As a parent, all we ever desire is to be there for our kids all the time and never have to compromise on our career for that. Wondering how to balance work and family, well well have been. Specially for those moms who are hands-on and yet wish to have a career despite all the assignments at home. Being a working mom calls for some extra responsibilities which are needed to let it all work smoothly around you. And there is no magic potion that can balance it all, for every few weeks need constant renovation.
How to Balance work and family tips:
An efficient work-life balance that maintains equilibrium is not simple. Every honest confession any working mom ever made simply reflects the basic idea is to keep up the patience and courage. All you need is to chalk out a single day’s plan and work it. You cant plan an entire week or month for every day brings in different challenges. So keep it one at a time and follow the below, somethings work brilliantly sometimes and the rest time you just have to maneuver it more.
Most efficient of a working mom would swear by a simple rule of thumb “never give up” Just when you felt the things were falling out of place and you surrendered; you had the balance right ahead which you failed to observe. So it’s about finding that rhythm from within and seeking a balance outside. Some tips for maintaining work-life balance are:
1. Get over your guilt:
You cant be at home with your child and work in the office space, only if you are a superhuman who can stay at both the places. Let the guilt go, you cant do more than this so accept the fact that you have those many hours to be away from family and specially your children. Don’t hold on to the past or moments when you could be just alone with your kids at home, that maternity time is gone and now its time to roll back to the office routine. And let go these guilt trapping emotions which are binding you back
2. Build a support system back home:
As a mom, you have to see that family life goes as smooth as practically possible. Keep the support system established. Have a backup plan too, as there will be days you just can go ahead with the initial setting and you need the contingent plan to work. Friends, relatives and well-wishers must be offered for the help you need from them. They will gladly be a part of the work-life balance. You must have a daycare or nanny work for building up your child’s daily needs and for the rest of the things trust family.
3. Most important struggle is morning, so make it better:
Mornings are never easy after you have a family and despite every effort, you make it becomes challenging. Think about making it less grinding and install a back up plan always. Most often the family or especially children would not go as per your plan so here comes the back up to work it out for you. Plan a night ahead and begin early, no matter how soon you wake things begin on a critical note each morning. As working mom mornings have been crazy for me, and shifting the chores from early morning to evening or later time has been working with a lot of other challenges each day. Prepare the work bag, kids school bag and other items a night ahead and keep them set on the door
4. Make a calendar for your family:
No mother wants to miss any important day at home. And its humanly impossible to remember it all always. Just write down on a calendar and keep it up somewhere you wont forget. Write important dates like kid’s wellness visit, parent meetings at day care or school, birthdays and celebrations within family and more. This will help you to plan these days ahead and never miss an important day
5. Be open with your employer:
Don’t be guilt trapped, you need to discuss the family situation and your priorities with your employer right away. They need to know how you want to be a career oriented and family prioritizing woman. Everyone understands the crunch of being in that situation. Communicating with your employer builds up trust and other necessary plans which must be set up for your work-life balance to work out well.
6. Do not have high aspirations, just realistic ones:
The time when you didn’t have a family all you ever did was work your entire time. But now situations have changed so do not expect the same to follow in terms how much you can achieve and how more and more time you can contribute in building your professional life. It’s great to be ambitious but being realistic is what you need the most right now
7. Pick the work you can do with flexibility:
You will need flexible work options more and more with growing family. And picking a job which can fulfil all of this is a dream. You must accomplish all your professional duties without having to miss anything important at home. This will help you in getting a psychological and actual back up for all those days when you cant leave your child and yet have a full work day too
8. Limit distractions:
Set time for the activities each day. Manage your day as a time clock, at least for the days when it all falls in place according to the plan set. Snack or lunch breaks, informal meetings with peers at work and other such can be limited to a few minutes as they won’t help you in maintaining your balance of work and family. Also, avoid too much social media interaction during the day for it will end up in a delayed plan for the day
9. Pick one special family activity each day:
Board games at night or watching favorite TV show as family or dinner together or half an hour of story time during bedtime discussing all important family events during the day can be a fulfilling and connecting way to keep in touch and not miss it all. One hour of quality time a day with your family is way above hours spent with family and not cherished at all.
10. Maintain your sanity by keeping time for self too:
As a working mom, nothing can be more fulfilling than having at least a few minutes of my time a day. Believe you me, I have been enjoying this ever since my postpartum blues and its working out great. Though each day I wish I didn’t do everything right but it gives me enough sanity to proceed with the coming day with a smile and hopes to do it well. And you get the courage from within to work it out well. For there is nothing but yourself who is willing to have it all
11. Pick a job which requires your hobbies and interests rather than anything else:
All you need after a family is to be able to find that inspiration to keep you going. Trust when we say its never going to be easy. Just keep something which motivates and reinvents you as your workplace. Rather than money or promotions or areas where you may have worked before. Pick your hobbies as your profession after a family and see how easy it is to pull you through the day’s activities. I may have left everything I ever did prior to having my baby, but I am thankful I could bring out the writer in me. I always had the passion to write but never turned it to a professional goal until I found what makes me happy and does not require me to drag myself each day. So pick that instinct in you and work it out in a way that it becomes your workplace endeavour.
12. Find time with your partner too:
Quality time with your partner is very important too. And go ahead with dates or secret hangouts sometimes as it enriches your bond. You may not have the number of intimate moments you had before but all you can have is quality time spent together so go ahead and enjoy it all. Have the grandparents and family be home once in a while taking care of it all while you go for a drive, movie or a date with your better half
13. Remember time management:
Being a working mom needs all the more time management skills than anything else. Chalk out a doable plan and work on it day by day. Do not stick with tasks as there are more and more important activities ahead waiting for you
14. Add gadgets to your day:
Having a Roomba or an Amazon pantry set up or even other devices that make your task easier at home is never a bad idea. Invest in equipments which pay you back in terms reducing time and effort. You must have these all the more now
15. Keep a few days when nothing works out and you fall back:
There will be days when absolutely no plan works and you feel terrible. But these are just a push bags and you need to bounce ahead. These are inevitable, even after 5 years of parenting i see these days quite often but good news is these too pass. And you have hope and courage which keep your going ahead
16. Forget about winning:
Now its time to think of managing than winning it all. You can’t win everything at home and at work to learn to accept that your challenge is the daily grind and not a single goal. Just when you though you achieved the biggest milestone at work you realized you missed it all at home. So make your realistic goals a challenge and proceed with balancing the work and family life equilibrium with utmost ease humanly possible
17. Never repent of the times lost:
You can’t do anything about the times you have lost at work and for family. Just think of what lies ahead. Repenting the past leads to nothing but torture. And this is the last thing you need right now.
18. Keep yourself updated with easier options:
You may not have the time to read through the entire newspaper or follow an entire series of TV show. Pick better choices like social media and apps on mobile devices which keep you informed of most. Ruffle through them in your free time during the day like when commuting in public transport, the delightful few minutes while nature call and waiting at traffic line. Believe me your internal system is so well reflective of the entire story even if you read just the bullet points. This is the secret to better parenting
The above compilation on How to balance work and family is to help all struggling moms who despite all efforts fail in accomplishing their duties at work and towards family. Well there is nothing that works all the time but keep up the hope and efforts as you have to look the better things in everything you do. Rise above the failures and push your strengths further as this is the key to being a super mom who does it all and has it all too
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