Minutes Matter: Emmelie Coulson

This week on Minutes Matter we have Emmelie Coulson.

Emmelie is a mum of two, and is a brand designer and illustrator based in South Lanarkshire.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and your business? What inspired you to start your own business?

I'm Emmelie - Brand designer and Illustrator, creating bold, high-energy brand designs for female entrepreneurs who want their business to stand out! I was working in the corporate world but the lack of creativity in my job meant I wasn't satisfied. That plus not being able to move up on the career ladder due to being a mum and not wanting to work full time meant I was looking for a change. I've always been creative but a lack of experience and confidence meant I found it hard to apply for design jobs, so I took matters in my own hands and started my own business.

How do you typically structure your workday?

I usually start my work day around 9 - when I get back from the school run. I work until 12ish, take the dog for a long walk and have some lunch away from my desk. I then often have about an hour left before I have to go and pick the kids up again in which I do a bit more work.

How do you typically structure your working week?

It's all structured around the kids school and nursery hours. I work when they are away and finish up before I have to pick them up again. I usually plan time in for a walk with a friend but this varies depending on her work schedule. I don't usually have set days for certain tasks but do tend to work on my client work first thing. I do schedule in time for social media on a Thursday - don't ask me why a Thursday, that just kinda happened.

How do you prioritise tasks and decide what to focus on each day?

I usually prioritise client work first- although I've now time blocked half an hour each morning to do some content creation for my Instagram and I've found that has been really nice. Once I got the client work out of the way I will focus on my own business (as there's always so much to do) - my website, blog post, newsletter or Instagram/Pinterest content.

Are there any specific tools, apps or time management techniques that you use to manage your time efficiently?

I use a combination of my Google Calendar for time blocking, Asana for keeping track of which tasks I'm to do and good old fashioned pen and paper to write my to do list for each day.

How do you balance the various roles that we often take on as small business owners, e.g. marketing, admin, delivery of product/service?

It's a hard one - often client work takes the priority but if we don't have time to do all the other things in our business marketing/admin it will probably fall apart at some point. So I do try to carve out time to work on my business as well. I often find that I find it easier writing my blog posts or newsletters in the evening so tend to do that sometimes (especially when I'm busy with client work).

What challenges do you face juggling entrepreneurship with parenthood, and can you share any strategies that you use to help with this?

So many.. haha! Where to even start. If I had to pick two I'd say being flexible when the kids are off unexpectedly and trying to keep family time and work time separately. I'm a fairly organised person so often have an idea of what I want to do in a week (and when to do it) so when one of the kids are off unexpectedly it throws be off quite a bit. I try to add in extra time in my projects so that I don't work on too tight deadlines this then gives me a bit of wriggle room when I have to drop all the work and look after them. Experience with this also helps in trying to deal with it and not let it stress you out!

Separating work and family time is also hard for me - sometimes I'm in the flow and I want to keep working after the kids get back. Or I'm bursting with ideas and want to work on it straight away. But I feel a lot calmer when I try to focus on one thing - either work or spending time with the kids so that's what I try to do!

Distractions can be a challenge when working independently; how do you minimise distractions to stay focused?

Putting my phone on silent is probably the best one also not having my inbox open in a tab so I don't see that new emails have come in. Focussing on one thing at a time and not trying to multitask, doing something quickly when a screen is loading or checking my messages and getting distracted by the Instagram feed.

How do you handle unexpected challenges or change, that invariably happens when running a business as a parent?

I stress out for a bit - then have a think about how to handle the situation. Is there anything super urgent or do I have calls booked in that I need to reschedule? I will let my husband know so that he is prepared to take over all of the bedtime routine so I can do all the necessary work in the evening. I've gotten much better (I think) at handling these situations - the main thing I've learned is to not cram each minute of my childfree time full of things that HAVE to be done and leaving things to the last minute.

What have been your biggest insights when it comes to managing your time as a small business owner?

Take less work on during the school holidays! Taking on a time constricted project during the Easter holidays last year was a real eyeopener, it meant working evenings and weekends when I was already knackered from taking care of the kids all day. So I've definitely learned to take on less - or just take the time off completely during school holidays. It also means that I'm enjoying my time with the kids much more as I'm not constantly stressed about all the work that still needs to be done!

What do you like to do in your free-time?

I love to go for walks with the dog - discovering new paths to take and not knowing where I end up! I love to garden, growing flowers and the occasional veg! I obviously love being creative- illustrating, painting... And I love to play computer games - puzzle/adventure ones are my go to!

Is there another local business that you'd like to give a mention to and why?

I'd love to mention Small Biz Community - hosting relaxed networking events for female founders! Come and meet some fellow mumpreneurs!

Thank you Emmelie for sharing your thoughts with us - another time blocker! Love it!

You’ll find Emmelie’s website here. Or you can also connect with her on Instagram.

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