Mentoring March 26, 2008

I was recently asked to be a mentor in a mentoring program for new business owners. My first reaction was to laugh at the person who asked me (politely!) but she proceeded to list all the reasons why she thought I would make a great mentor. I’m still not sure I feel confident enough to agree with everything she said, but it did get me thinking about mentoring in general.

I have been in business for 3 years and in that time I realised that I have informally mentored a number of women (mostly mums) just starting out. In fact, in the last month, two friends starting a business have peppered me with lots of questions that have done a number of things for me:
1. Made me realise how much I DO know
2. Caused me to reflect on my journey and look at how far I have come in 3 years
3. Forced me to re-evaluate some of my practices and procedures
4. Provided me with opportunity to research areas I probably wouldn’t have made time for otherwise.

In Donna-Marie Coggins’ blog, Small Business Diva, she shares some key factors to business success, including “seek outside help”.  Mentoring definitely falls in this category. and although I don’t have a formal mentor myself at this stage, I have various people with whom I informally “catch up” and bounce ideas off. And as shown above, the benefits of being a mentor (even if it is “informal”) can be much more than you first realise.

Yours in Design

Michelle Grice

Work/Life Balance – Definitely a Myth October 23, 2007

At the Business Mums Conference in Melbourne last month, keynote speaker Sandi Givens announced to a group of enthusiastic, yet overloaded mums that work/life balance is a myth. I agree and feel it is much more realistic to view it as a continual juggling of roles and tasks with an aim to achieve some sense of ‘control’ over our situations. As the weeks race by, I am often faced with days of doing lots but feeling like I’m achieving little. And of course those things that are supposed to keep our life ‘in balance’ (exercise, ‘me’ time, etc) continue to fall by the wayside. As a mum in business, there is also the inevitable ‘mother guilt’ associated with the juggle between business and kids. Part of my motivation for having my own business is to spend more time with my child, but if I’m exhausted from late nights and meeting deadlines, is this quality time? OK, so that all sounds rather bleak and not particularly inspiring. But I’m sure any mum in business has similar thoughts and concerns, but pushes on regardless. And you know what? I think generally our kids are better for it. They learn so many good life lessons from watching mum run a business. They see multi-tasking at its best. They see how flexible life can be (who ever has the same day twice in their business?). They see how hard work can pay off – and if it doesn’t pay off, the virtue of ‘giving it a go’. So for those business owner mums out there having a ‘mother guilt’ day….don’t!Yours in Design Michelle Grice Shel Design