5 Tips To Busy Moms To Manage Work and Home

Every year more and more women find themselves struggling to balance their lives. Busy women are bombarded with demands on their time, whether it is split between home and the office, being a stay-at-home mom, or a woman with a successful career, they all face a daunting task. This is the question asked by each working woman and a busy mom.

* Set priorities

With so many demands on our time, it’s hard to be everything to everyone. You may be juggling a number of roles and goals in your life. You want to be successful at work, enjoy a healthy couple relationship, be an involved parent. You may have goals of furthering your education, maintaining a home, contributing to your community, keeping to a fitness regimen, saving for early retirement. Further, you may be juggling extended family issues, like caring for aging parents or dealing with an illness in the family. All of these things take your time and energy and often run into conflict with each other. As there are only 24 hours in a day, you may have to think about your values and set some priorities based on those values. For example, if “being an involved parent” is a priority for you – setting aside time each night to play with your children might take priority over working those over-time hours in order to finance a bigger home.

* Plan and do things in advance

Work weeks are when most of us tend to be the busiest. By preparing for Monday’s arrival, you can ease the stress of the week ahead. Keep a family calendar posted on the fridge. On Sunday, look at what’s on tap for the week and plan how you are going to manage the week. Where you can, make meals on the weekend and put them in the refrigerator or freezer for a quick reheat on a busy evening. This can be an activity where you can involve and enlist your older children’s help. Before shopping for groceries, get your cookbooks out and make a list of several meals for the following week and make your grocery list from your menu list. After work stress is often more in deciding what to make for supper than in actually making it. If you go home for lunch, do some initial meal preparation then so that it cuts down on your after-work meal prep time.

* Negotiate flex hours or part-time hours if possible

Flexibility in your work life can bring an incredible stress release to a household. If it’s financially feasible, consider the option of part-time work. It may mean less financial freedom, but it may bring greater daily rewards and quality of life. Again, you need to consider your values and set your priorities. If possible, negotiate with your employer for flex hours or job-sharing that would be more conducive to your family life.

* Find a number two and a number three person

In the workplace and at home, you need to build tremendous supports. With the increased mobility of society, not all families have extended family support. If you don’t have family available in town, seek out the help of co-workers, friends and neighbours. Line up a couple of co-workers that your children can call to deal with their questions or situations when you are unavailable.

* Share with other families

Share your issues with your neighbours and friends who are facing the same work/home balancing act. You will not only benefit from the mutual support, but can also share ideas on how you manage your busy schedules. Look to share responsibilities with other parents. Take turns walking the children to school, driving the kids to their outside activities, babysitting each other’s children.