BIRD WILLIAMS: You're listening to Bird Means Business Episode 48.

Mamaaaas! And moms to be! Welcome! Welcome, y'all. I'm gonna be so hype this entire show because I really am so glad you're here. I love that I get to share this very special space with you. And that I know who I'm talking to directly. It's really refreshing to be like, “I am speaking directly to moms or those who are looking to become moms.” And, y'all as a mom myself, I have a huge place in my heart for you, for your struggles, for your victories. And, like, really, in general, I'm obsessed with all things motherhood. Like, don't text me, a question about pregnancy or labor and delivery or postpartum because I will go in. Mommying is one of my most favorite subjects. So, if I could squeeze you right now I would. I wish we were talking face to face. But this will have to do. And yes, this episode is all about business in mommying. Freedom, flexibility, in growth, in a service based business. 

So this is the third episode in this month’s Your Questions Answered series. It all started with just a conversation we were having on my Instagram. If you're not following me on Instagram it's @heybirdwilliams. I was in my stories and I said, let me just know what types of questions you have that I can help you along your journey to address on the Bird Means Business podcast. And I got four incredible questions that I'm addressing in the month of October during the series. The first question was, “How to sustain growth through customer retention?” That was Episode 46. The next question was, “How do I not get overwhelmed with all the details?” That was Episode 47. This episode is all about mommying and business like I explained. And next week, we're talking about navigating mental health and entrepreneurship. That is going to be a super special one. So make sure that you subscribe to Bird Means Business so that you automatically get all the episodes.

In today's episode, I'm really gonna dive into what I believe is at the crux of this question, which is, how do I have all of these things: freedom, flexibility, growth in a service based business, and as a mom? And I want you to stay tuned to the very end for a very very special announcement. All right?

Now before we dive in I want to remind you that what I’m sharing here on Bird Means Business is very general. I'm trying my best to take these questions and different business topics and apply them to different business types, so that I can help you all. I'm using questions that you asked in the series, or common issues that I'm seeing as I'm working with clients, or conversations I have with entrepreneurs. And while I hear story after story of how the Bird Means Business podcast has helped so many businesses, even though I'm less than a year in, and y'all this makes me so happy to hear. I do like a happy dance every single time someone says that it's helped their business. So thank you for letting me know. Please leave a review so that I can see that and do another happy dance.

But every business situation is unique. The application of what I share will likely be different based on your particular situation, your set of resources, etc. So if you ever want to go deeper, just schedule a complimentary consultation call with me. We'll sit down and kind of identify your specific needs and where you are and what your best next steps would be. So to do that, you're going to go to birdwilliams.com/consultation. All right? 

Okay, let's dive in. Now when I first read this question, I thought, freedom, flexibility, and growth. Yes, we all want that. Let's go, right? But then the context of what this mom was asking really jumped out at me. “How can I have these while I'm in a service based business? And while I'm a mom?” Now when I launched my gym business which is called The League. It’s a warehouse gym here in Houston, launched back in 2013. Y’all, it was just me and my husband, Terry. So this is a brick and mortar, service based business. It’s group fitness classes. And y'all Terry instructed every single class and I worked the front desk for every single shift in the very beginning. And it was a great place to start. But it would not allow us to grow. There's a ceiling to that model. If you've been around the Bird Means Business squad for a while you've heard me say it again and again, how building a dynamic team is imperative for your growth. Okay? Super-duper important. You can only do everything for so long and it should be as short as possible. But again, we all have different resources we're working with. So, it got to the point where, y’all, I would literally have two computers at the front desk. One computer would be for checking in clients. They're beeping in with their key tag, as they're going into class. And another computer was for me, doing whatever work I needed to do on the business itself, reconciling our QuickBooks, or emailing potential partners stuff like that. Because it was a mess, because I wasn't fully in either space, I wasn't able to really connect with clients. In the back of my head I'm thinking about the transaction I’m trying to reconcile. And I could have also been making mistakes because I wasn't fully there either. 

Did y'all know that multitasking isn't a real thing? I'm not afraid to admit that I only recently learned that. I saw a post come through and then I started to do more research. Multitasking isn't real. You can't actually do two things at once, and you're just basically not doing either thing well. So, I was trying to multitask, but it wasn't working out. And I really knew that in order for us to really grow The League and to take it to the next level, I needed to focus more on what I was uniquely gifted at in my business, and then hire in those other areas. I made the decision to hire a team to work the front desk and free up time for me to actually grow the business. But in this stage of my life, which is you know pre-baby, I was super young. I think we launched The League when I was like 25, maybe 26, or so. Y’all I could still work around the clock and pull all-nighters if I needed to because I really only had me, and you know, sort of my husband to worry about. I wasn't in charge of any other human but myself. Well, in 2016, that changed. I got pregnant in January and I had my first son in October of 2016. And y’all that first trimester, hit me like a brick wall. And if you've had a baby before you know exactly what I'm talking about. But I was very blessed to have a very easy pregnancy. I didn't have any morning sickness. I was just completely exhausted. I wasn’t able to go at full cylinders like I was used to. And there were some physical limitations, naturally, obviously. I couldn't just jump up on a whim. I couldn't stay up all night. Both me and baby needed me to rest, right? I realized that in this phase, I needed better systems in my business. It was one thing to have a team. And having a team does make you create better systems cause you're having to train someone on what you do and maybe what's just in your head. You're having to put it to paper or explain. But I needed to even retrain my team to be more self-sufficient, to not rely on me as much. I needed to better structure our operations and all of that. So that's what I did. For example, every time one of our service reps, that's the position that works the front desk. Every time they would ask me or text me a question in the middle of their shift, instead of just answering the question I would actually include it in a list that I called The Service Rep Quick Reference Guide. And I taped this list of frequently asked questions and notes and things to remember. I taped it to the front desk so that it was right there for their reference in the future. That’s just a simple way of making a system around something that you're having to repeatedly do in your business so that you have more flexibility. So that you have more freedom in your business. 

These two factors: team and better systems, helped me grow my business. We actually expanded to two locations, a year after we started hiring team members, which is great. And it also gave me flexibility and freedom, because the business didn't rely on me so much for those day-to-day operations. And this was crucial. I was pregnant. I needed to make sure that whenever I needed to take maternity leave, not even knowing how that would look, that the business wouldn't just go kaput. But even at this time, my husband, Terry, who had initially instructed all of the class was now having a team of instructors that he trained, so that he wasn't having to work every shift. So that's two ways to think of it, your team and your systems. And in helping you reach this goal of more flexibility, freedom, and growth in your business. 

But I feel like it doesn't fully answer the question. I think what this mom was really getting to, and maybe I'm wrong, but I'm thinking what she's asking about is scale. How do I scale my business? And when you think about scaling you could think of this. Right now, in your service based business, maybe you can only work with 10 clients at a time. That's like your ceiling is the most you can do. Well, what would it look like or, how could you adjust your business model, so that you could work with 20 clients? Or even 100 or 1000 clients? And increase your revenue in that way, and not have to work yourself to death. Because you can't kill yourself in your business, and also have the capacity and energy for your little ones at home. And not just your little ones at home. But also for your husband, and for your own personal time. When I look at it, that would be real freedom and flexibility in growth, when there's no ceiling or a much higher ceiling on your revenue potential, while you're also maintaining work-life balance. When we're talking about scaling, your team still plays a big part here. Beyond just hiring maybe an administrative assistant or a marketing team member. I see a lot of service-based businesses, bringing on other partners who do their same specialized task. 

My midwife actually is a great example of this. Initially, she just had an at-home practice, when I went to meetings with her. It was just there at her home. She had a home office. And she was the only midwife. Now she's grown her business, and she has a new midwife. They actually split the time, it's really interesting. I've never seen it done like this, so I'm really happy to share it here. Well, in the first half of the month, she is available for all checkups and even baby deliveries. And the second half of the month, the new midwife is available for checkups and deliveries. So there's a whole half of the month that she is completely off. And to take it even further she actually bases which half of the month she has on her kids’ birthdays. Most of them are I think, or all of them actually happen to fall in the second half of the month. So talk about freedom and flexibility and growth in a service based business. I just love it so much. She realized, “In order to take this to the next level I need to sort of duplicate myself. I want to move out of my house.” She’s now at a separate location. And she did that through hiring someone else who can do this specialized skill that she does, and she has an entire half of the month off of work. I just love it so much. So that's just one example. 

But beyond team and scheduling. I want you to explore ways that you can also diversify revenue streams in your business. Is there perhaps a digital product like an ebook or an online course or a masterclass that you can offer that makes your business much more scalable? And this doesn't have to be the only thing your business does. It could just be a separate revenue stream. This would mean that a million people could purchase your ebook or your masterclass tomorrow, and it would require zero more work from you. You wouldn't have to lift a finger, because it's all automated. I want you to explore those types of revenue streams because I think that is a great opportunity for making a service based business more scalable.

Now when I say this, not everyone wants to scale their business. I recently had a conversation with an entrepreneur who was very frustrated by this general sentiment out there and kind of pressure that she felt in the market, that you kind of had to make your business scalable. Now she works with clients one on one. She has a program and she really likes it that way. She feels like she can be very connected to her client, and it seems like it's the best way for her business model. Y’all, I think that is great self-awareness, and I think it's 100% okay to embrace that if that's where you are. If you're like, “I just feel like the best way to deliver my service or product right now is one on one.” Then go for it.

But I'll also mention that this young lady who I was speaking with doesn't have children. And I don't say that because I don't want you to think that I'm saying if you have kids, you have to scale your business. But, y'all, there's definitely more benefit to having some scalable revenue streams in your business, when one on one clients can be a lot riskier when you do have kids. Meaning, again, you're booked out at 10 clients or 15 clients however many that is for your business. And, you know, what happens if you have to go on maternity leave? What happens if you have to pick up your kid from school and they're sick for half a week or whatever it might be? It just makes it a little bit more tricky if that's all you're relying on. Again, it all depends on your specific business model and if you have more questions I really would love to chat. So hit me up. 

So this idea of scalability being maybe more important to certain businesses or, entrepreneurs versus others, really leads me to my, my final point. And this is one for your entrepreneurial toolbox. Y’all life happens in seasons. So, what is real and crucial and seemingly everything and in your face, in your life, right now, will not always be that way. It's hard to recognize this in the moment, you know, but think back to high school. What did you care about then? What consumed your thoughts and everything you had going on? What was going to be the end of the world if it didn't happen? Think of college or think of other phases of your life. And the reality is life ebbs and flows and what might be important to you in one season, may not be important in the next. What you might need in one season, you might not need in the next. The really hard thing you're going through right now, won't last forever. It's just a season. And that thing that you feel is holding you back right now. It has an expiration date on it, and you will see it through and you will come out stronger. So don't just have blinders, focused on the right now and what looks impossible. Lift your head up girl, and see what's beyond your present moment and lean into that. Believe for that. Plan for that. And hope for that. Hope for that future goal you have because you will get there, it won't always be like this. 

And ya'll know that is super important for moms to hear because there's so many stages. There's pregnancy, and that that’s a whole thing. Then there's postpartum which no one talks about enough, right? For me, it was harder than any phase. And then your kids are growing and developing. Now I have a four year old. We actually had a parent-teacher conference today. Talking with the teacher through what he needs to learn and where he needs to be and, being surprised that oh wow he's doing great there but he needs more work here. It's like, there will always be new challenges, and it's just having to understand this is a season. This is what we're working through now and we're going to, in the next season, is going to be easier in a lot of ways. But there'll be new challenges. I actually had a friend say this very well. We both had little children at the time, I think, under one. And she said that she's like, “It's like you finally figure out one phase that your kid is going through, and then there's some other surprise.” It's like you figure out bottles or pumping or breastfeeding and you feel so good like, “Finally I figured it out.” Like, I have victory over this, right? And then all of a sudden it's like, okay, now you have to introduce solids. And you're like, “Okay, well do I pray? Do I do this?” Like you have a whole new set of questions. And I'm learning as a mom, of like I said now a 4 year old, that just kind of keeps happening. It just looks different. And you're made all the better for it because you're learning to adapt and you're learning to embrace life for the seasons that you're in. Okay? 

So I also want to mention this. I suppose there are some of you who may have tuned in, and you're wondering if or when you should have kids as an entrepreneur, You might be asking questions like, “Should I even be a parent? And how will that work with the demands of my business? When is the perfect time to have kids as an entrepreneur? Well, I'll touch on each of those questions really quickly. In terms of, “Should I be a parent”, I would just really say search your heart and what it is that you really want deep down inside and understand that can also change. You might have never wanted to have kids but all of a sudden you kind of do. I'll actually give you an example. My mom did not want kids. She didn't even want to get married. Straight up, she was like nope. Don't want to get married, don't wanna have kids.  But she met my dad and he wanted four kids. Y’all, she had me, and it was fine. And then, on the other hand, I’ve always wanted to be a mom. That's always been something that was so important to me. I remember when I lived in New York, I was oozing over all things motherhood with some ladies in my analyst class and saying how I just couldn't wait to be a mom and they were looking at me so funny because it was just so odd, given our profession. Here we are working on Wall Street and I'm over here talking about how much I want to be a mom and it just didn't really fit. But it was something that was always so important to me. 

So the last thing I'll say on, “Should I be a parent?”. For me, it's a big part of my legacy. So, when I die, I don't really care at all, what I'm known for as a business person. I mean, quite frankly, I don't. What I want is for Terry and Trenton and any future kids we might have to say, “Mom loved us so much. She spent time with us. She cared for us. She helped us grow to be loving people who contribute to society.” Like, that's my legacy. That's what matters to me. And that's just me though. Not everyone has that desire. So again, it just goes back to really searching your heart and what you really want at the end of the day. 

Next, how will it work with the demands? Like how am I going to fit kids into the demands of running a business? You will adapt. And this is the thing. You've already been adapting as an entrepreneur, it’s something you're already doing. You're doing a really great job of adapting if you’ve spent any time as an entrepreneur, or any time in the year 2020. So we are all qualified for what it means to adapt because y'all know we have had to adapt so much this year.  

And then lastly, when is the perfect time to be a parent? You already know the answer. There is no perfect time. Now I will say there are certainly times in your life where you might feel more prepared, welcoming another whole human into your world, like maybe having more financial stability, for example. But y’all, that's not the end all be all. It's always going to feel like you could have more money, for example. It's always gonna feel like you could have your life together. And honestly, kids are gonna rock your world in one way or another, regardless of when it happens. Just like when it comes to launching a business or making a big leap in your business. Don't wait for the perfect time, because a perfect time will never come. It will never feel perfect. Okay?

So, how do you have freedom, flexibility, and growth in a service based business as a mom? My answer is building a strong team, developing automated systems, planning for scalability, even if it's not right now in this season. Maybe it's in a future season. And understanding that there are seasons to life. I know this isn't super sexy, but it's what I know and what I'm living. 

Now one last practical tip for moms and moms-to-be. Ask for help. You know all those people who love you and who you trust, who keep saying, “Hey, if you need anything from me, let me know. If there's ever anything I can help with…” Y'all, take them up on it. Babysitting, cooking some home-cooked meals for you, all of that. Ask for practical stuff.  Y’all, community is powerful. So don't be afraid to ask for help. Don't be afraid to be vulnerable and say yes, I actually do need some help. Please come. Please come and help me, right? And again it doesn't have to always be with the baby, because you'll find that too. A lot of people want to come, “I'll come hold the baby.” “Actually, can you bring me some food?” You know, “Can you help me tidy up the house? Can you help me organize a closet?” Those kinds of things. People will be so happy to help, especially, again, if you love and trust them. And also with your partner, make sure that you communicate your needs. They are not mind readers. I can't tell you how many times someone's told me, “My husband is doing this, this and this. I can't believe it.” And I say, “Well, what happened when you told them?” “Well, he should know. He should know that he needs to…” No, they are not mind readers. So instead of just, assuming that they're going to understand. No, communicate with them. And also, don't just say, “I'll just do it because it'll take me longer to explain to him how to do it than just doing it myself.” No, ma'am. You are going to explain to him, take the time to explain to him how to do it, so that in the future again and again, just like when it comes to training your team for your business. You want to make sure that he can do it and own it. Like I said when it comes to your team, you're not gonna answer the same questions again and again. You're going to train them so that they know how to have ownership of that, and can move forward without you. Okay? 

Lastly, when it comes to your partner, be okay with them not doing it exactly the way you do it. And I’m saying that to y’all, but I’m saying it right back to myself because that's something that's really hard for me. It's like my way isn't the only way it has to be done. Okay? 

So, those are my tips when it comes to that. And again, if you want more specific guidance around your unique situation as it relates to business and mommying, I would love to chat with you. So go to birdwilliams.com/consultation to book a free consultation. 

Okay, now for my special announcement. Y'all, we are expecting baby number three. Oh my goodness! I am so, so, so excited. I am just overjoyed. And honestly, if you don't care about my personal life, you can totally skip this part, it will not hurt my feelings. But I am going to relate this back to business in just a second. But yes, we're expecting baby number three. We found out a few weeks ago. I'm already showing even though it’s early. I show really early. So we actually announced recently and I didn't even plan on, straight up, did not plan on having this podcast episode tie with all of this, at all, you know. So it's just really wild that it worked out that way. But when we were dating Terry and I discussed how many kids we wanted, like from jump it was something we talked about and I said I wanted three to four kids. He wanted two to three kids. So three was always kind of like this middle ground idea. But y'all, after having my second baby, Trenton, y’all I was like, “I am done. I am done, done.” I was ready for Terry to go ahead and schedule his vasectomy, like let's go. But my midwife said Ashley give it a year, because postpartum is so hard like I said, y'all. It is just the least talked about. You hear so much about pregnancy. You hear so much about labor and delivery and birth. But not many people talk about postpartum and for me, it was just very hard. So she was like give it a year, and we did. And we were kind of unsure still after a year, but we were kind of still leaning towards us having two. We like this was okay. But a few months ago, we had, I guess like a pregnancy scare where I was like, “Oh my goodness, I think I'm pregnant.” And we were excited. That was the weird thing, we're excited. Like immediately Terry's like talking about names and all of that. So I ended up starting a few days later and we were like, okay. We looked at each other like okay so do we want more kids cause we were so excited when we thought we were pregnant. And we were like clearly we do. So, we stopped blocking and here we are.

I get this question a lot - boy or girl? Y'all, we really would be happy either way. I love being a boy mom so much, and I think it's what I know, too. So I would be so happy to welcome another little boy into our family. But also a little girl would be amazing. I mean, it'd be so sweet. I'd love to see Terry as a girl dad and to see the boys with a little sister. So we really are truly happy either way. 

But I want to bring it back to business really quick. How does this affect my businesses? Okay, so this is just a real moment. First, I change a lot in pregnancy. My number one priority is my baby and my health. And it's funny. I was just recently at my holistic doctor, and I was telling them how I'm just focused on the baby, focused on the baby. And he's like well no, you need to focus on you. You really are focusing on you. The baby's inside of you and everything that affects you will affect the baby, but you don't have to be selfless in thinking it's just the baby. It’s actually you. You have to get rest, you have to get enough water and eat enough, and all the things. And it's okay to say yeah this season is about me. And so everything else is kind of next after that and that's not how I typically am. And so it is an adjustment, like if I need to take a nap in the middle of the day, I will. And I'll be honest in saying that, like accepting this, and having grace for this, for myself and giving myself permission to rest, was a lot easier in my past pregnancies for some reason. Some reason this time around, it's just been a lot harder to be okay with having to take a nap in the middle of the day. And I honestly think it's because we are in the middle of one of the wildest seasons of our entire lives, hands down. There's a lot going on in our lives. But I am working on, embracing it, right? Saying, “Hey, I gotta rest. It's very important.” So, that is one way it'll affect my businesses in the sense that I basically have to prioritize me first and not anything else. And then second, I'm looking at my projects and offerings, in my business, and of the kind of plans and different things I had. And some have urgency to them. I'm still gonna go full throttle with that. And others I'm sidelining for later and I'm just gonna say, I understand that probably a lot of people wouldn't do this. They wouldn't be this vulnerable and talking about this. But I really want to take you behind the scenes and let you know what's really happening because some of you might have to make decisions like this too and I want you to be okay with it. I want you to be okay with giving yourself rest. I want you to be okay with looking at all of the different goals that you have in your business over the next 12 months and saying okay, what is really important? 

And so that's what I'm doing. I'm saying okay this is super-duper important. My goal is to be able to have at least two weeks to a month off after baby comes. And so I really want to figure out what I need to prioritize. So one way mommying really helps you in business, in general, even outside of pregnancy is that it gives you laser focus, and it makes your priorities, super, super clear. And that's honestly something I'm really grateful for. Cause if I can be honest, there were probably a lot of things in my business that I was trying to do that weren't really important. And you know how it is, you can just start to want to do all the things. And when I found out I was pregnant, I was like okay, we're gonna be doing this and this and this. And so it gives you really clear focus and I love that. 

I actually have some really exciting new announcements coming very soon so stay tuned for that as well. But like I said, I'm so glad you tuned in today and I hope that these tips were helpful for you on your mompreneur journey. If you know any other mom who needs to hear this episode please, please, please share it with them. Also, I’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts and subscribe there so that more entrepreneurs will hear about the Bird Means Business podcast and will grow the show.

Thanks a ton, and I will talk to y'all next week.