I left a good job to be more present with my kids. I'm OK with my career not looking like everyone else's.

• I knew a traditional work schedule wouldn't work for me as a mom.
• I wanted to see my kids grow up, but work burned me out.
• I defined what my ideal life as and then worked backward to achieve it.

Working 8-to-5 feels standard in our society. But when school ends at 3, the latest dental appointment is at 4:30, and kids' sports games start at 5:30, it's easy to see how jobs get in life's way.

Long before my kids started school and sports, I knew a traditional work schedule wouldn't work for us.

So, 10 years ago, I created my own — and my family is thriving.

I left a good job to be more present at home

Having two kids under 2 gave me a new perspective. They grow up fast, and I wanted a front-row seat to every moment. But working on a schedule built by someone else often means neglecting personal matters.

Staying late at work and having good attendance made me a great employee but a burned-out parent. I felt my job was on the chopping block if I left the office for a special day care event or took a sick day.

Full-time employment zapped my energy and focus. Dinner, dishes, baths, and various other household chores stole most of my non-working hours. Simply put, my kids weren't getting the best parts of me.

My desk job helped cover bills, but it felt like a means to an end. I craved more from my career than a paycheck, and a couple of PTO days, so I left my safety net to start my own business as a freelance writer.

I started building a client list before I resigned to ensure I could replace my income. What felt like beginner's luck became sustainable and predictable work, giving me the confidence to become my own boss.

Flexibility is the real work-life balance

Being present was the primary goal. But a self-made job also came with other surprises: I tripled my income, worked fewer hours, and didn't feel the "mom guilt" of choosing between my family and the income I needed to support them.

Most importantly, I can schedule work around life and give my family the best of me, not what's left over.

With a 100% digital business, I take my laptop to my son's baseball practices or my daughter's dance and tumble classes. I work during school hours, after homework, while dinner's cooking, or after bedtime stories. I can prioritize home-cooked meals, schoolwork assistance, extracurriculars, and even volunteering.

Building a career around my family came with a few trade-offs. I don't have employer-sponsored benefits or paid time off. My income fluctuates from month to month. I pay more in taxes. And since I work from home, technically I never leave the office.

But it's also given me the work/life balance that many people only dream of. I work at my convenience from the comfort of my own home. My schedule lets me exercise daily and cook healthy lunches instead of relying on fast food. And I can be available to my children, however, and whenever they need me — even with a strong village, there's no substitute for Mom.

My career doesn't look like others

Self-employment isn't an automatic win for work/life balance. I made intentional choices to create a career that worked for me, taking into account the size of my business, work schedule, pricing, and infrastructure.

Rather than "finding" a line of work, I considered my ideal life. Then, I worked backward to connect those dots and create a career that checked my boxes.

A job is a necessary part of life. Parents need a good income to support a family. But my greatest work is raising healthy, confident, well-rounded children so they can become successful adults.

I might be the only parent working on a laptop at the ballfield or in my car in the school pick-up line. But being present — whether on the sidelines or around the dinner table — is what truly defines success.