Not everyone’s career path takes the same trajectory. Some employees follow a strait line from the lower levels of an organization into the top tier, but many others make lateral moves into another unit in the same company, take time off for family reasons, or shift careers entirely. One thing that can change a woman’s career path significantly is having children, especially if she is working for a business that is not family-friendly.

Statistics show that over half of the U.S. workforce is women, so it is clear that even women of childbearing age are able to find both balance and personal effectiveness. And some moms are even using their entrepreneurial spirit to make millions, even in today’s uncertain economic climate. What are their secrets?

Personal Effectiveness Tips from Moms

1. Take a Risk

Not everyone can afford to do this, but it is often the case that your big idea just can’t take off unless you can fully invest all of your time and money into it. If you are thinking of starting your own business, this could mean quitting your day job to make it happen. If you are launching a new project in your corporation, this could mean reassigning other tasks that keep you distracted from giving this new idea your full focus and attention. Maia Haag of I See Me books took the leap to resign from her marketing job and fully invest in her brainchild shortly after her maternity leave ended.

2. Be Innovative

When you are hoping to solve a problem or increase your personal effectiveness, then you are likely to have the most success if you think outside of the box. Margaret Josephs established her successful organizational products company from the ground up by thinking of a creative way to solve the clutter problem haunting her own home as a new mom. What are the nagging problems in your own life that you could effectively find an innovative solution to?

3. Rise Above Your Circumstances

Sometimes, the best professional development advice is to just do it. Rather than waiting around for the ideal time to start a business, apply for a promotion, or make a career change, sometimes the best advice is to just do it. If we all kept waiting around for the ideal timing, many innovations would never occur. Take a page from Amy Norman’s book – she established her successful company in the midst of her life falling into pieces around her.

4. Learn From Your Mistakes

If your great idea is a flop, don’t let that stop you from learning from your mistakes and trying again. After all, Thomas Edison didn’t invent the electric light in one try. Melody Hsieh learned that professional development lesson the hard way, when her company went from great success to major failure. When she was able to rethink her mistakes and rebrand her company, she found success again.