When you’re busy running a business and raising a family at the same time, it can be hard to take time for yourself. However, self-love is an important foundation for every mompreneur. You can’t invest in your brand or your kids unless you focus on your personal growth. Here at MompreneurHQ, we see many women struggle to put themselves first. That’s why we’re concentrating on the importance of self-love for mothers and business owners. Explore the importance of self-love with mother, grandmother, entrepreneur, and author Marsha Norfleet.
Meet Marsha Norfleet
Marsha Norfleet is one of our oldest and dearest friends here at MompreneurHQ. Marsha has two kids and four grandkids, so you know she’s busy with family. She’s also built Keepsakes By Marsha from a hobby into a successful jewelry business, making her an inspiration for any entrepreneur.
Marsha had always loved making jewelry. She was able to spend hours at a time in the bead store, mentally combining colors and patterns to create beautiful pieces. She started out making inspiration pieces for herself, then gave them to friends and family. Eventually, she started selling her designs. She founded Keepsakes By Marsha in 2016 and has since branched out into other motivational and inspirational products.
Marsha would have plenty of wisdom to share with the MompreneurHQ community just from her business history. Her track record of growing Keepsakes By Marsha while also nurturing her family speaks to the mompreneur experience. However, she’s also a budding expert on the importance of self-love.
Marsha published her first book, Learning To Love Yourself Again, in 2021. This book guides busy women back to knowing and loving themselves. Like many of us, Marsha knows the feeling of losing yourself in work and family. She realized that she barely knew who she was anymore once her children left home. After so many years focusing on family needs and business issues, she’d lost her sense of self. If you feel the same way, Learning To Love Yourself Again can help you understand yourself again.
Defining Self-Love
It’s important to understand the meaning of self-love before you try to add this quality into your life. Marsha likes the dictionary definition of self-love: a regard for your own wellness, happiness, and wellbeing. Many women spend their lives focusing on other people. These people could be your parents, spouse, children, customers, business partner, or anyone else you truly care about.
Such relationships are important, but women need to remember that we’re important as well. Moms deserve to invest in themselves as people and individuals. Marsha reminds us that nothing gets done if we neglect ourselves!
It can take practice to focus on your wellbeing when you’re used to caring for everyone else, but it’s worth the investment. Spend time discovering your passions, learning what you enjoy—and what you don’t enjoy—, and seeing what makes you special.
Marsha suggests treating yourself the way you treated your children when they were young. Give yourself the same attention you gave your developing toddlers as you learn their strengths, weaknesses, purpose, and personality. Once you know yourself as an individual, you can build a loving internal relationship.
Explore Marsha’s top five tips for exploring yourself and learning the importance of self-love.
1. Take Time For Yourself Every Day
Find thirty minutes or an hour in your schedule every day and spend this time focusing on yourself. You don’t need to take the same block of time every day and you don’t need to do the same activities, but you deserve regular time to yourself. Give yourself permission to do something just for you, each day. This practice will help you understand yourself as a person and discover truths about yourself.
Here are some of Marsha’s favorite suggestions for this self-love time:
- Quiet time
- Reflection
- Journaling
- Meditation or prayer
- Reading
- Get a massage
- Power nap
2. Choose A Reading Selection For Each Week
Reading is a powerful tool for lifelong learning, growth, and development. If you want to be a smart businessperson and a powerful mother, you need to feed your brain. Marsha suggests picking something to read every week. It doesn’t need to be dry parenting manuals or complicated financial documents if these don’t interest you. Fiction and non-fiction are both great options. Simply set an enjoyable goal and work towards it for a few minutes each day.
Pick up any of the following reading materials to get started:
- Magazine
- News articles
- Blog series
- Novels
- Audiobooks—yes, listening to books counts as reading!
3. Listen To Inspirational Music
Music can set the tone for your day. Put yourself in a positive mindset by listening to inspirational songs. Marsha makes a habit of listening to positive songs first thing in the morning, but you can put on a happy song any time in your routine. Spiritual music, light jazz, classical, and even pop songs can add inspiration and motivation to your life. Listen to your favorite positive songs regularly to lift up your spirits and strengthen your self-love routine.
4. Take Yourself On Dates
People are social creatures. It’s normal to want company for meals, errands, and other activities. However, Martha also recommends spending purposeful, thoughtful time alone. Give yourself permission to do things without anyone else. Take yourself to your favorite restaurant, see a movie your spouse doesn’t want to watch, go to a conference your networking circle can’t attend, or try anything else that feeds your spirit. You’ll enjoy the opportunity to make your own decisions without accounting for other people’s preferences.
5. Learn To Say No
No is a magical word for women, especially mothers and business owners. Many women feel pressured to be agreeable at all times, even when they don’t want to do something. You can protect your own time, energy, and other resources by saying no to anything that doesn’t improve your life. Drawing boundaries helps you focus on your own goals instead of wasting time on other people’s obligations. Start saying no more often and watch your life change.
Practice Self-Love Every Day
Self-love will help you thrive in business and with your family. Marsha Norfleet’s expert self-love advice is backed up by her personal and professional success. Add her tips to your life and experience the importance of self-love every day. Visit her online at marshanorfleet.com for more details. You can also explore our MompreneurHQ resources to continue your growth as a mother, entrepreneur, and person.
