Unimaginable Wellness For New Moms Who Are Founders, Entrepreneurs, Creators Melissa Llarena

Are you curious about how other businesses are scaling and expanding while balancing family life? Look no further than Margaret Wishingrad, CEO and Co-Founder of Three Wishes, a cereal company that is taking the industry by storm. As a mother of two young children, Margaret knows firsthand the challenges of being a working mom, but she also relishes in the fulfillment that comes from her work.
Margaret shares her story and offers valuable insights into how she balances it all. She tackles the unrealistic expectations placed on moms and entrepreneurs, highlighting the importance of prioritizing what matters most. While she acknowledges the power of delegation, Margaret emphasizes the need for control and the satisfaction that comes from taking charge.
Margaret Wishingrad is a mother of two, the daughter of immigrants, and the Founder and CEO of Three Wishes, a healthy-while-delicious breakfast that's unique in the cereal aisle for its nutrient-dense ingredients. Margaret has grown Three Wishes from conception to a national brand, with retailers including Whole Foods, Sprouts, Erewhon, and many more in addition to a strong DTC arm. Before founding Three Wishes, Margaret was Chief of Staff at BigEyedWish, an ad agency where she worked with Fortune 100 seed-round startup businesses. After welcoming her first son, Ellis, Margaret realized the white space in the market for a nutritional cereal she wanted to feed her son.
Perhaps the most intriguing part of our conversation with Margaret is her approach to marketing. Instead of relying on traditional advertising methods, Margaret leverages the power of word-of-mouth marketing. She shares her secrets for creating buzz around her products and explains how she harnesses the power of satisfied customers to spread the word about Three Wishes. Don't miss this engaging conversation with a successful entrepreneur and busy mom who knows the value of hard work, delegation, and the power of word-of-mouth marketing. 
In this episode, you will hear these ideas expressed:
What’s it like to build a business and be in the thick of it as a mom to young kids? Uncover the story behind how Margaret got into the cereal space Growing a business, during the pandemic, and having a second kid – how did Margaret get through this with her husband? The key to business success is….being nimble Staying open-minded and taking a plunge is important How do you reorganize yourself when your family grows? The key to moving on is accepting defeat…but it’s okay Delegation is inescapable with kids Unrealistic expectations for moms and also for entrepreneurs It’s not a balance and being okay that someone will miss out takes getting used to Felt like she lost herself but she felt most fulfilled through work so she partnered with her husband What brings you an obscene amount of fulfillment? How to use the power of word of mouth for a family brand? Send to moms coldly Understand where my superpower is and use it to gather insights from mom groups online Three wishes: health, three wishes as a household brand, and encouragement for listeners SHARE this episode with a mom founder, entrepreneur, or creator, who is a mom who wants to understand how other moms integrate their work and life without going insane or compromising their wellness
Similar episodes:
How to avoid daily distractions to focus on your business growth (Work-Life Integration), Episode 180
https://www.melissallarena.com/why-sometimes-house-projects-win-over-work-projects-work-life-integration-series-episode-180/
Fix Summer Overwhelm For Moms In Business (Work-Life Integration Series), Episode 179
https://www.melissallarena.com/fix-summer-overwhelm-for-moms-in-business-work-life-integration-series-episode-179/
Supporting Resources:
https://threewishescereal.com/ 
https://www.instagram.com/threewishes/ 
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Have you subscribed to my podcast for new moms who are entrepreneurs, founders, and creators?  I’d lo

This is episode 180. How to avoid daily distractions to focus on your business growth (work-life integration). We are going to tackle a huge hindrance to business growth, especially as a solopreneur who wants to be a good mom too. This episode comes from a survey I recently conducted with moms in business. One insight that grabbed my attention was this one: a solopreneur had this to say: it's easier to see a clean kitchen than the impact of social media posts. Have you ever had this happen to you?
You hire a social media expert who designs templates, gives you Mad Lib frameworks, and sources great stock art. 
She even goes as far as telling you on Monday to share Behind-the-Scenes, on Tuesday to share an offer, Wednesday do a REEL, meanwhile throughout the days be sure to like, share, and comment on the posts that tackle the ideas you agree with or want to spread in the context of your zone of genius. Oh, and I want you to send authentic and relevant audiograms personalized to prospective clients as part of continuous business development. I’d also encourage you to comment and respond to every single comment made by others.
This is an entire job. As a coach who has been building my business was 12 years I know this is an endless effort. There have been AI solutions to tackle this. Full dashboard systems to facilitate this. Meanwhile, the landscape is a moving tactic. All of this is fabulous but what do you do when you’ve been at this for three months, one month, one week and you are not yet seeing clear results? The unfortunate alternative for some of us moms who work from home is that we turn our attention to the things that give us INSTANT GRATIFICATION. 
I recently surveyed moms in business and this comment rang SO true that I had to do an episode on it!
Focus is hard. It's easier to see a clean kitchen than the impact of social media posts. 
The issue is this: you do not build up the momentum necessary to lift your business if you constantly stop, start, stop, start your business-building efforts. In this case, it’s social media. The same dynamics are at play when it comes to creating business offers and sending them out into the market. Same idea for writing business-building emails. You'll need momentum so that the audience trusts your expertise.
The issue is also this: that pull to get you to clean your kitchen will get stronger the more you succumb to its call during the course of a day. You feel good about yourself for seeing a clean kitchen. You get a visitor and your visitor is impressed by your clean kitchen. You were told as a little girl that to be a good mom you must keep a clean hour. All of this is what I talk about in my book Fertile Imagination….it’s part of the mom scripts you inherited. On its own, there is nothing wrong with a clean home or a sense of pride. However, if this keeps bamboozling you every single time you want to make substantive progress in your business
All this is provided your business is what brings you excitement….fulfillment and joy….then you are setting yourself up for daily, weekly, and dashboard disappointments.  It will be very difficult to peel yourself off the ground by yourself...I know I've tried and I've needed help too over the last 12-years.
Consider this one change in perspective:  How can you make the impact of social media or a written book or anything in business as easy to see as a clean kitchen? What would it take for you to believe that you are making an impact from social media/anything in your business? Let’s define: impact as in there is a lift in leads. This might be the impact that you are holding your breath for and that’s the issue. You are reserving your feeling of accomplishment for others to tell you when to feel them.  You are waiting for others to tell you when to feel a sense of satisfaction for the work you did. Let’s apply the Jerry Seinfeld method instead. He would write a joke every day and cross off each day on a

As a coach for 12 years now, I understand how a working mom feels when everyone else is counting down the days until summer. I have identical twins who are 9 and a 12 year old. All of them will be cared for in a mix of summer camps, by a babysitter, me, and my husband this summer. Sound familiar? This used to make me anxious until I started asking myself an important question that I'll share with you here.
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If the answer is YES (Melissa, I'm anxious about this summer), then I want to share with you ONE tangible solution to help you avoid feeling overwhelmed or anxious when you look at the days flying by. P.S. This is the tip of the iceberg and if rethinking how you navigate your life as a mom in business is your top priority in 2023 then I will let you know how you can reach me for a free private and confidential consultation as a member of this newsletter community. Read through the note.
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Some context: This note starts off my series of work-life integration for moms in business….because I don’t believe that balance is real and frankly a lot of us are more excited about being on the thrill ride of business building than hopping off this ride. And this goes for ME too.
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Now, the working moms that I have spoken with during the last few weeks are feeling enormous levels of anxiety right now about the upcoming summer months. There's a lot on a mom's mind in May.
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Summer camps - some have 20 chrome tabs open with options that are just okay
Extensive childcare - some are paying $27/hour or more for this (so filling the calendar gaps in between camps is pricey too)
Family travel - some are navigating logistics here and booking and packing for their crew and when arriving will continue to be on-call
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You are currently mentally overloaded if this email rings true. The kid/s are in school YET now you are getting those migraines. Imagine when the kids at home this summer? Imagine them staring at you for entertainment ideas 24/7? Let's get ahead of that right here and right now.
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You want to bring your best to your family, right? You want to bring your best to your business, too?
The MAJOR challenge you will experience as a mom in business if you have not let go and decided to ask for help during this summer set of months is that you will be in charge of managing everyone’s daily life experience while maintaining the health of your business with zero slack in your schedule. You will have a hard time bringing your best to your business and bringing the best to your family.
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This will result in feeling disappointed, having a short fuse, and adding to a chaotic summer season which will set you back come September which is when you have got to be ready for maximum impact….every September is when entrepreneurs seem to rush out of the gates with offers and solutions for everything. This has been what I've noticed these last 12-years. And yet, these months before summer tend to go the same every single year...is this the case? Or is this the case?
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This is a cycle....that needs to be addressed right now....
It is a cycle that does not produce the fruits you deserve
It is a cycle that is a disservice to yourself and your family
It is a cycle that does not just have consequences for yourself, lack of sleep etc.….it affects the financial health of your entire family….because what kind of energy and enthusiasm will you have when Sept comes around and everyone else is pushing hard on the Sept momentum in their businesses?
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So today here is one piece of the puzzle that I want to encourage you to make time for today….one piece of the puzzle to navigate this summer season with greater ease so that you can actually enjoy this time off…this saved me from pre-summer anxiety and pre-break anxiety too.
Now, I ask myself this question before school breaks....
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What’s The ONE Thing You Can Do Such That By Doing It Everything Else Will Be Easier Or Unnecessa

This is a special Mother’s Day episode because it includes the kind of gift that a lot of us working moms would LOVE. If you're on a career pause right now, consider the fact that this might be the perfect opportunity to uncover what might be next for you. In this episode, we talk about networking and why so few of us prioritize such a business-critical task. Then we discuss taking a pause in your career and why that needs to be on your resume. 
Altogether, we go through what work-life integration is and why it might feel so hard in traditional business relationship-building settings. We then turn to an online/offline community that is creating the space we need to be both moms and professionals without feeling as if we have to hide half of who we are. 
I want to give you as a listener a coupon code for 75 off of a HeyMama membership to get this coupon code just DM me @melissallarena or email me Melissa@melissallarena.com
Amri Kebbler is a mom of two from New York and the visionary behind the 2014 launch of HeyMama, one of the first membership communities in the marketplace for working moms. For the past eight years, she has led the community focus by spearheading the membership team and all event programming. A born connector, Amri has used her innate talents for creativity and curation to bring together an energetic team dedicated to building meaningful connections and collaborations with mothers at every stage of their personal and professional lives.
Prior to founding HeyMama, she spent more than ten years creating content for major publications like Glamour Magazine and Cosmopolitan as an editor and stylist. The AdWeek Trailblazer has also appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Forbes, Entrepreneur, on the Today Show, and she has graced the cover of Parents Magazine. Throughout all her innovative endeavors, Amri seeks to use empathy and spirituality to spread happiness and joy by helping other mothers develop their self-worth.
Moms are warriors. There's nothing that we will not do for our kids. And that's why we need to feel whole and feel good about who we are, what we're doing, and how we are contributing to the world, whether by raising an amazing human being or by being a powerful people-leader. 
In this episode, you will hear these ideas expressed:
About HeyMama an omnichannel community for working moms Leveraging a career pause to also uncover opportunities The need for the community during tough moments (i.e. along the infertility journey and otherwise) What entrepreneurship is really like vs. what you might think if you’ve never been an entrepreneur Why don’t working moms prioritize networking? What relationships are working moms seeking? The key to facilitating vulnerable conversations online How to reenter the workforce and why your confidence matters The importance of motherhood on the resume Important things to explain on a resume if you have a gap Bringing your kids into everything you do is wonderful Examples of partnerships between moms were highlighted The difference between moms and men when it comes to networking The stigma of choosing to stay at home The importance of networking and work-life integration SHARE this episode with a mom founder, entrepreneur, or creator who is a mom who wants to understand how other moms figure out how to integrate her work and life instead of keeping them separate.
Similar episodes:
How Ex-Corporate Mom Jo Dodd Went From Leaving Corporate America to Living in Jotopia, Episode 123
https://www.melissallarena.com/how-ex-corporate-mom-jo-dodd-went-from-leaving-corporate-america-to-living-in-jotopia-episode-123/ 
Find Your Purpose Besides Being A Mom (This Is An Open Call For 50 Moms To Become Beta Readers Too), Episode 148
https://www.melissallarena.com/find-your-purpose-besides-being-a-mom-this-is-an-open-call-for-50-moms-to-become-beta-readers-too-episode-148/ 
Supporting Resources:
https://www.instagram.com/amrikibbler/ 
https://www.amri

What does work-time balance even look like? Can you tell me right now who you know who is achieving such a blissed-out state? Who is actually juggling and keeping everything off the ground? I want to know and that’s why I wanted to bring this week’s podcast guest. Ingrid J Adams.  She has four kids. Lives in Manly Australia. Ingrid’s husband encouraged HER to find something that she was passionate about when their kids went to school. She also just published a book! 
This is not about perfection or an unrealistic goalpost for superb balance. It’s about turning mom guilt on its head to publish your book or launch your business and about finding a way to teach your kids the lessons you’ve learned throughout life. 
I want to hear from you! Listen in and DM on Instagram @melissallarena. Is balance within your reach or do you think it’s slightly BS? Maybe we just need to enjoy the pockets of time in the day when we feel we are in balance? Tell me. I want to know!
Ingrid J. Adams is the author of Descended, an epic love story steeped in fantasy, the first in a four-book series for the upper YA market. It took Ingrid a long time to realize her unattainably crazy dream of being a writer was in fact both attainable and sane; but between then and now, she's earnt degrees in business tourism, journalism, kinesiology and nutrition, studied psychotherapy, and worked in media, then as a therapist. 
She also had a couple of years off to lie in bed and stare at the ceiling after being diagnosed with an incurable disease she managed to cure herself of by going way outside the box, a disease she probably learned more from than all her degrees put together. Today, she lives in chaos by the beach in Manly in Australia with her four beautiful boys (five if you count her husband), and her cuddle-hunting cavoodle pup. She's a massive fan of travel, yoga, meditation, farmer's markets, cooking (and eating), ocean-swimming, and escaping into fictional worlds of her own and others' creation. 
Ingrid’s story reminds us that balance is not about perfection or an unrealistic goal post, but about finding pockets of time in the day when we can feel in balance. Her journey shows the importance of pursuing one's passions, even amidst the busyness of family life. Through her own experiences, Ingrid has learned that turning mom guilt on its head can lead to achieving seemingly unattainable goals. We hope this episode has inspired you to reflect on what balance means to you and to find joy in the little moments of peace in your day. 
In this episode, you will these ideas expressed:
Why is finding something for yourself important? Searching for life’s answers to big questions and how writing can shed light on them Starting your writing journey and how to think about writing for your kids eventually Offering comfort to kids with anxiety Finding the time to write after family time and juggling weekends The motivation to publish a book or launch a business might be found in the guilt What if you don’t find something just for you? How kids see moms happily blissed out following their passion What’s the key to making time for your partner? Is a book like a baby? How an illness early on in life motivated Ingrid to write her book The dynamics in high school when fitting in was everything Being weird is interesting! Use your uniqueness to your advantage Find pockets of perfection in your day and relish them Deciding to become who you wish to do and that includes being a calm book author in the middle of a busy day with four kids in tow! The importance of saying no The importance of teaching kids through showing, not telling SHARE this episode with a mom founder, entrepreneur, or creator, who is a mom who wants to understand how other moms find work/time balance.
Similar episodes:
Theo Travers, Writer and Executive Producer on Showtime's Billions, Talks About Hollywood Misconceptions and Making Scary Choices, Episode 37
https://www

In episode 176, Melissa discusses the art of delegation and how it can be the key to achieving balance and success in business and life. She shares insights from a survey conducted with moms in business, highlighting the desire for balance and the difficulty many face in being resourceful for themselves and asking for help. The episode addresses the hesitation, resistance, and unwillingness to delegate tasks to others and offers solutions, including bartering skills and creativity to find a solution that doesn't always involve money. Send Melissa a DM on Instagram @melissallarena if you have a hard time asking for help. You are not alone! Just type DELEGATE. I have a quick read-through of a chapter focused on precisely helping you ask the right questions to get the help you need and do so with courage! Want this free sample chapter on the art of asking for help?
Meanwhile, if you'd like to weigh in please fill out this survey for moms who want to make an impact via their businesses. Quick survey and together we can come up with better solutions that actually work for us. Wouldn't that be refreshing?
Transcription
## Delegate for balance and success.
As a mom in business, achieving balance and success can feel like an impossible task. We want to be able to spend quality time with our families, while also making sure our businesses are running smoothly. However, the art of delegation can be the key to unlocking this balance.
Delegation is the process of entrusting a task to someone else. This could be a family member, a colleague, or even someone in another country. By delegating, we can free up our time to focus on the tasks that are most important to us.
In a recent survey, I spoke to many moms in business and found that they all desired balance. But what was standing in their way was their inability to be resourceful and ask for help. Many felt hesitation and resistance when it came to delegating tasks.
It’s important to remember that delegating doesn’t have to be a money conversation. You can barter your skills and talents in exchange for someone else’s. This is a great way to get the help you need without having to spend money.
If you find yourself constantly talking to friends and family about your struggles as a mom and business owner, it could be a sign that delegation is the biggest issue getting in your way. Have you asked your partner to help out, or are you relying on family members who may not have the skills you need? Are you secretly waiting until the kids go to college to feel like you can be productive in your business? All of these are clues that delegation is something that needs to be addressed.
Delegating can be the key to unlocking balance and success. It’s important to remember that you can barter your skills and talents, and that asking for help is not something to be afraid of. By delegating tasks, you can free up your time to focus on the things that matter most.
## Delegate to improve balance.
Delegation can be a great way to improve balance in your life. For example, if you are a busy mom, you can delegate some of the household tasks to your children, such as taking out the trash or doing the dishes. This will give you more time to spend with your family or to pursue your own interests. Delegation can also help you achieve balance in your work life. If you are running a business, you can delegate tasks such as customer service, bookkeeping, or marketing to free up your time to focus on more important tasks.
It is also important to remember that delegation can be used to help others. By delegating tasks to other people, you can help them gain valuable skills and experience. For example, if you are a busy mom, you can delegate some of the household tasks to your children. This will not only help you achieve balance in your own life, but it will also help your children learn important life skills.
Delegation can also help you prioritize your time and energy. By delegating tasks,