How Motherhood Has Changed the Way I Run TJP

I could literally talk about motherhood and running a business all day. I just want to share some of my experiences and how TJP has evolved as my family has (and continues) to grow.

The Early Days of TJP

I started The Jess Press before becoming a mom, and even before becoming a dog mom. When I quit my job in NYC, my business was my first baby. A few months later, we got Dock, our Golden Retriever (who is the best).

A few years later, I began working through pregnancy and transitioned into becoming a mom to our first son, Walker.

That’s when reality quickly set in. As a small business owner, there is no maternity leave. You don’t get paid when you’re not working.

Building a Business While Raising a Human

Raising a child while running a business has been a very different experience than what I initially thought it would be. I truly believed I would be able to just handle everything. I’m extremely organized. I can multitask and do 50 things at once. But my expectation was quickly proven incorrect. Having a child changes everything (in an amazing way, of course).

That’s why I wanted to share some of my experiences, starting with the above photo. There have been times when childcare simply wasn’t an option. Someone got sick. Nannies canceled. Two years ago, Walker came with me to the unveiling of Clark’s Landing’s brand new renovation. This chubby little man was running around the entire place. But it was either I don’t go, or he comes with me. Those were the only options on the days they offered. Obviously I chose to bring him!

There have been other times when Walker has had to come with me to printers or to drop things off to a bride. We’ve truly done it all together. Last year, there were times where we were struggling to find reliable childcare coverage. These days, we finally have someone reliable, and Walker’s also in school, which has been great.

Shifting Priorities and Mindset 

But now that I have another little boy on the way, I honestly really haven’t thought much about how I’m going to balance running TJP with raising two kids. As a mother and business owner, I’ve learned to just roll with it. That’s life!

My priorities shifted massively with Walker, and they undoubtedly will shift again. Before having Walker, I always put the business first. As a small business owner, I couldn’t mess up. I had clients paying me.

Now, it’s become “I still can’t mess up, but I also don’t have a sitter today. So, sorry, my son is the most important thing to me.” Luckily, I’ve been able to leverage my growing TJP team to make sure that we’re still delivering extremely high quality products to clients, and always on time.

Walker’s reached an age where he knows that when I’m downstairs in my office, I’m working. We have a sign on the door with a red dot and a green dot. Red dot means no no no. Green dot means go go go. If it’s green, he can come down and talk to Mommy. Otherwise, Mommy’s working. He’s not always happy about it, but he’s come to understand, and now comes down just to say hi real quick! Mommy’s gotta be able to buy donuts, and that’s what we’re doing.

Finding the Balance

Besides the fact that TJP generates income for my family, I love what I do SO much. I forget so often that I’m my own boss (I have to remind myself probably daily). Being your own boss can actually be the hardest boss there is to answer to. I’m very hard on myself and pride myself on maintaining extremely high standards for my work.

As my family continues to grow, I’ve recognized how much more there is to juggle. I’ve realized that it’s okay if I don’t get to something today, and I work every day on giving myself grace. I know that it’s totally fine because I’ll get to it tomorrow, and I know that I’m always able to get it done.

My mom always told me, “You always figure it out.” Whenever I was stressed, she’d say that. So, thank you, Joanne.

Walker Getting to Watch Mommy Thrive

I really love that Walker gets to watch me work. With my podcast, Jess Press Play™, he knows where the microphones are. He sits on the couch. It’s the cutest thing ever. I know one day he’s going to grow up and say, “My mom’s so badass. She did that.”

In the fall when I was at NY Bridal Fashion Week, I felt guilty all day being away from him. That was only the second time I’d ever been away from him alone (the first was NYBFW in the spring), and part of me wanted to say forget it, eat the hotel cost, take the last ferry or a car, and go home. Then I told myself to stop. While my family is absolutely the most important thing to me, my business matters too.

That’s what’s been challenging. The business is extremely important to me. But then you have a kid, and you realize that he’s a human with feelings. The business doesn’t have feelings, per se. The business is me. And I become so emotional being away from him in any aspect!

Transparency with Clients

I am very upfront with helping clients understand that I’m a parent. I’m always really honest about that and about my hours, so that expectations are clearly set from the beginning.

The TL;DR

I really don’t have an answer as to how to balance it. It’s just figuring it out every day, making it work, and finding those moments of clarity when you think, “OMG, I did that! And I did it in time. And now the nanny’s leaving.” And that’s my everyday life, with a lot of help from coffee, of course!

I’ll be taking 3.5+ months off this time around for my maternity leave. I only took 2.5 months off with Walker (while also recovering from an emergency C-section), and I learned so much. I feel so much more confident this time leaving and returning successfully, and taking all of the knowledge gained from my previous leave to make decisions this time. One of my assistants will be responding to emails weekly, so please don’t hesitate to reach out! I will be on leave from the week of February 16th until June 1st.

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