I love being a Mum because…..

“my boy’s gummy smile replaces coffee as the morning perk to start the day.”
” until my son came into my life, unconditional love was just a hearsay.”
“I have 2 handsome boys madly in love with me!”
“as much as my child needs me, i need her more….”
” its the pinnacle of my womanhood..”
 ”that’s the best job in the world!”
“I go through happiness, anger and frustration, annoyance and all sorts of moods with the young one every single day but we still love each other so much!”
“I love being their 24hr on-call maid/tutor/handymum!!!”
“I ceased to be.. while he defined himself.. and now his eyes reflect all that’s worse n good in me.. and I am true to myself again…”
” its an inspiration of life and allowing ourselves and others to learn …”
” through my boy, i learn that things don’t always go the way you want in life, but with sheer determination and a never-give-up spirit (that’s of cos after the crying and throwing tantrums. hehe.), even the most difficult challenges can be overcome – from being able to turn himself, to sitting up, to crawling, to standing, to walking, to it completes me…..it was always meant to be, realized only once I actually became a mum.”
“I see myself in my son and he shows me how beautiful life is again. His innocence, energy and creativity makes me admire all that he is. The sky’s the limit for him.”
“it has taught me that women as a gender are so absolutely incredible! From giving birth (a feat in itself!) to our 24 hour ‘job’ the women and mums I am surrounded by still amaze me with their parenting skills, patience, dreams and non stop attitude to life! Our children are the icing on a very large cake .”
“ life never gets bored with my 2 boys ”
“ it makes me a better person; to lead a healthier life, to have all the good habits (cut down on bad ones) and to have the right values bacause I am a role model to my 2 kids now!”
“when the day i cant remember anything, and ask questions repeatedly.. I have my kids to remember all the good times we had and remember who i am.”
“I am proud that I can bring life to this wonderful world, to cherish and mold this child into a useful person.”
“my children, they take my breath away, with both their crazy antics and sweet gestures, and every bit in between!”
“ it’s just so amazing and great. No words can describe my feelings.”
“it’s the most rewarding role ever! There are no other means of rewards except love ”
“because it gave me another opportunity to live my childhood again through my child’s journey ”
“because, motherhood involves a little bit of tears, a little bit of spice and little bit of everything sweet and nice”
“because my kids love me being their mum!”
“because mum’s love is unconditional and that is why all the mum’s are very special in their own way!!”
“it’s the highest paid job in the world as the reward is pure love”
“because there is nothing else in this world I’d rather be. Love you very much my darlings!”

By Ruth Wong

Sam enjoys churning out yummy bakes for her family and friends, so when she began mulling over the thoughts of starting a business, she knew almost immediately what it would be. But what sets her baking business apart is a unique idea she had from observing what’s available – or rather, not available – in the market.

“The baked products that are sold today are often quite large. Whenever I buy a cupcake or muffin, it’s usually either too big to finish on my own and definitely too big for my kids, or it’s covered in thick icing that I would most likely throw away,” explained Sam, a business manager.

She thought it would be perfect if they come in smaller sizes and in healthier versions. She experimented with her idea and her children whose ages range from five to 13 years old, immediately fell in love with the smaller cupcakes and muffins she made. With newfound confidence in her products, Sam launched Wicked Oven in 2010 to sell baked items in bite sizes.

The juggling act

While deciding upon the type of business and having a unique idea came easily for Sam, it’s running the business that was the challenge.

“In the beginning, I faced the problem of finding the right boxes to hold my cupcakes for delivery – they were either too expensive or too flimsy. I only found the right ones after visiting many shops and through a lot of trial and error!” Sam recalled.

“Also, my home kitchen is not really set up to mass-produce baked goods. So I had to make a few changes that will not compromise my family’s needs and yet able to meet my business targets,” she added.

However, the toughest part was in running the business alone while holding down a full-time job.

“I was unable to quit my day job so the multi-tasking was very challenging. Imagine being told to travel for work when you have an order to fulfill! It really took a lot of careful scheduling and detailed planning to make it work,” she shared.

In fact, there were many times she thought of quitting, admitting that it was an uphill task juggling work, business and family commitments.

 “When I started the business, it was a test case to see if I can do this and quit my job. The point was to do something I love and yet be able to provide for my family. But it’s hard work trying to strike a balance. There were many times I experienced frustration and physical tiredness to the point of giving up,” she said.

“I’m blessed to have a very supportive husband and understanding parents. My kids also understand what I’m doing and know to keep out of my way when I’m busy trying to fulfill an order. So I kept going.”

Pressing on with her dreams

Family support aside, the sense of satisfaction she derives from what she does also keeps her going.

 “I love it when people enjoy my cupcakes and tell me how unique they are. The sense of satisfaction of making something different, delicious and playing a part in making an event successful is what I enjoy most,” she noted. Sam receives new orders mainly through word-of-mouth.

Two years into the business, she opined that what helped her to successfully juggle the different roles is the strong support from her family, especially her husband. Not afraid of hard work and being organised help too, she reckoned.

Focusing on her achievements also motivates her. Such as being able to bake a hundred cupcakes and cleaning up in less than two hours, and successfully converting two recipes into yummy, non-gluten treats for her clients.

Talking about her future plans, Sam shared, “I’m still not able to quit my job due to my financial and family commitments. However, my vision is to have my own shop selling the yummy baked goods that I love. Right now, I am still doing whatever I can for my supporters – so I’m not giving up just yet!”

Advice for aspiring mumpreneurs:

1. Do your homework and research thoroughly about your business before you start. However, you don’t need to have a perfect business plan – if you try to do that, you will likely not to ever get started.

2. Don’t let all the uncertainties overwhelm you; after you have done your research and planning, go ahead and just do it! After all, if you don’t do it, you will never know if your business will succeed or not.

3. Don’t give up too easily. There is always a learning curve, so don’t give up at the first sign of trouble or difficulty. However, if you know it is not going to work in the long-term, let it go.

A total of 31 companies and more than 160 mothers attended the event.

The list of employers who had attended the event came from various industries; Adam Khoo Learning Technologies Group, Asiatel(S) PteLtd, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Caterpillar Asia Pte Ltd, Clearskin Centre Pte Ltd, COO Services Pte. Ltd., DSS Pte Ltd, Enterprise Management Pte Ltd, Ernst & Young Solutions LLP, Eroma Marketing, Flexecute, Ingram Micro Asia Ltd, Invention Capital, Learning Tech Program Pte Ltd, Mercer (Singapore) Pte Ltd, MoneyTree Singapore Pte. Ltd, Mothercare (S) Pte Ltd, ON24 PTE LTD, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited, Pay2Home Pte Ltd, Phillip Securities Pte Ltd, Pinstripe Business Solutions, Rainforest Research Pte Ltd, SingaporeAcademy of Law, SP Services Ltd, The Aardvark Pte Ltd, United Overseas Bank Limited, Zenitant Pte Ltd.

Some comments from employers about the mothers who attended:

• “Impressive pool of candidates.”
• “Nice to meet such qualified and experienced mothers. Hope we can partner some of them in the near future.”
• “Interesting event that was well-organised.”

Here are some pictures from the day:

Every year’s Mother’s Day in my household is a celebrated event. Despite the cynics who brand this day as a Hallmark gimmick, Mother’s Day is usually a day of tasteful scones (My mother liked Hi-Teas), hand-drawn greeting cards (from my 3- year old) and lots of gratitude for the Mama’s in the household.

This year will be different though. I lost my mum to cancer last December. And it has been an uphill task trying to overcome my personal grief over the last 5 months. My mother was a great inspiration to me in many of the choices I made (and still continue to make). She taught me how to be a filial daughter, a supportive wife and a loving mother, through her actions and her advice. She was my first idol, influencing me with her own ability to balance work and family. (She was a school teacher back in the days when school sessions only took up mornings/ afternoons).

Some of my earliest memories of childhood consisted of Mother teaching me to read “The 3 little pigs”, by cutting out little phonic cards as teaching props, in our apartment in London, UK. During my primary school going years, I recall her rushing back from her morning session classes to pick me up from school. We would spend some time sitting at the neighbourhood playground/ park – as she asked me about my day. Growing up, my mum’s presence was a given in my day-to-day decisions. In my mind, she was always there for me. And instinctively,  I knew that I wanted to be like her – giving my work and family equal amounts of time, balancing as best as I could.

When I first started Mums@Work in 2010, Mother had already been diagnosed with cancer. She was, however, one of my greatest supporters – cutting out newspaper and magazine articles when Mums@Work was featured, listening to my stories of how I was trying to get things up and running. Most of all, she always believed in my dreams and ideas. As her health got progressively worse,  she struggled to still be my biggest fan, eagerly waiting to hear me relate my experiences as a Mumpreneur and as a mother of a baby.

This Mother’s day will be extremely hard. As I prepare to welcome my 2nd child into this world in a few weeks time, I wish (more than anything else in this world) that my mum will be here. However, the reality is that I can only embrace the memories I have of the woman who gave me life.

One of the things that I have come to cherish most since her demise, is a book written by my uncle “Good Morning Yesterday”.

In this book (and his blog http://goodmorningyesterday.blogspot.com/, my uncle writes about the Singapore he grew up in. It’s a really popular blog and gives a great insight to the Singapore that we no longer see. In some of his stories, I find accounts or mentions of my mother and her childhood years.) These stories give me glimpses of my mother’s youth (before I was born) and add to the memories I have of her.

In the same way, I hope to be able to leave behind a legacy for my children to know more about me through the blog entries and stories I tell.

If you too, are someone looking for a glimpse into old Singapore, do take a look at the book.

But most of all, have a fantastic Mother’s Day. Give your mum and kids a big hug from me.

Recently, Etsy ran their Etsy Success Symposium on 30th March. Held in Brooklyn, New York, it was of course quite impossible for us to attend in person.

Thank goodness for technology – we had a great time attending the Live Webinars. There were a series of topics, catered to small business owners (including Mompreneurs) who sell on etsy.com

However, I found the information to be useful for Singapore-based Mumpreneurs too.

BEST PART? Etsy did a post-event sharing with lots of useful materials and you even get a chance to watch the recorded Webinars.

There are a few recorded webinars – it’s free to view. Here are the ones that we recommend, which might be of interest to you, whether you sell on Etsy or not:

* Get Noticed: How to Romance Blog and Magazine Editors – great to learn how to get PR editors to talk about your business, products etc (Some really useful tips)

* Get Found: Conquering Searches on Etsy and the Web – Some basic guidelines on how you can be “found” by potential customers.

* Get Out There: Using Craft and Wholesale Shows to Support Your Small Business – Again, some useful tips for Mumpreneurs who craft and sell their products.

Of course, some of the information is not local-centric, but it’s a start! And who says Singapore Mumpreneurs have to play by the Singapore rules? Sometimes, an idea can spark off a new way of doing things – helps you to beat the competition

Be sure to download the Etsy Success Symposium workbook – 44 pages of exercises, tips and resources to help you get found! (Another FREE pdf e-book that has lots of useful ideas/ suggestions)

Here are some useful tips (as featured in our article contribution to Young Parent’s March 2012 issue)

Young Parents Magazine (March 2012)

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ZOOM IN & READ MORE:

(Continued)

The topics were related to the increasing presence of women in boardrooms, growing number of women leaders around the world and the empowerment of females in the corporate world.

What struck me as being very enlightening was how the moderator introduced each of the panelist – each lady’s professional background was highlighted. BUT in addition, there was mention of her family – and how many children she had. Three of the four speakers gave credit to their husband for the support they received in the span of their careers.

It is true then – women, no matter how successful – will always be credited for their ability to juggle family and work.

For this reason, I still feel strongly that mothers who have taken time off work to care for their kids should not feel apologetic when they return back to work.

It is possibly true that we might meet employers who try to put us down for having been away from the workforce for some time. Or we may not be given equal opportunities as males all the time.

But that doesn’t mean we give up trying. Being confident of who you are and balancing that with a positive attitude can work wonders. Rather than “blame employers for being so narrow-minded”, it might be better to focus on trying to get the best arrangement. This employer doesn’t want to give you a try, go look for another one. Staying positive is important – after all, if you think the world is against you, it probably is.

Another common trait I saw amongst the inspirational women present at the event was a belief in themselves. They could have chosen to rant and go on and on about how they were not given equal opportunities climbing to the top. But what good is ranting? Focus on your own positive traits – go forward for the goals you want and have faith in yourself.

When asked if they had any advice for mums returning to work, there were some useful pointers:

1)   Keep busy when you are a stay at home mum – there are transferable skills (Organising, Time Management etc) that are useful to an employer

2)   Stay Confident – remember that you do have the education and the years of experience (before having a kid) that will put you ahead of a fresh university graduate

3)   Have realistic expectations – you DID take some time off, so you can’t expect to restart where you left. Ease your way back in through a part-time option/ Flexible option

4)   Enjoy your time with your child(ren) – you will never regret that

5)   Have a good support system when it comes to boosting your own morale – surround yourself with family and friends that are encouraging, rather than discouraging

Women around the world will always face the same issues – it is up to us, as the fairer sex to push the boundaries further if we want to make a difference in our lives

Happy International Women’s Day! Celebrate being who you are!

From the creator of ‘Build a Little Business’ comes a new project. One that will put a smile on Mumpreneurs’ faces. Mums@Work is always on the lookout for social sites, networking groups and websites that support women who have taken a step towards creating their own businesses. We were super excited to learn of SHINE’s launch and are proud to promote & sponsor this excellent idea and share it with all Mumpreneurs based in Singapore!

SHINE is a place to celebrate, educate, and inspire women in business.

SHINE is a showcase of brilliant little businesses sharing their stories, sharing information, sharing examples of their best work.

Mumpreneurs can be a part of this community through various ways:

MADABOUTKIDS.COM

Have a skill to share with other parents/kids?

Tell us about it!

MadAboutKids.com, committed to helping parents in their journey by organising events/activities for parents and kids to bond together, is offering you a collaboration opportunity!

YOU offer the Skill (eg art/craft, cooking, baking, reading, etc.). Take this opportunity to publicise/market your business too!

WE provide

• the Venue (located conveniently at Plaza Singapura)
• the Marketing (ie getting the participants) & money collection

Workshop duration:                   1-2 hours

Class size:                                     10-12 pairs of parent-child (ie 24 pax) or 24 kids

********************

Email the following information to: info@madaboutkids.com

Name:   _____________________________________

HP: ___________________

Email: ______________________________________

Website/blog (if any): _________________________________________________________

Tell us about the skill(s)/expertise that you have or hope to share:

__________________________________________________________________________

Your available/preferred slots:

(     ) Weekday mornings

(     ) Weekday afternoons

(     ) Others (please specify): _____________________________________________________

Workshop materials/equipment needed:

__________________________________________________________________________

Suitable Age Group (for kids): ___________________________________________________

Suitable for parents’ presence/involvement?:                   Yes / No

We have often talked about how finding a flexi-work arrangement can better help mothers to achieve work-family balance. However, for some mothers, due to financial, social or even personal-motivational reasons, working full-time is still the better option for the moment.

If you did have a full-time job, does it mean that you bid work-family balance adieu? Or are there still some simple strategies to help a working mother achieve some sanity in the fine act of balancing a career with a growing family?

#1: YOU HAVE A CHOICE

Many full-time working mums complain that they are short of time, have too much to do or have too many responsibilities. Think again! Is it really no choice or do you have an option? Remember – sometimes you have a choice to say “no” to certain requests. Can you choose to take on a part-time role? Can you choose not to have a clean house all the time? Tell yourself “I choose to……”, instead of “I have to….” – this gives you a sense of empowerment over your own time/ schedule.

#2: MARK YOUR BOUNDARIES

Women are naturally multi-taskers, so there might be times when we take on more at work than we realize. At work, don’t set yourself up for burn-out. Say “No” to impossible deadlines. Set aside specific dates that are important to your role as a parent (Parent-Teachers’ Day, Examination periods for your little one, First day of school) – Communicate these dates and request for time off as soon as you know when they will be.  When requesting for the day off, it’s also important to come across as being assertive, rather than aggressive.

#3: DON’T BE TOO CONCERNED ABOUT WHAT YOUR COLLEAGUES THINK

Some mothers are apologetic that they cannot join in for social events at work, but if skipping a department dinner means 4 hours of fun with your 4-year old, it may be worth it. In trying to find the balance between work and family, something may have to give – in this case, weigh your priorities. Make a decision and then ignore what your colleagues think.

Image taken from positivepsychologynews.com

#4: WHAT’S YOUR ROLE & ASK FOR HELP!

Find some time to write down all the roles you take on: Mother, Wife, Daughter, Daughter-in-Law, Sister, Employer, Employee. Look at each role, is there some area that you can outsource? Is there some area where you can ‘do a little less’ this week? Instead of complaining about how much there is to do, ask for help if you need it. Take Short Cuts – don’t strive for perfection all the time.

#5: BREATHE EASY

Be kind to yourself. Sometimes when the pressure gets too much and you feel like you are being pulled in all directions, talk about it. Write it down in a journal. Remind yourself that “This, too, shall pass.”. In the end, it’s important to cut yourself some slack.

#6: ENJOY THE SMALL THINGS

Take pride in the small things. Enjoy the little moments you spend with your kid – on the drive to school, tucking him/ her into bed. Sometimes having little bouts of quality time with loved ones is enough to recharge your energy. Lavish in them, even if they are short moments.

#7: HAVE BACK-UP PLANS

Every mum knows how worrying it can be when you are about to head out to work and suddenly you discover your 6-year old is running a high fever. You want to take her into the doctor’s office, but you also have a huge meeting at 10am (planned 3 months before, and involving a huge business transaction for the company). The panic attacks you get are probably real. It’s therefore, good to have a list of “backup” for emergencies. Rope in grandparents, in-laws, siblings and even neighbours to help out. Maybe someone can take your little one to the doctor first and you can join in later?

#8: GIVE YOURSELF A PAT ON THE BACK

At the end of each day, reward yourself. Sit back and have a chocolate (or a glass of wine, or anything that makes your happy). Completing a day is an achievement – and you did it!

Come join other Mums to learn more about finding work-family balance at www.mumsatwork.net