Self Employed Parent Podcast with Joel Bower

In episode 42, I talk to JV Crum III, who, among a laundry list of other impressive accomplishments, is the founder and CEO of the Conscious Millionaire Institute LLC and host of the Conscious Millionaire Podcast.

At 25, JV had just enough money to realize it wasn’t the answer. This stemmed his growth into the Conscious Millionaire.

It doesn’t come all at once. You have to work to give yourself time for you. If you don’t take the time to take care of yourself, physically or emotionally, you’ll never be who you could be.

JV has taken great strides to take care of his business as well as his health in his journey to balance his life between work and self.

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Find JV at the Conscious Millionaire Podcast!

In episode 41, I answer some great questions from our interview with Greg Lintz, as well as some questions about episode 39 about keeping your family happy during your business’s growth stage.

It’s common to argue with your spouse about your business. Try to avoid talking about negative things about your company to try to make the conversations easier.

It can be frustrating for your normally-employed spouse to be in their job. Continuously show them you care to show them you understand how hard it can be.

Systemize, leverage, and organize to bring your hours down after your business booms.

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• Episode 37: Interview with Greg Lintz: Being married to an entrepreneur - the stressors, the balance, and the big wins.
• Episode 39: 6 steps to keeping your family strong, even during your business's growth stage.

In episode 40, I talk about how to keep your family the biggest fans of you and your business by sharing your excitement, checking in with them personally, leaving notes and giving gifts, and keeping your family’s goals in your planning.

Keep your family involved in the business by sharing what’s exciting you and asking for advice on simple things like logo designs or color schemes. They’ll love and appreciate being involved.

By continually taking a few minutes of time to talk to each member of your family individually to ask about their day and show interest in your life, you’re showing them they matter.

This doesn’t have to be expensive, and in fact maybe it shouldn’t be. Little things like picking up your kid’s favorite candy bar when you’re in the checkout line at the store show them you’re always thinking about them.

Similarly, little notes in kids’ lunches or on the mirror for your wife in the morning show them that they matter and keep your family connected.

When you’re goal planning, don’t forget to add family goals into the mix to make sure your family and what they want is always prioritized.

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• Episode 39: 3 steps to keeping your family strong, even during your business's growth stage.

In episode 39, I dig into an important topic: how to keep your family strong and together when your business is booming and you need to dedicate a lot of time to it. Learn to balance how to share in your excitement without upsetting your family and how they can share in the growth.

This sets the stage for the other six steps. You may know it’s started if business demands increase, your “must-do” list gets longer, and your family may be grumpy with you.

Figure out what effect this will have on you, your schedule, and your business. Determine how the growth benefits you and your family.

Tell them what’s going on from step two. Be open with them and don’t hold it back.

Show them how when the company wins, they win, and remind them that’s why you’re doing this in the first place.

Make plans that your family will love and make sure you stick to them! The last thing you need now is to let them down by being flaky.

When you’re excited about your business growing, share it with them in a way they understand that gets them excited, too!

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• Episode 2: How to let your family be a part of your dreams.

In episode 38, I answer some great questions from our most recent episodes and interviews on what kind of hats parents should and should not wear, how to get the kind of “friends” you want in your life, and explaining a little bit about what a business incubator is and why one may be good for you.

There are two kinds of gut check: one where something’s happening now and needs to be addressed immediately, and one where you should give it a little bit of time, wait it out, and get more information before you act.

I feel like a friend is a particular support group - people who actually supported who you are and see the best in you and you see the best in them. A “friend” in this sense is not necessarily someone you’ve known for a long time or been through difficult situations with.

Build up a team who can really support you, educate yourself whenever you need to, and find a way to fill in the gaps for the information you do not have.

Don’t think of it as failing. Many of the things we see as “failure,” you can see as challenge, difficulty, or just a natural part of business.

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• Episode 30: 5 Ways being an entrepreneur has made me a better parent.
• Episode 33: 3 Awesome people you must have in and around your business and your life.
• Episode 34: Interview with Keri Lehmann of SavvyBoheme.com: be genuine, find motivation within, and rest.
• Episode 35: Interview with Norman Smith: Entrepreneur, parent, and mentor to over 250 startup businesses.

In episode 37, I talk to Greg Lintz, who is married to an entrepreneur. Greg talks about the difficulties and challenges, as well as the great rewards, of being married to a woman who started her own business.

Greg is married to one of my business partners, and he’s got a typical job while she’s self employed. He and his wife have one child together, and Greg’s all about having fun and being active.

Greg was raised to believe that going into your own business was risky, scary, and insecure, and so it was difficult to figure out what it meant when his wife went into business for herself. On the flip side, his wife gets to spend more time with their son than the traditionally-employed parent does, and her income is potentially much greater due to the unlimited nature of it all.

Greg and his wife work together to keep the stress down when business is tough. Instead of working against each other, they talk it out and come up with plans and strategies together to keep their family and their life together.

The biggest win for Greg is seeing how happy his wife is at the end of the day, especially compared to how she was when she was traditionally employed. Without the stress, they’re both happier and their life is infinitely better.

Be mindful of the lack of control the standard-employed endure. Business owners have more control of their job and their day than those of us who work for other people. That’s stressful, and it can be easy to forget about that when you’re caught up in your business.

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In episode 37, Norman Smith joins us to talk about entrepreneurship and parenting, specifically the biggest challenges and what it takes to succeed.

Norman has 30 years of experience in executive management, specializing in startups, cutting edge innovations, and international business development. He’s founded nine successful startups and assists young startups get going. He’s also has a ton of kids!

A willingness to consider and take risks, passion and love for what you’re doing, recognition that you don’t know what you don’t know, and surrounding yourself in experts.

Norman’s biggest win as a parent watching his children have clarity on what they want and where they’re going and thrive as contributing members of society doing what they love.

The remarkable, creative nature of human beings is Norman’s biggest inspiration. If there are 6 billion people on the planet, there are 6 billion ideas, and they all matter. People continue to try new things, and he’s inspired by how creative they are.

You can find Norman at The Cube at Midtown in Reno, NV. He’s one of the directors there, and spends most of his time mentoring companies. Email Norman at [email protected]

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Hey SEP Family! There's no Q&A today because my family and I are on our family vacation! We're headed down to Lego Land. Be sure to catch the next episode, where I interview Norman Smith, a local entrepreneur and parent, about balacing his kids and his career.

Have a wonderful week! I'll see you next Friday.

In Episode 34, I interview Keri Lehmann, a self-employed parent who runs a skin-care product business, Savvy Boheme, while wrangling three amazing kids. Learn more about Keri’s biggest wins as a parent, as a business owner, and what she does to take care of herself in the midst of it all.

Keri knows what it’s like first-hand to start a business when you aren’t a business minded person. Business itself was a challenge, but her gut instinct drove her forward.

One of the biggest wins Keri’s had as a business owner? When her friends bought her products on their own. Another? Moving to a larger space to up her business game.

Keri believes in raising your kids to capture their hearts - where they listen and act well not because they “have” to but because they choose to.

Keri is inspired by her love - her love of beauty, of her children, and of the moment.

Find Keri and her products at www.savvyboheme.com or on social media as Savvy Boheme. Additionally, feel free to stop by the foundry and the showroom in Midlothian, TX Monday through Friday!

In Episode 33, I talk about the amazing kind of people you want in your life, from the optimist to the friend to the partner. These are the kinds of people that will help you thrive in business and make you happier at home.

This is the person who is the best to throw new ideas by. They get you inspired and they can see really great things happening in new opportunities.

I see my friends of fans of mine - and I am fans of theirs. We enjoy and believe in each other. These allow me to do more with them than I can do on my own.

This is everything you see in the friends - they believe in you, they’re your fan, and they see your potential - but this person also shares your ups and downs.

Episode 31: 3 Toxic People you must avoid to protect your business and your family.