After having my son in 2015, with the encouragement of my husband, I decided to change my career. I’d been working as a print journalist up until that point and was ready for a new challenge. I enjoyed journalism, but it was poorly paid and often very stressful.
I wanted a career that offered me flexibility so that I could spend time with my family while also allowing me to be creative and do what I love most, which is writing. So, when my son was about 10 months old, I launched my own copywriting and content business.
My business became grew, and eventually, I made six figures
It was hard work getting it off the ground. I really had no idea how to run a business, so I had to educate myself about simple things like how to invoice a client and the kind of insurance I needed.
I was also absolutely terrible at marketing myself (and still am to this day) and would flounder and stutter when asked what I did for work. Luckily, my husband is a born businessman, and through talking to people at his myotherapy and remedial massage clinic, he hooked me up with several clients that became my bread and butter.
As the years passed, my business slowly grew, and I picked up more clients, mainly through word of mouth. In the 2019-2020 financial year, just as the pandemic was hitting, my business was going gangbusters. I more than doubled my income that financial year, and for the first time in my life, I felt like I was earning good money and that my work was valued.
During the COVID-19 lockdowns in Melbourne, where we live, in 2020, my husband had to close his clinic while I was able to continue working from home. I began supporting the family financially while he cared for our 1-year-old daughter and homeschooled our son, who was 5 at the time.
I worked long hours, and due to the time difference with some of my clients, I often had early starts and late-night meetings. Initially I didn’t mind because I was earning such good money, but after a while, I began to feel like my family life was suffering because of my work.
Courtesy of Melissa Noble
I was grateful my income could support my family but didn’t feel fully present
Often, I’d be distracted on my phone, answering emails to clients or helping out one particular client with crisis communications. I felt like I was never fully present with my kids. There was always some work-related task to attend to in the background.
By 2021, I’d hit six figures, and in 2022, I had my best year yet. That same year, I got pregnant with my third child and took four months of maternity leave.
Babies have a way of making you slow down and smell the roses, and when I did, something shifted in me. I thought more about my life and what was important to me. I came to the conclusion that I didn’t want to look back and have regrets down the track, wishing that I’d spent more time with my kids rather than prioritizing money.
When I went back to work, I decided to work only during school and daycare hours and spend as much quality time with my three children as possible. I cut back to about 27 hours over four days a week, which meant sacrificing a large portion of my income — probably about 30%.
Obviously, with the loss of income, we had to make sacrifices elsewhere. Nowadays, there are fewer nice-to-haves, but we have more than enough of the essentials, and plenty of what matters most — time together.
They say that time is the most valuable commodity, and I couldn’t agree more. It’s up to you how you spend it, but once you’ve used it, you can never get it back. For me, the trade-off of working less to have more time with my children and a better work-life balance was totally worth it. I feel happier than ever, knowing that I’m making memories with my kids, rather than more money in the bank.
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