Anyone with a family who is also self-employed is aware of the advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, you can work independently and flexibly, but on the other hand, it’s often difficult to set boundaries. We’ve put together some tips that can help you to balance self-employment and family life.
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Many self-employed parents feel the same as Matthias. As a graphic designer with a sole proprietorship, he is basically free to organize his working hours however he likes. This flexibility is a big advantage for him as a father. On the other hand, he also works “alone” and “constantly”. Even before the children wake up, Matthias often starts work on his first projects and uses the early hours for undisturbed creativity. And urgent customer orders often mean he has to work evening or weekend shifts. Matthias often feels torn between work and family.
Matthias is part of the 9.1 percent of the permanent Swiss resident population aged 15 and over who are self-employed according to the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (figures for 2023). This includes all self-employed entrepreneurs who are employed in their own company or in their own limited liability company, public limited company, etc. and who may also employ staff. Sole proprietorship is one of the most popular legal forms among the self-employed.
The fact is, being self-employed and having a family is a tough job (the same is true for employees with a family, of course). But what can self-employed people like Matthias do to achieve a better work-life balance? Here are some possibilities.
First and foremost is the question of how to balance planned or current self-employment with family planning and career planning. As (expectant) parents, you should definitely clarify in advance how you will organize and, if necessary, divide up paid work, childcare and household chores – including all the possible “what ifs?”. What happens, for example, if the children are ill? What if one of the parents is travelling on business? It is best to be prepared for everything and to put buffers in place (see tip 8). This planning also includes taking out the right insurance.
It’s important to set clear boundaries between work and family time and even more important to respect those boundaries. This can be achieved with fixed working hours, a dedicated workspace at home or deliberately switching off work equipment after work. The same applies to weekends. For the self-employed, it is particularly challenging to maintain a healthy work-life balance at the weekend, as the boundaries between work and free time can easily become blurred. Here, too, you should define when work ends and family time begins. It’s best for everyone if you consciously create quality time when you can do something together with your family without distraction or interruption.
As a self-employed person, you don’t have to do everything yourself. But which tasks can be outsourced to free up time for the family? You can delegate a lot of things in your job, such as accounting or marketing. It’s worth investing the initial effort to find a suitable service provider. Some work processes can also be automated, for example with the help of artificial intelligence (AI) such as ChatGPT or similar, or with tools that facilitate time management. This saves time that could be better spent with your loved ones.
But “outsourcing” and delegating is also great practice at home. Simply buy a cake from time to time instead of baking it yourself, do the shopping online, organize who is responsible for food on which day in the family calendar, etc. Or you can get help with the housework if your finances allow.
Self-employment and parenthood both involve a lot of responsibility and personal effort. There is a lot to organize and do in both roles. They can be quite exhausting when combined. It can be helpful to abandon perfectionism, delegate (see tip 3) and – because parents are constantly on the go – make sure you take breaks! Do something that does you good! You will only have enough energy for business and family life if you can also reduce stress and recharge your batteries in between (e.g. with meditation, sport or other hobbies). Sometimes even a five-minute break in the fresh air or a short phone call with a colleague can work wonders. If you work from home as a self-employed person, you have to consciously plan such breaks. After all, you don’t have an office busybody telling you to go on your break. You should always bear in mind what it means if you’re not around due to ill health. It damages the business and is not good for your family. It is therefore essential to take preventive measures to maintain your health (including your mental health).
Regular family discussions and joint planning help to keep everyone up to date and ensure that the needs of each family member are taken into account. This includes setting common goals and priorities.
How do others do it, and what can we learn from them? Sharing experiences with other self-employed parents can help us to develop new strategies to strengthen family life.
When you don’t have a boss on your back, you have to prioritize tasks for yourself. One tool is the tried-and-tested Eisenhower Principle for prioritizing tasks efficiently and thus creating more time for your family. The principle divides tasks into four categories:
When you’re self-employed, unforeseen situations can really mess up your well-planned diary. There’s only one solution for self-employed people with families – you have to include buffers when planning for your workload. In concrete terms, this could mean completing the work a few hours or even days before the deadline (depending on the size of the assignment) rather than at the last minute. You have to assume that something could come up during the final stretch of your deadline.
Self-employment often involves fluctuations in income. Especially if you have a family to look after, it is vital to plan for the long term. It’s also a good idea to have a plan B in case self-employment no longer yields sufficient income. If this happened, would it be possible to compensate for your lack of income from other sources or what other options do you have? It’s particularly important to plan ahead financially. There are always unplanned costs – be it for an extra day of childcare at a daycare centre or a new purchase for the children. It’s best to draw up a budget plan and, whenever possible, set aside an emergency fund. This can serve as a financial buffer in case the order situation turns out to be leaner than planned and expenses are still incurred.
Note: these tips do not constitute comprehensive advice. They merely highlight important aspects that can help you to balance self-employment and family life.
The most important success strategies of those able to achieve a healthy balance between self-employment and family life include:
Do you run a company with employees and are wondering how you can best cater to the needs of parents? The following are the most important ways to create family-friendly conditions:
PostFinance gives you the tools you need to get started – including attractive conditions and valuable start-up expertise. Among other things, you will benefit from an attractive startup package.
Anyone starting their own business should know from the outset which insurance policies are mandatory or recommended (such as daily allowance insurance).
Find out more about insurance policies for companies
The link will open in a new window Find out more in the guide for the self-employed at kmu.admin.ch
Even if you are self-employed, you are generally entitled to maternity benefit for the first 14 weeks or 98 days after the birth of your child. It is imperative that the working mother be compulsorily insured in accordance with the OASI Act for nine months immediately prior to the birth of the child.
Important: maternity compensation is not paid out automatically. It must be expressly requested from the competent compensation fund. Self-employed mothers must submit the application to the OASI compensation fund to which they pay their OASI contributions.
The compensation comprises 80 percent of the average previous earned income, up to a maximum of CHF 196 per day. In the case of self-employment, the calculation is based on net salary (i.e. income after deduction of operating expenses).
The link will open in a new window Find out more at ahv-iv.ch
Since 1 January 2021, working fathers in Switzerland (including self-employed fathers) have been entitled to two weeks of paternity leave. In concrete terms, this means that the loss of earnings incurred during paternity leave is compensated. As with maternity leave, the compensation amounts to 80 percent of the average earned income before the birth of the child, up to a maximum of CHF 196 per day. For two weeks of paternity leave, 14 daily allowances are paid with an upper limit of CHF 196 per day. Entitlement to paternity benefit begins on the day of the child’s birth and must be claimed within six months, either all at once or on a day-to-day basis.
The link will open in a new window Find out more about paternity leave at bsv.admin.ch (in german)
Like employees, self-employed persons also receive family allowances. These are an allowance to parents regulated by the Federal Act on Family Allowances (FAA) and are intended to partially offset the costs incurred by parents in supporting their children. Self-employed persons can apply for family allowances from their compensation fund.
The link will open in a new window Find out more about family allowances at ahv-iv.ch
