Julie Hide from Parenting Hub

Tell us a bit about YOU and your family

My name is Julie and I am a married I am a mother to 5 children and a stepmother to 2 children.

My household as you can imagine takes up a lot of my time with a son in matric, twin girls aged 12 and twin girl and boy aged 7!  Other than my incredibly busy household, I run an online parenting magazine (parentinghub.co.za) full time and in between time and with every moment that I have to focus all my energy on providing information and resources to other busy parents.

Although my life is busy and comes with a lot of complications relating to my family, I would not change a thing.

What is the name of your company and when did you start your business?

My business is called Parenting Hub and I purchased it a year ago. I have increased my sales by more than 200% in the last year!

What inspired you to start your own business?

I knew that I needed to have more flexibility to be able to focus my time between my business affairs and my family. I also know all too well that we as parents need to be inspired by people just like “us”, which is why the content for my magazine is so strategically sourced.

What are the challenges you face or have faced being a working Mom and how have you overcome them?

Having 5 children and a husband comes with its own unique challenges.

I face various challenges with my children’s different personalities which unfortunately can sometimes infringe on my day-to-day running’s of my business but as a result, I have learnt that with the right mobile phone and the right applications – I can run it anywhere!

And although I work till late in the night every single night and on weekends – I have learnt that family time together is important and this means even starting work again sometimes at 9pm at night!

What is the hardest part or have been some of your struggles starting your own business?

Proper time management, prioritizing business sometimes over social events and most certainly the late nights takes a little getting used to

How do you balance your business and your family?

I have found that when I get a moment to work without my family around that I need to take advantage of that time and spend it well. Juggling motherhood, being a wife and still taking “me” time is certainly tough but I feel that if you try hard enough and live in the moment that it is certainly a challenge that you can over come.

What or whom has been the greatest support for you and your business?

I have 2 amazing people that support me. My husband is always my sounding board for my frustrations and then my business partner (silent) – if there is anything that I need to bounce off of someone for the growth of my business, my business partner most certainly someone that is able to share a different perspective on things for me.

If you had to do it all over again, what would you do differently?

I would have done it sooner – being in an incredibly stressful environment for 10 years and working ridiculous hours, I missed out of a lot of small things with my family. This was all because I had no confidence in myself to do what I had always dreamed of doing and that was helping other parents.

What advice can you give other Moms out there who are starting a new business?

Although the hours are tough and sometimes frustrating stick with it – never give up because its hard, just find an easier route, be persistent, have support and most importantly believe in yourself!

Is there anything else you’d like to share with us that I may have missed?

There are so many tools out there to assist you with your business. The internet is a great source of information. Join forums, networking groups and as much as possible automate things and most certainly PLAN everything that you can.

If other Moms would like to keep in touch, how can they contact you?

• Website: www.parentinghub.co.za
• Email: info (at) parentinghub.co.za
• Mobile: 083 677 1402
• Facebook: ParentingHub
• Twitter: parentinghub1
• Pinterest: parentinghub