Challenge? Bring it on!

Manpriya Singh

Whoever said women are better at multi-tasking didn’t really factor in the ‘mommies’. Who at any given point of time is putting on a spectacular juggling act! There are too many balls up in the air and finally, they all fall back into place. On Mother’s Day, here’s raising a toast to self-made mompreneurs from the region.

Determination is the key

Designer Sonu Gandhi recalls how her son Awal was a toddler when she moved to Ludhiana. When she started her own label from home, her daughter was two years old. Little did she know or expect that what she started as a hobby would be a full-fledged family business taken up by her son.

“It’s been 26 years of working,” she looks back at the journey, fulfilling but fraught with challenges no less. “As a working mother, life is not easy, especially when kids are small. Challenges pour in but, of course, with determination, self-discipline and with the ability to prioritise, things fall into place.”

She has a few words of wisdom for the new work from home force out there. “Time management is the core. See what is most urgent, then urgent, then important and not-so-important, you’ll be surprised at the free time you have,” she signs off, but not before imparting one last magic tip. “And don’t forget the ‘me time’.”

Come out of your shell

Jallandhar-based Prabhjyot Kaur, 29, remembers carrying her three-month-old daughter for meetings and brain-storming sessions with the sponsors. “She must have learnt to negotiate hard by now,” laughs the former beauty queen, who also owns a beauty pageant company.

Also a web manager for the last five years, and married for the past seven, she was five months pregnant when she started organising beauty pageants and seven months pregnant when she walked the ramp. “I just wanted to break that cliché, ‘Baby ho raha hai, ab kuch nahi kar sakti.’

Now her daughter is one-and-half-year old. She recalls the days when everything came down to organising, being disciplined and also being flexible. While she gives the credit to her supportive family and the knack for managing time, there’s an inspirational tip she dishes out to all the new work-from-home mommies, “Kids and families can never be your restriction for achieving anything. You just have to come out of your shell and go for it.”

Leading by example

Chandigarh-based make-up artist Parul Duggal raised her kids and started working when it was their time to look up to her. “And here I am motivating them to achieve what they desire,” shares the mompreneur, who now has daughters aged 13 and seven. “My kids are pretty independent and my mother-in-law has been a big support.” While things have been quite comfortable for her, nevertheless, the lockdown has been the best time for self-reflection.

“It’s to understand how much a woman puts her desires on hold to keep the family happy and going. But I feel if you are not a happy mother, how will you raise a happy family and teach your kids to achieve what they want.” True!

It’s never over

Amritsar-based Pranati Bhalla has been a make-up artist for eight years and just as you begin to assume that things must be all sorted and settled for the mother of a 16-year-old boy, her retort is likely to snap many out of their false assumptions. “Whether your child is an infant or an adolescent, motherhood at every stage throws open unique challenges. You have to lead by example, keep the flow of communication open and stay calm,” shares the mommy, who has also been working as a model for two years now. “I am a plus size model and I was adjudged Miss Plus Size India runner-up last year.”

She believes in having one’s fingers in too many pies, provided you have the management skills and the right attitude. “For me communication is the key. Set up some rules and boundaries for yourself so that nothing gets ignored and nothing interrupts your family time. Don’t ever let work and home encroach into each other’s space. If you are at work, be at work, if you are at home, stay home.”