Self-Care for the Busy Female Entrepreneur: The Key to Building a Business and a Life You Love

If you know me, you know I’ve always been a drugstore makeup girl. Quick mascara, a swipe of gloss, and I’m out the door. For years, I didn’t see the point of anything more. I grew up traveling through third-world countries, raised by a mom who reminded me that my smile was my best accessory and that my mind would take me anywhere I wanted to go.

And she was right. My intellect has carried me far. But recently, something shifted.

I hired one of our incredible Female Entrepreneur Organization members, Delaney Stewart—a professional makeup artist and founder of Beauty by Delaney—to help me explore something I never thought I’d want or need help with: navigating the glossy, perfectly lit, sometimes intimidating world of Ulta.

And here’s the best-kept secret she revealed: there’s an entire section of Ulta designed for women like us. Women who value quality, who know how to spend wisely, and who want to look and feel their best without breaking the bank. Walking through that section felt like someone turned the lights on in a room I didn’t know I had access to and said goodbye to the harsh fluorescent aisles of CVS forever.

We spent the afternoon laughing and learning. Delaney guided me through textures and tones I would’ve never picked up on my own. I didn’t grow up around highlighters and setting sprays. I grew up on planes, in border towns, in church basements, learning that my mind was my superpower.

And that wisdom still stands. But this day? It was something more.

After we shopped, we went back to my house, set up the lights, and recorded tutorials one for everyday confidence, and one for the kind of moments where you want to show up boldly and unapologetically. We had fun. We played. We reclaimed something that had quietly been set aside.

And then I looked over and saw my daughter watching it all unfold.

And in that moment, I realized what I was modeling for her. Not vanity—but value. Not perfection—but presence. I was showing her that self-care isn’t frivolous. That looking good and feeling good aren’t at odds with being smart, ambitious, or deeply grounded. And I realized I was showing her what it means to embody beauty and brains. To be intentional with how you spend your money, how you show up, and how you take care of yourself in ways that make you feel beautiful both inside and out.

This wasn’t about makeup. It was about presence. About power. About showing our daughters that you can lead with your heart, your mind, and beauty, and never have to choose between them.

Because self-care isn’t selfish. It’s a part of a healthy, beautiful life, and it's necessary for all of us.

In 2022, I made a decision that completely changed the course of my life. I invested in myself and launched my first online business, a virtual writing series for women writers. It wasn’t glamorous. I was sitting at my home office, most likely in yoga pants, hair in a messy bun, surrounded by the sounds of everyday chaos. But something lit up in me that afternoon. I felt more alive than I had in years.

That moment wasn’t just about reigniting my love for writing. It was about reclaiming myself. Entrepreneurship pulled me out of the background of my own life. I started speaking on virtual stages, attending events I had only ever dreamed of, and building connections with women around the world. A version of me that had been buried under obligation and “shoulds” came back to life.

Starting a business can absolutely be an act of self-care. It’s how we remember ourselves. But building something meaningful while managing everything else, kids, jobs, laundry, and expectations, requires more than a good calendar. It requires a foundation of wellness and intention.

Self-care doesn’t have to mean expensive spa days or elaborate morning routines. It’s taking a self-date to your favorite coffee shop in the middle of the week. It’s packing healthy snacks for yourself while making lunches for everyone else. It’s basil-infused water on your desk, your favorite candle lit, a good playlist in the background, and five minutes to breathe before your next meeting. It’s creating life space in your day that says, “I matter too.”

When you nourish yourself, you make better decisions. You feel clearer. You lead stronger. You show up with energy, not just for your clients or your family, but for the version of you that’s trying to come alive again.

You don’t have to do everything all at once. But you do have to show up for yourself. Your wellness should be part of your business plan.

And if you’re sitting here wondering where to begin or how to take care of yourself and your dreams at the same time, I want you to know you’re not alone. That’s exactly why I created The Female Entrepreneur Organization.

If you’re craving a space where you can grow your business without burning out, where women support each other on the good days and the messy ones, where success and self-care are not mutually exclusive, you belong with us.

Join us inside the FEO Facebook Group today. Come as you are, no pressure, no perfection, just real women building in the in between, making our visions happen without losing ourselves in the process.

Join our women-led community here — FEO FB GROUP