By far the most common conversation we have with the folks we interview is about work-life balance. Starting a business or pursuing a creative career makes finding work life balance really tough because there is no clear start and end to one’s work day. We’ve shared some of our conversations on the topic below.

Sujata Mody Kamdar | Growth Minded Individual, Business Owner & Philanthropist

I’m a mom, I own a company, I am an active volunteer in my community, I love to workout, read, cook, socialize, learn, and so much more! Not surprising, balance is something that is always top of mind for me. Achieving a balanced and fulfilled life is an ongoing process for me. I have learned through lots of episodes of feeling tired and overwhelmed that I need to continually work to find balance. I do this in many ways: 1. First and foremost, I remind myself often that ‘I get to do something’ rather than ‘I have to do something’. It’s amazing how changing that one little word from Have to Get really puts you in the mentality of being grateful. Easy example that applies to everyone: I don’t have to workout, I get to workout. See how different that is? I get to workout because I’m healthy and strong -it’s a gift! 2. I make lists and schedules. By keeping my life organized, I am able to make time for the different things I want to do. Read more>>

Rachel Pierre | Content Creator & Podcaster

Balance in life, in general, doesn’t exist. As a working mom, wife, and business owner – I can’t possibly balance all of that. Some things are more important at certain times of the day and year, and my family will always have priority over anything I might elect to do. Instead, I try to find a good mix that works for us and keep things in harmony. One of my podcast guests used the word harmony to describe how she does it and I have adopted it as my own. The way I keep all of my responsibilities in harmony and work to shift, adjust, or prioritize is an art form that I’ve worked to perfect over the last 3-4 years. It takes time and plenty of fails to realize that some things that appear important in the moment are not important. The biggest lesson I’ve learned – is to temper my own expectations so I don’t feel that I’m not successful as I try to “balance”. Read more>>

Katelyn Wait | Owner

My work-life balance has been constantly changing from the start of creating Tier One Cakes. When I began Tier One Cakes out of my house in 2017, my husband I had just moved to Cypress, we had been married for only a year, and I was desperate to make this business work. I needed it to work because I had a long term goal to stay at home with our future children, but I also wanted to contribute to our family financially. Starting out, business was slow and it was easy for me to balance both the household and the business. In 2018 I started devoting more time to making sure that each customer’s message was responded to quickly, donating products to get my name out there, and participating in various vendor fair opportunities. In turn, I picked a consistent amount of orders per week in quantities that I could barely keep up with. Read more>>

Fabiola Duenas, Sara Allen & Liz Shimbashi | Forza Real Estate Group, Keller Williams Premier Realty

When we first got into the real estate industry, everything was so fast paced and go-go-go that you would fall into the trap of feeling that if you weren’t present and available 24/7, you would never succeed. Fast forward to 7+ years later and we can honestly say that we now fully live by the Keller Williams business model of God, Family, Business – in that order. When we started Forza, work-life balance was one of our major priorities & guiding factors as we laid out our new business model. We didn’t want to feel run down or have the burn out that could come with how we were doing business before and have now realized that this allows us to serve more families at an exponentially higher level. We work within focused systems & maintain a passionate dedication to fulfilling and exceeding our clients expectations to make their real estate dreams a reality while still honoring our time commitments to ourselves and our families which makes for an overall more positive experience for all involved! Read more>>

Michele Stamos | Pilates and Yoga Instructor

I believe doing what makes you happy is key to living a balanced life. When you do what you love every day for your job, it’s much less stressful on yourself and your family. Plus you get the benefits is living a healthy lifestyle. Read more>>