How will I keep up with my business after my son is born? Will I be able to manage it all on my own while keeping a small human (and myself) alive? Will there be enough coffee in the world to support me? Will I be a good mom if some of my attention is divided between Poshmark and cuddling my new baby?
All of those are the questions that I asked myself often throughout my pregnancy with my son, Finn, who is now almost three months old. Some days, I still ask myself these questions while changing diapers, listening to baby coos, listing on Poshmark and feeling like Wonder Woman while chugging coffee. As the days, weeks, and months of his life go by I have realized just how capable I am of all of those things. Plus more!
When I started selling on Poshmark in June of 2016, it started out as a hobby. I was working at my 9-5 desk job and was going to the thrift store and buying clothes to sell as a side income. I quickly discovered the thrill of buying and selling and bringing in money to the point of questioning my desk job and whether I could quit and sell full time. My husband and I knew we wanted to have a baby but knew daycare wasn’t something that was easily affordable. We decided if I jump-started my business and had it well established within a year then I could work from home with a baby and we wouldn’t have to cover daycare (and I could work and cuddle, win win.). For the next few months, I set pretty big goals for myself and was able to meet them with a lot of effort and determination. Fast forward to September 2017, I quit my desk job to sell on Poshmark, full-time.
Now, nearly two years later, I have no regrets on my decision to take a risk and quit my job to venture into the entrepreneurial world. Before our son had arrived, I did my best to set myself up for success. I worked long hours to establish the organization my business so desperately needed. I went to local thrift stores and consignment shops and stocked up on all the new arrivals. And my husband helped me tremendously so that I wouldn’t be stressed trying to juggle everything while caring for a newborn. When the time came, and so did Finn (3 weeks early) I’m not afraid to say I wasn’t prepared in the slightest and if you’re a mom, you know that those first few weeks are HARD.
There were a few things that I did, reminded myself of and was reminded of my fellow PFFs who have been in my shoes before. These five tips could apply to anyone who’s having a hard time, someone who is feeling pressure or that what they’re doing isn’t “enough,” someone who is pregnant and trying to balance everything, a new mom who is trying to manage or a seasoned mom who just needs a little reminder!
- Give yourself SO much grace. I never truly knew what this meant until motherhood. Don’t beat yourself up if your reality doesn’t meet up to your expectations. More than likely, you are doing better than you think and soon enough, things WILL get better! Hang in there, know you’re doing a great job and keep on keeping on.
- Set a realistic list of goals to complete daily. I use the app “Wunderlist,” and it works wonders for me. Don’t get disappointed if you can’t check off all the goals you made for the day. Add them to the next day’s goals list and keep working at it!
- Organize and stay organized. When it came to my inventory of items that I had listed in my Poshmark closet, I had them in a few different places. None of which made sense for them to be. Once I was able to get everything organized, and in its place, that gave me more time to do other things and less time looking for something that was misplaced. This doesn’t just have to apply to inventory. That can apply to anything in life really.
- Time management skills. I knew I was awful at managing my time, but I never knew how bad I really was at it. Having my son around has really kicked me into gear and has taught me that I need to make use of my time wisely. Holding myself accountable has been key. I set daily alarms for myself so that I stay on track and complete the things that need to be completed in a timely manner. I work as a Virtual Assistant in addition to running my Poshmark closet and writing down the time I get something done and setting an alarm for the next task really helps to keep me on track.
- Find a great support system and lean on them when necessary. I have met many great friends through the Poshmark-Instagram community. Some are moms, some aren’t but all care so much about me and my success both in my business and as a new mother. I have a few PFFs on speed dial who I can reach out to for advice, who I can vent to and who reassures me when I need reassurance in any aspect of my life. In the past year or so, I have learned that having a community of people who you have things in common with and who you can talk to frequently makes a world of difference.
I hope those few tips can be applied in your life and help as much as they have helped in mine! Ultimately, I am so grateful for the past few years and for what Poshmark has provided for my family. If you had told me a few years ago that I would be selling used clothing on an app for a living to support my family, I would’ve laughed and thought you had lost your mind! Little did I know, this app changed my life. It has brought me some pretty amazing friends that I met either online or at PoshFest. Poshmark has brought me great opportunities that I otherwise wouldn’t have found. Such as working from home and getting to cuddle my baby while doing it and also the opportunity of being able to support my family from a business that I built from the bottom up. I’m so proud of how far I have come and also who I have become since being introduced to Poshmark in June of 2016.
At the beginning of this post, if you remember. I had mentioned that I ask myself a few questions. More specifically this one:Will I be a good mom if some of my attention is divided between Poshmark and cuddling my new baby?
This is something I ask myself often. But, time and time again I prove to myself that I am not only a good mom. I’m an amazing mom. I love my son with all my heart. He watches and someday will understand just how hard I work for him so that I can help provide for our family. I’ll teach him how to pour his heart into something he’s passionate about and not to look back. Not even when someone doubts what he’s capable of.
It’s easier to be hard on yourself than it is to be kind. But sometimes, kindness is all you need and everything you deserve. I’ll end my little post at this. In the comments below, tell me what is something you’re proud of yourself for? What is something that you’ve achieved that you never imagined you’d be capable of achieving? This can be in life, parenting, work, etc. Thank you for taking time out of your day to swing by and read about my experience of adjusting to life as a new mom while also being a business owner. Happy Mother’s Day to all you moms out there!
Sarah Heitkemper
Closet: @trendsetchic
Instagram: @trendsetchic
