Shauna Sweeney was an govt at Meta, main international trade intelligence and advertising packages, when her dad was identified with early-onset Alzheimer’s some 3,000 miles away. Instantly, she discovered herself as a part of the sandwich technology — a time period given to those that are elevating their very own households whereas caring for growing old dad and mom on the similar time.
Managing care and serving to her dad keep in his dwelling as per his needs introduced some challenges. This led to the creation of tendercare, an “AI-powered app that transforms caregiving from a crisis-driven, never-ending, too-late scramble into a supported, manageable part of anyone’s day,” Sweeney says.
Since founding the corporate in 2022 at her kitchen desk, Sweeney has left Meta to run tendercare full-time and has additionally expanded her household, on a regular basis chasing that ever-elusive steadiness for working dad and mom in every single place. (Already a mother and stepmom, Sweeney has one other youngster on the way in which.)
Working mothers are sometimes celebrated for having the ability to “do it all.” However there’s a lot extra to the story of constructing a enterprise whereas elevating children on the similar time. We caught up with tendercare founder and CEO Shauna Sweeney over e mail about scaling her firm, defending her time, and the psychological load of working mothers.
Inform us about tendercare, the enterprise you based.
tendercare is the lifeline I want I had after I first began caring for my dad. The app permits caregivers to securely preserve and retrieve all necessary data required to take care of Mother and Dad throughout these moments [they] want it most — on the physician’s workplace, within the ER, in moments of transition or change — and share it with the remainder of the household and care group. It’s the on a regular basis instruments that household caregivers desperately have to lighten the load, plus a technique to rapidly uncover what trusted providers exist in your or your family members’ neighborhood.
The aim is to ease the burden on households whereas giving them confidence to make the perfect calls for his or her distinctive state of affairs, save valuable time, and priceless peace of thoughts.
What’s the secret sauce to scaling a enterprise whereas additionally juggling motherhood?
There’s a mythology to being a founder that’s typically constructed on a extra slim set of tasks and an incomplete image of what dwelling life appears like for many people, particularly ladies. Among the finest realizations I’ve had is that my distinctive ache factors of balancing being a mother and an grownup daughter put me able to construct options with empathy and understanding for others. That being stated, I nonetheless imagine in focus, focus, focus. I’m ruthless with my time, so I will be 100% targeted on work or my household after I plan to be, not pulled in one million instructions making an attempt to juggle it concurrently. Each work and household time are defended throughout all seven days with equal vigor.
Mashable Pattern Report: Coming Quickly!
Scaling a enterprise means dwelling by the philosophy of, “Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good.” We’re shifting quick and there’ll at all times be one other factor after the factor you’re engaged on. The key is not about working extra hours; it is staying anchored in your function and understanding what takes precedence at any given time.
Credit score: Photograph courtesy of Shauna Sweeney
Is there something about being a mother that has helped you along with your profession? Or vice versa?
Tons. Having children makes you determine every little thing that issues for main a group, constructing an organization (which is like having one other child), or just navigating life. Being a superb mother is constructed on mutual belief, and the identical is true for having a high-performance group.
Listening, exhibiting up regardless of how drained, not merely reacting to a disaster or large emotion, being versatile, setting the instance, encouraging, and mentoring — all of these issues are transferable abilities between motherhood and govt management. So is studying to run off much less sleep.
What do you want extra folks understood about working mothers?
We’re at all times working with an invisible load. The logistics you see are simply the floor; sometimes, there’s a lot extra happening. There’s a psychological and emotional bandwidth we’re always managing. Reasonably than an absence of ambition, it’s extra of a surplus of accountability.
Working mothers will not be simply multitasking, we’re multi-dwelling. The psychological overhead is immense. Because the saying goes, if you wish to get one thing performed, ask a busy individual. It ought to truly be “ask a mom.”
What recommendation do you have got for different mothers seeking to launch their very own enterprise?
Don’t look forward to permission since you gained’t get it. Your lived expertise is your market perception. Construct one thing that solves a ache level you deeply perceive, after which validate it. And bear in mind, success doesn’t should seem like scale; it may possibly seem like sustainability. Begin small, check always, and don’t underestimate the worth of momentum over perfection.
Any ultimate phrases of knowledge?
It’s as much as us to construct the world we wish to dwell in, and the world we would like our youngsters to dwell in. Should you see one thing that may very well be higher, it in all probability may very well be. It’s an issue that’s been ready simply so that you can come by and repair it.
This interview has been edited and condensed for readability.
Subjects
Household & Parenting
