Why Balance Isn’t the Goal - And What Female Founders Really Need Instead
By April Wild, Founder of WILD & WILDIn a world saturated with pastel-tinted reels of perfect morning routines, ‘clean girl’ aesthetics, and boss babe mantras, there’s a growing silent revolution stirring among female founders: the truth that balance is a myth and that’s okay.
As a woman who has run businesses for over a decade, raised four children, navigated grief, growth, and grit, and now leads an award winning women’s empowerment community, I’ve seen firsthand how damaging the constant pursuit of “balance” can be. We’re told to strive for it as if a neat, curated life split evenly between work, wellness, relationships, and rest is the holy grail. But for many of us, especially those running businesses, the reality is messier, richer, and far less symmetrical.
Let me say it clearly: being off-balance doesn’t mean you’re failing, it often means you’re growing. And you know what we often learn the best life lessons through the hard times.
The Rise (and Fall) of the ‘Boss Babe’ Era
For years, we were sold the ‘boss babe’ dream; wake up at 5am, meditate, drink matcha, dominate a boardroom, make six figures, post a gym selfie, be an amazing partner, and never let them see you sweat. It’s a compelling image, but also an exhausting and often unattainable one. I am a big advocate for slowing down and redefining success, in the spirit of what Dr Brené Brown describes as “the courage to be imperfect”. Her research on vulnerability and shame reminds us that chasing constant achievement often disconnects us from our own wellbeing.
What these narratives fail to show is the backend chaos: the sleepless nights wondering if payroll will go through, the last-minute childcare juggle before a major pitch, the personal sacrifices, the moments of deep self-doubt, or the mental load of simply keeping it all together.
We don’t need more pressure to perform perfection. We need permission to be real.
Ironically, even the wellness world can sometimes add to the overwhelm. We’re told that to be well, we must cold plunge daily, track our cycles, journal, meditate, move our bodies, cut out gluten, align our chakras and drink adaptogens - all before 9am!
But true wellness, at least for me and the women I work with, isn’t found in ticking every box. It’s found in creating space for what matters, building supportive communities, allowing ourselves to feel what we feel, and letting go of the need to get it all “right.” I find the statistics crazy that social isolation is as bad for us as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. So perhaps we need to not worry about upping your self care rituals but just get to more local events or connecting with more women.
Wellness shouldn’t feel like another thing on your to-do list. It should be the why behind how you live, not another standard to measure up to. There are so many accessible ways we can create more balance in our lives that are simple such as focused breath work every time you pop the kettle on, affirmations while you brush your teeth or not looking at your phone for the first 30mins when you wake up is a game changer.
Real is the New Perfect
Thankfully, the tide is beginning to turn. We’re craving content that’s unfiltered, vulnerable, and human. Women are more open than ever about their burnout, their boundaries, their therapy, their failures. And this honesty is helping create something more sustainable: a new narrative that celebrates resilience over polish, progress over perfection, and seasons over balance.
The rise of hashtags like #BurnoutCulture, #HotMessMum and #AntiHustle has reflected a growing rejection of toxic positivity. According to Later (a social media marketing platform), posts with authentic, unfiltered captions now outperform polished “highlight reel” content in terms of engagement.
In my own business journey, I’ve ridden waves of momentum - launches, awards, full-circle moments. And I’ve also had weeks where everything felt like it was falling apart - stock delays, staff issues, cash flow stress. But it’s in those raw, off-kilter moments where some of the best growth has happened.
Balance didn’t build my business. Belief did. Grit did. Community did. If you’re reading this just recognise how far you’ve come.
What We Actually Need
As women leading the way in business, what we need more than balance is honest conversation. We need role models who share both the highlight reel and the hard days. We need to normalise success that includes rest, delegation, mistakes, messy homes, and saying no.
I’m all for working smart to create more freedom - but let’s be clear, that only comes after years of building something solid. Scaling a business takes time, resilience, and the right support around you. The best advice I can offer? Find something you genuinely love doing in your work. It won’t always be easy, but it will keep you grounded when things get hard.
If you’re a woman who feels like you’re dropping balls some days, know that you’re not alone. You’re just human. And you’re still enough.
Let’s stop glamorising the hustle. Let’s stop pretending wellness has one fixed look. Let’s rewrite what success means - for us, and for the women coming up behind us.
If you’re looking for spaces that support that kind of thinking, here are a few that are doing it well:
WILD & WILD
Our platform champions connection, collaboration and community for women in business. We host events, roundtables and digital meetups focused on real conversations, not performative ones.
The Step Up Club
Honest career talk, mentorship and support for modern working women.
Doing It For The Kids
A podcast and online community for self-employed parents balancing work and life.
Mother of All Jobs by Christine Armstrong
A book and resource that dismantles the myth of having it all.
Ladies, Wine & Design
A global network offering talks, mentorship and portfolio reviews for creative women.
Hatch Enterprise
A social enterprise offering support programmes, especially for underrepresented female founders.
The Female Lead
Shares real stories from women in business, media, and leadership to inspire without sugarcoating.
Because if there’s one thing I know for sure: we weren’t made to do it all. We were made to do it together. And that’s exactly what we’re building at WILD & WILD - a space for women to grow, collaborate and breathe.
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