Have you ever dreamed of opening a restaurant but believe that it’ll only be dream given your parental status? Well, there’s good news. Having kids shouldn’t stop you from opening a restaurant the same way having a part-time job shouldn’t stop you from graduating college. People are resilient and can handle more than one responsibility at a time. Just ask any busy moms you might know!
These are some tips for becoming a restaurateur as a busy parent and having the career of your dreams.
1. Get help
Opening a restaurant as a parent is a Herculean task. Opening it all by yourself is enough to give you a lifetime supply of stress. To take the stress off you, look for people who can help you open it. You can hire a co-manager, a chef, or anyone else who trust to handle key responsibilities. You’ll still be responsible for keeping everyone in line, but the burden can be reduced significantly.
2. Have a great website
If you want to become a restaurateur as a busy parent, you need to realize that marketing your business is one of the biggest parts of opening a restaurant. You know that you’ll need to have a website, but it needs to be more than a throwaway site with a few photos and the menu. Look into web design or hire a web designer who can give your website the look it needs to make your restaurant appealing to those looking for a bite to eat. Having a large social media presence will also do a lot when it comes to driving website traffic.
3. Figure out childcare
Opening and running a restaurant means many nights away from home. If you are used to being a stay-at-home mother, this could be a big change for everyone. Since a busy restaurant is no daycare, you need to figure out childcare. If you have a partner who is available during the evenings, it should be agreed that they will be running the household while you are away. Otherwise, you should find a trusted sitter, friend, or relative who can be depended upon to take care of your children. Just make sure that you aren’t springing this on people at the last minute. You can still become a restaurateur as a busy parent if you iron out these little details ahead of time.
4. Have a well-planned schedule
The people who are experts at time management didn’t get that way by way of pure luck. They understand the value of scheduling and adhering to those responsibilities. With a well-planned schedule, you can make parenting and running a restaurant much more feasible. If there are events regarding your children that you know you can’t miss, such as sports game or recitals, make sure you mark these down well in advance and that you the restaurant schedule arranged in a way that ensures everything will be running smoothly while you’re away.
5. Get advice from other restaurateur parents
Believe it or not, but you’re not the first person to ever juggle running a restaurant and running a family. Even the greatest successes in the world of restaurateuring and parenting have had struggles. Look for people in your area who have accomplished what you hope to. They’ll likely inspire you with their tales of perseverance and practical tips that allow them to make both of their dreams a reality.
Becoming a restaurateur as a busy parent might be more challenging than if you had no children, but challenges are what makes life worth living. You can rise to the occasion and show just how good you are at managing time in terms of running a business and a family. This is your life and you should learn to embrace every opportunity that is given to you.
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