Since becoming a new mom in 2011 and a business owner in 2012, I’ve had a hard time balancing work and life. My husband and I agreed that I would be a “stay-at-home-mom” (SAHM) but then I quickly realized that I wanted to have another job to do besides being a wife and a mom. When I became a SAHM, I had gone from working full-time for five+ years to a full time SAHM. This was a hard transition for me because I like structure, schedules and paychecks but I’ve always been horrible at creating my own schedules and sticking to them.
I thought that starting my own business (The NapTime Reviewer) would be the solution to my yearning for something more, but it soon became more of a stressor than anything. I now had the difficult task of balancing work and life in a whole new way. Like many of you, I have the constant urge to grow my business and make it bigger and better, but I also notice that my family time is reduced because of my business’ need for attention.
I think of my work life and my home life like an old-fashioned scale. When one side begins to tip, I know it’s time to take something off of my plate.
I’ve compiled a list of some of my tips for balancing work and life based on my experience.
At Work
1. Keep Your Schedule Open — Since I’m a business owner, I can create my own schedule. I need to remind myself that I don’t need to be busy every single day to be successful.
2. Delegate Duties — I have many people willing to help me out and I’m learning to take them up on their offers. As hard as it might be to trust someone else with your work, it may end up working out for the better and will definitely relieve stress.
3. Don’t Waste Time — I spend a LOT of time reading through and responding to emails, editing images and clicking around the web when I should be tending to more important business. Sure, the emails are important but when I have a backlog of work, I should be prioritizing the work and focusing on getting it done before taking on more work.
4. Schedule Down Time — I try to have at least one day during the week where I don’t put anything on my plate. I usually leave my weekends free, as well.
5. Get One Job Done Before Moving on to Another — This is a huge tip to remember even if you don’t own your own business. By completely finishing one task before moving on to another, you’re less likely to mess things up and more likely to focus better on the task at hand.
6. Preschedule Your Work — Being a freelance writer/blogger, I have the option of prescheduling my blog posts. I can have them pop up at any point in the future and I like to take advantage of this feature. If I have extra downtime that I didn’t plan for, I get some posts prescheduled which frees up more time during the week.
At Home (Life)
1. Have a Cleaning Schedule — If you are responsible for most of the cleaning in your household, I’ve found that creating a Monday – Friday cleaning schedule is very beneficial. Trying to stick to it is a whole other challenge. You can find cleaning schedules on sites like Pinterest and Pinspire.
2. Take Advantage of Naptime — If your child(ren) still takes naps, use naptime to get housework or business work done. This way you will free up more time in your day to spend with the ones who are most important to you, your family.
3. Natural Remedies — If you feel that your stress and anxiety are beyond control, try a homeopathic remedy such as Hyland’s Nerve Tonic or Calms Forte.
4. Get Off the Phone! — I’m so guilty of this one. Sometimes I catch myself on Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram when I should be paying attention to my daughter. Okay, it happens more than just sometimes. It happens a lot and it’s unacceptable.
5. It’s Okay to Have “Me Time” — In fact, it’s more than okay to have “me time”. It’s so important to take even just five minutes a day for yourself to regroup and relax. Try waking up before your child(ren) and get your day started. Take a shower, enjoy a cup of coffee and just relax. You will start your day with a clear head and feel on top of the world.
Do you have any advice for those of us trying to balance work and life? Leave a comment!
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