitasking in this way may not even necessarily deliver the best results.

Instead of trying to tackle multiple tasks simultaneously, you may be better served by working on one to-do at a time. Time-blocking—the practice of scheduling specific time-slots for the different tasks you have to accomplish each day—can help you manage your time efficiently. Try to balance out time- and energy-intensive activities with less demanding tasks, such as responding to emails or returning calls. For the sake of your well-being, don’t forget to block off time for friends, family, and hobbies as well.

Build A Strong Support System

Loneliness and isolation are underdiscussed but very real sources of stress for many entrepreneurs, especially those who run small home-based businesses. Connecting with fellow mompreneurs, whether to trade recommendations and ideas or simply to cheer each other on, can help ease this burden immensely. You can encounter like-minded souls in structured, more formalized environments such as networking events and online forums. If you prefer to keep things more casual, however, building your support system can be as simple as reaching out to acquaintances or friends of friends.

Unplug Occasionally

Don’t fall into the trap of believing that you need to be actively thinking about your responsibilities all day, every day to live a successful, fulfilling life. If you don’t give yourself the time and space to unplug from work and do other things you enjoy, you’ll burn out sooner rather than later. And, contrary to popular belief, allowing your body and mind to rest and recharge periodically will make you even more productive when you do return to your everyday routines again.

If you find yourself overwhelmed by stress and anxiety, it may help you to just completely turn off your usual sources of stress for a while. If you’re having a hard time managing work-related stress, for example, consider delegating urgent tasks to capable team members and taking a brief mental health break. Turn off notifications for work-related emails and texts, and do your best not to think about work. 

Get Enough Sleep

Sleep is one of the first things that busy people allow to fall by the wayside. However, getting at least 8 hours of quality sleep each night is also one of the most reliable, most underrated stress management tips there is. Healthy sleeping habits can do wonders for your energy levels, concentration, and mood, and they’ll also reduce your risk of developing certain diseases in the long run.

If you typically have a hard time falling asleep or staying asleep for a full 8 hours nightly, researching good sleep hygiene practices can help. These can include exercising regularly during the day, keeping your bedroom dark and cool at night, and refraining from eating or having caffeine too close to bedtime.

Stress management, like any other aspect of mental health, is highly personal, so you don’t hesitate to try multiple strategies until you figure out what works best for you. Once you do, you’ll be more than capable of kicking stress to the curb and accomplishing everything you set out to do.