Sometimes my best thinking happens in the shower or while I'm hanging out the washing.
Not particularly glamorous, but there's something about soap suds and pegging clothes on the line that gives my brain permission to wander.
And this week, amongst the washing, the market preparations and the never-ending list of things to do, I found myself thinking about the two very different sides of my working life.
By day, I'm a Chartered Accountant. I spend my working hours helping clients with their businesses, their financial responsibilities and the challenges that come with running something of their own.
Outside those hours, I'm the person behind Buttons by Brooke and Brooke’s Beaute Box - my SeneGence business.
Now, neither of my businesses operates on the same scale as many of the businesses I work with professionally. I'm not managing a team of employees, negotiating large contracts or dealing with the financial pressures of a substantial operation.
But I've realised something.
The size of the business might be different. The responsibilities aren't always that different.
Take this week's preparations for my return to a market.
There's stock to count, products to price, labels to print, packaging to organise and a car to pack.
I've got to make sure my Square reader is charged, there's enough change in the cash tin and I actually remember to bring everything I've spent the past few weeks preparing.
And that's before anyone has purchased a single thing!
Then there's the work that happens behind the scenes.
I track my income and expenses. I order materials and research new products. I create the products, check their quality and package them.
I maintain the website, write the blog, prepare the weekly newsletter, manage social media and answer customer enquiries.
I'm the marketing department, purchasing department, production team, quality control officer, customer service representative and bookkeeper.
Occasionally, I'm also the person wondering why on earth I decided to add another project to the list.
And the funny thing is, most of those jobs happen before a customer even sees the finished product. They're the hours nobody sees, the decisions nobody hears about and the work that doesn't necessarily translate into an immediate sale.
At the moment, my lounge room floor has become a temporary stocktaking department, with hair ties and clips spread everywhere because I've run out of suitable packaging.
It's not glamorous, but it's another one of those little jobs that has to be done before I can open my market stall.
And just when you think everything is coming together, something unexpected happens.
This weeks market is a school fete and they organise a treasure hunt for the kids. To participate, I just needed to have 200 items that the kids could collect as they follow their treasure map. So I designed a postcard.
Two hundred little colouring postcards, designed and ordered with express delivery so they'd arrive in plenty of time.
Well, they were delivered.
Just not to me!
For an entire day, my carefully planned postcards were missing because they'd been delivered to the wrong address.
After all the time spent designing them, checking the artwork and paying for express shipping, you can imagine how that felt.
Thankfully, they were found, but it was a reminder that even when you've done everything you can to prepare, something outside your control can still throw a spanner in the works.
And I know my accounting clients experience that feeling too.
A supplier doesn't deliver. A customer doesn't pay on time. An unexpected expense arrives. Something breaks, a deadline changes or a carefully planned day disappears into dealing with a problem nobody saw coming.
Of course, the consequences can be much greater when you're responsible for employees, premises and significant financial commitments.
But the frustration, the decision-making and the constant juggling of responsibilities? Those feelings are familiar.
I think that's why having my own businesses adds something valuable to my work as an accountant.
I don't just understand the numbers on a spreadsheet.
I understand that behind those numbers is someone making decisions, taking risks, putting in hours and hoping their efforts will eventually pay off.
I understand why a business owner might hesitate to increase their prices, even when the figures suggest they should.
I'm guilty of that one myself!
I understand how easy it is to focus on creating, selling and serving customers while putting off the less exciting work of recording expenses or reviewing profitability.
And I understand that sometimes a business owner doesn't need another complicated system or an enormous list of things to improve.
Sometimes they need someone to help them work out what matters most and where to start.
None of this replaces the technical knowledge or professional judgement I've developed throughout my accounting career.
But I do think it gives me another perspective.
It reminds me to look beyond the financial statements and remember the person running the business.
And perhaps that's something I need to remember when I'm wearing my own small business hat, too.
As I prepare to return to markets after such a long break, I'm trying not to measure the experience entirely by the amount of money that ends up in the cash tin.
Of course I want to make sales. I'm running a business, after all, and those sales need to contribute towards making it worthwhile.
But I also want to reconnect with the community, meet new people, learn what customers respond to and enjoy being a maker again.
There will be lessons to take away, whatever happens.
Perhaps I'll discover that my Circle Buttons are a hit. Perhaps people will be drawn to something completely unexpected. Perhaps I'll come home with ideas for what to make next.
And perhaps I'll discover I've forgotten something important despite all those lists!
Whatever happens, I'll be looking at the experience through two sets of eyes.
The maker who loves creating something thoughtful.
And the accountant who knows that every business decision, however small, has something to teach us.
Sometimes you have to show up before you feel ready. And sometimes the experience itself is what helps you grow.
Be real, not perfect. Be Kind. Be Brave. Be Yourself.