With Several Children Around How do you find that Mom Work Balance?
I am not sure what kind of personality you have, but I am extremely driven. As long as I can remember I have had projects and ideas and dreams…lists that seemed endless. And the biggest problem as a teenager was that in addition to being driven, I was highly social. So, right about my senior year of High School, I began to realize that I had no time to do the things I wanted to do. Like photo albums and scrapbooks and such. I was falling behind at the tender age of 17.
I now know that accomplishing anything is all about priority. Yes, I had lists. But more than my to-do’s I wanted to be a teenager and just have fun. And so I did.
Today I find myself a Mama with a husband, four kids, a business and a home to manage. Let’s just say if I was falling behind at 17, now I feel as if I signed up for a marathon and it has been run 100 times without me while I am still in my pajamas looking for my running shoes. Falling behind doesn’t even begin to describe it.
But alas…there is hope! I have discovered a very simple, very doable strategy to get things done (albeit bit by bit) amidst an extremely busy life. It requires focus and consistency, but it is quite rewarding.
How to Survive the Mom Work Balance Act:
Step 1. Create your list of to-do’s.
It can be intimidating, but at least you have it down in writing. This is a first step. Every project and accomplishment you’d like to see completed…big and small… put it on paper. Putting your initial list on paper is not necessarily a one-time activity. You might write this over several weeks or several months. Keep your list of action items close, so you can easily add to it when something comes to mind.
Step 2. Prioritize.
Take a quiet moment, late at night with a nice cup of tea. Look at your master list of to-do’s. As you do this…take a deep breath and decide to enjoy it. Sorting out this list by priority is actually getting you one step closer to accomplishing the things on there! And…don’t let yourself feel pressure with this. Worrying will not help you accomplish anything and certainly will take the fun out of it. Instead, consider it an opportunity to conquer a mountain…to do something no mother has ever done…a chance to show what you are made of!
Step 3. Split your prioritized list into two columns.
One column is for long-term, time-consuming projects and goals. The other is for the action items that you can accomplish in a few hours…or a half a day. The reason this is helpful is that once you actually start down your list you can start with the easy ones and feel like you have done something. Feeling accomplishment is quite important to staying in the game!
Step 4. Find windows.
Take another quiet moment, perhaps when you are eating lunch one day, to look at your weekly routine. We might be working a job, chasing after multiple kids, volunteering at church and making sure dinners get on the table…but, even so there are windows during our day that are available. I work in the mornings and pick up my older kids from school at 2:45. So, I find that every day between about 1:30 and 2:30pm I have a window that I can use. My younger kids are usually satisfied from lunch and playing on their own. This means I have between 30-60 minutes to use productively. Also, don’t forget your weekends! With the help of my husband, I find that I can usually manage to get about 2-4 hours of focused work in on a Saturday while he oversees the kids.
Step 5. Take Baby Steps.
Once you have decided what consistent daily and weekly windows you will use, start down each column. Make a goal of taking little, daily steps toward your goal. Decide to devote 15-30 minutes a weekday and one hour on the weekend to your list. You might decide to split your time in half and do one item from each column at once. Or, you may decide to get all the quicker items done first. Up to you!
Step 6. Stick with it!
The key to success here is actually keeping on. You can eat that elephant, one bite at a time! Plugging away every day and every week brings wonderful results. That one closet that has been cluttered for years could be organized in less than 2 weeks…at just 15 minutes a day!
Step 7. Create a Rotation.
If you have a few items that are long-term projects and are similarly prioritized in your mind, there is no reason you cannot mix it up a bit. For example, I will organize an area in my home one day, work on the garage the next and sort my kids’ artwork on the third day. These projects all take more than a few hours. Rotating them keeps me from boredom and also gives me a greater sense of accomplishment.
Step 8. Delegate.
Delegate every possible job that you yourself don’t have to do. This is an important one. If you have a to-do that your husband, kids or some other kind family member is willing to do…by all means, let them do it! These action items include cleaning out the van, dusting the baseboards, grocery shopping, running errands and such. As mom and house manager, it makes the most sense to focus your energy on those things that only you can do. Putting together baby albums and managing the organization the home are two of the items on my list that I know need to be done by me.
Step 9. Celebrate.
Make a little note of how you will celebrate after a certain number of items have been checked off. Then, be sure to reward yourself! Don’t skip this. Even if it is buying yourself a Peppermint Patty. You deserve a reward!!
I wish you the best with your very own Baby Steps 15 Minutes a Day Plan to finally getting some things done, even while you are raising a bunch of kids! Believe me, you are going to feel so great! And, I’d love to hear the results!!
Image used under Creative Commons License –Flickr user Jamie McCaffrey 3/13/15.
