Meet Daryl Bart, this month’s Mompowerment mom. Daryl is a business manager for the dental practice, Lapinski Dental, which she owns with her husband, and a Beachbody Wellness Coach, helping women discover their current goals, and stay accountable to wellness and mindset priorities. Find out how Daryl’s ability to know her motivation made a big difference in her work-life balance.
Professional Path
Daryl earned undergraduate and master’s degrees in communications. After a few different roles in events, grants, and non-profit management, she started doing special events for the New York State capitol facility.
When her scope of work changed, Daryl realized her new focus wasn’t necessarily where her passion. She took the leap of faith and start working with her husband in the family business. His dental practice was getting busier and he welcomed the project minded perspective Daryl brought to the office. While she didn’t know anything about dentistry, she did know customer service and she wanted to help the business thrive. As the business manager for the practice, she helped guide the office through a large-scale building project and other infrastructure expansion. During her tenure the office went from about 6 employees to the 13 they have today.
Mindset Shift
When Daryl became the business manager, it changed how she looked at the dental practice. It became a family business and she “owned practice with her husband and had job responsibilities to help grow the business.” She focused on the overall vision for the practice.
She shared, “sometimes you have to look at what is in front of you a little differently”. Instead of saying “I work for Joe” she embraced that they were co-owners and that her opinion mattered to him. He always knows that she has his best interest in the forefront of her mind. He knew she was acting as an extension of him, so he could focus on the dentistry he loves while the business can grow.
What Happened Next?
After working in the office in a full-time capacity for about ten years, through the birth of baby number two and both kids time in elementary school, she began to change her perspective about her role in the office and what she really wanted out of her work-life balance.
When I originally interviewed Daryl a few years ago, she was eager to re-invent her role in the office and be more of a special projects coordinator, allowing herself to both be in the office part time but dip her toe into the world of entrepreneurship.
Becoming an Entrepreneur
Over time, Daryl realized she wanted to do something new for herself. It made sense to start a wellness business. She had focused on self-care over the years and wholeheartedly believes in the importance of moms focusing on their own needs. She made a statement that resonated with so many moms: “we tend to put ourselves last on the list, however, by putting our own needs first, we are so much better for those we nurture.”
After having personal success with the as Beachbody Wellness system of fitness, nutrition, accountability, and support, she couldn’t wait to share with other moms.
Daryl has been able to use her income from her own business to enable her family to travel and experience new places. She has paid for countless trips to exciting destinations such as Barcelona, Scotland, and Mexico. She was also able to send her husband and son to the World Series when their team made it to that big game. Now her focus is to use that income to pay for college for her 2 kids. (Note: she and her husband are requiring each child to finance a portion of their education to have skin in the game – good idea!)
Work Time
Her biggest challenge now is time management as Daryl juggles her role as business manager and building her own business.
Daryl currently works about 10 hours per week in her role as business manager. She has set up her schedule to work 10am to 2pm Tuesday through Thursday. She then works in her own coaching business, most mornings and early afternoons.
Benefits of Working Part Time
She described her part-time situation as “amazing.” She explains, “It’s flexible and allows for emergencies.”
It also helped her really define her boundaries with the kids. While she makes sure her kids are supported, signed up, and where they need to be, she does not attend everything they participate in. She commented, “my kids, like so many others, are very active, and with sports alone, play 6 sports between them. If I went to every practice or game, I’d be at about 500 events each year – at least. My kids know that I’m here to be their advocate and biggest supporter, even if that means I’m not always their spectator. I love hearing all about their day, their matches and activities over dinner – our non-negotiable family time.”
She also shared that this schedule and philosophy enables her to focus on self-care. Having the flexibility to do her own thing, on her terms, makes her feel more balanced. And as her first child is about to head to college, she commented, that this is what it is all for: “Raising happy, independent and confident kids.”
Advice:
- Reverse engineer your needs. Figure out your niche where you feel fulfilled and can make money. Also understand what you need from a time perspective. Work backwards as you create a business or negotiate the parameters of your role at work.
- Figure out a job that makes it worth going to work. If you’re going to focus on your career each day, you’re essentially not focusing on your family for that time. Do something you enjoy that fills you up and doesn’t simply put money in your pocket. You’ll enjoy it more and it won’t feel so much like a job.
- Understand your motivation. Do you need to be a two-income family? Do you need to socialize and that’s why you want to work? Is it that you need to step away from motherhood for a portion of each day to keep your sanity? Whatever your motivation for work and work-life balance, know this upfront and it will guide you through your decision-making.
- Daryl shared travel tips:
- Always try to pack in a carry-on only
- Try not to plan too many activities because things always take longer than you think. Pick a few highlights for each location and fill in the rest with spontaneity.
- Make sure to try both the local favorite foods and public transportation
- Look at each trip as “this time” we visit. This has helped not cram too many things into each visit. Even if our travels will not get you back there for years, simply make the most of that visit.
- Embrace your own family’s internal culture and go for it. Daryl lights up when we talk about how her life has been designed to get the most out of the things that matter most to her family. She recognizes her path might not be for everyone. But with the flexibility of a family business, the time afforded by a part-time work schedule, and the desire to hustle in brick and mortar and virtual businesses, this New York family is making memories to last a lifetime.
Want to hear about more moms like Daryl? Get advice and tips from professional part-time working moms like Daryl in the Mompowerment books, available on Amazon. Download two free chapters today.
