8 Resources for Planning a Non-Traditional Maternity Leave

How can you plan for a maternity leave when you’re freelance or self-employed? A mom-to-be guides us through her process for doing just that.

Brooke Cagle for Unsplash

Getting pregnant comes with a lot of internal questions. From delivery to childcare to everything in between, there’s no shortage of options to weigh when it comes to pregnancy and parenthood. And while the internet can give us suggestions to most of these questions within a matter of seconds, there was one area I felt was lacking in resources: how to plan for non-traditional maternity leave.

Of course, there are government-run pages that give overarching legal information, but more so than that, I was seeking answers to questions like how do you take time away if you run your own small business? How will my clients feel? How long can I take? How can I automate while I’m away? How do I hire a temp? etc. It wasn’t the laws that I was looking for, but advice from women who had lived experience to offer.

Because I run my own small editorial company and work directly with clients every day, I was pretty stressed about how to step away, keep clients happy, stay sane, and keep income coming even while I was out (I quickly learned I wouldn’t be receiving anything from the state since I don’t pay into disability). I’ve already shared systems to have in place before leave, but today I wanted to outline the resources that got me to that plan—without a corporate policy and with enough time to enjoy my transition into motherhood.

Planning a Maternity Leave When You Work for Yourself

These resources were incredible lifesavers, helping me create a thoughtful, measured plan for stepping away from my small business for maternity leave.

1. Goal Digger Podcast

In this episode of the Goal Digger podcast—How to Plan a Maternity Leave as an Entrepreneur—host Jenna Kutcher walks listeners through the steps she took to create a maternity leave for herself while running a thriving business. I was amazed that Kutcher was able to give herself a buffer of six months before her daughter was born! Her plan was inspiring and her podcast is full of valuable nuggets, especially the next in this list.

2. 5 Things You Can Automate in Your Business (Goal Digger Podcast)

Automation! I wasn’t doing much of this before planning my maternity leave, but as Kutcher explains, it can free up time and mental space during a leave (and for when you transition back).

3. 5 Mothers on Maternity Leave When You Work for Yourself

This piece from the Mother Untitled community is full of practical, insightful advice from women in the same stage of career and family life. Similar to Kutcher’s tip on automation, one mother in this piece describes the value of developing passive income, which could certainly be a game-changer.

4. Is It Possible For Female Entrepreneurs To Take Maternity Leave? (Forbes)

Victoria Venturi of Paper Epiphanies grew her business 100 percent year over year and in this interview, she shares the details on carving out a four-week leave for herself—without slowing her business momentum. “I created a one-sheet and started thinking about; if I wasn't here, what are the things that need to be done?” Venturi tells Forbes.

5. Maternity Leave for Women Entrepreneurs (The Simple Dollar)

This is a comprehensive guide on creating a maternity leave as a female entrepreneur. It’s full of good, tactical advice on taking leave, including the all-too-important financial aspects.

Arnel Hasanovic for Unsplash

6. Asana

A project management service that allows you to assign, organize, and keep track of tasks. Because so much of my work is the same week-after-week, using Asana has been an easy way for my team to see what needs to be done in my absence. Plus, you can check in on things quickly from the app without having to communicate with anyone.

7. Another Mother Her Way Series

This Mother Untitled series shares so many beautiful stories of motherhood, but one of my favorite parts is when women get into the nitty-gritty of leave and flexible careers. In her brilliant feature, Shannon Lohr offered many great ideas for creating a maternity leave that works alongside small business ownership.

8. How to Make Flexible Work Actually Work (Mother Untitled)

This is an insightful interview here on Mother Untitled—one we did from the perspective of a mama-to-be (me) and someone who has been down the path of planning a traditional and non-traditional leave (Marianna Sachse). Sachse’s words are full of practical takeaways for making space for maternity leave when you work for yourself.