Time management tips for work from home moms- to create a healthy work-life balance.
When I started working from home, it started as a hobby. As a way to pass my time doing something constructive. After a while, it turned into something that I absolutely loved. A passion. But, I had to learn to manage my time, so that the passion wouldn’t consume me completely.
I have a family too. I have a husband I love to talk to, and a daughter who demands constant attention. There is nothing wrong with pursuing your passion. But there is something wrong, if you decide to let it topple over your life completely and neglect your family.
This is why, I knew that I had to come up with a system. A system to manage my time and break down my schedule in such a way that I could create balance between work and my family.
Let me break down this system into 6 simple Time management tips, so you too can create a work-life balance, which is the key to a happy family life.
6 Time Management tips for Work from Home Moms:
1 day off/week:
Give yourself 1 day every week when you don’t even think about anything work related. For me that day is Sunday. Even if we are not going anywhere. Just sitting at home watching Netflix is the break that my mind needs after whirring continuously for 6 days!
1 Unscheduled day/week:
Allow 1 unscheduled day. This is the day where you catch up on pending work. Anything that you weren’t able to complete in the 5 working days. This allows you to catch up with any unusual delays during the week and gets you back on top of your game once again (For me, this is saturday).
1 Hour self-care break/day:
One hour of self-care everyday is not going to kill you. Do it! Watch TV, Read a book, go to a salon, go shopping, meditate or do anything that you love doing just for that 1 hour break every day. You deserve it!
Break down Tasks into Chunks:
With a baby around the house, you cannot expect everything to go as scheduled. So instead of drawing up a routine, break down the tasks that you want to accomplish into 1/2 hour, 1 hour or 2 hour chunks. What I do, is I divide my tasks into chunks upto a total of 5 hours everyday. For example, these are my tasks for today!
Now, you will notice that these don’t have the exact time mentioned and these tasks are not even written in chronological order. This allows me to be flexible. For example, let’s say that I want my daughter to take a bath, and I know it will keep her busy for half an hour, then I will sit with her, and read and reply to emails.
Tip: How to keep your toddler busy in the bath tub for half an hour
Motivation: After clocking each hour, I get up and place a magnet on the fridge. This keeps me motivated and stay focused on how many hours I have completed, and how many more are left.
Utilize Peaceful Mornings:
Try to do the work that requires focus in the mornings. For instance, I know that writing or solving any technical difficulties with my website requires complete focus and concentration. So these are the tasks that I would try to do in the mornings. I don’t write every single day, but on the days that I write, I wake up real early, make myself a cup of tea and start working!
Relax and don't over exert yourself:
The last and the most important tip is: that if on some day you are unable to complete the set amount of work in a set amount of time then don’t beat yourself up too much about it. After all, that’s what that 1 unscheduled day is all about. For example, let’s just say that I have dedicated 2 hours to writing, but it takes me 3 hours instead, so I would delay any other task from my list to next day or to that unscheduled day!
Also there may be some days when your baby/ toddler is cranky, emotional or sick and you might not be able to clock 5 hours. So, it is okay to clock only 3 and then schedule the remaining 2 hours for that unscheduled day.
And WIN WIN if you completed all the tasks during the weekdays. Now, you can have the complete weekend off! Whoops!! That really IS something!!
Great Ideas to keep Kids Busy while you work:
As a mom, the first and the foremost traits that we need to learn and become a pro at is: multi-tasking and time management. So here are some absolutely great ideas for you to try at home. These will keep your kids busy. There is something in there for kids aged 1 to 4. After that, they usually start school and you are not scrambling around for ideas to give you a shred of spare time.
Dive in and feel free to try, comment, or critique any idea. And I am even open to new ideas and suggestions to keep the kiddos busy busy busy….
- List of Airplane Busy Bags: This is a post about light, portable busy bags to take on board, but you can also keep a box of this stuff at home to use in time of need. Busyyy Baaaagsss to the RESCUE!!
- 15 Awesome games for babies: These are creative ideas especially meant for the cute little ones who are only a few months old.
- 30+ Creative painting ideas: Now now!! This one is not for the faint of heart, because it is Messy (mind you!!) and you are not to leave them alone in a room while they are doing these things, or God help you!! But, if you place a mat, and arrange this activity, you can sit beside them working on your laptop, for atleast an hour.
- 10 DIY handmade toys for toddlers: Always remember: New toy=Excited toddler for almost an hour. These are fairly inexpensive ideas, that you can make with kids and then let them play with it for an hour, while you work work and work!
- If you want a quick idea, then these DIY LEGO puzzles are going to take you exactly 2 minutes to make, and keep your toddler busy for quite a bit!
- The last one that I mention, and will keep on loving and singing praises of for years is Kinetic Sand. Kinetic sand is just like beach sand, only, even better. Aha. If you have seen your kids playing for hours on a beach, then this is really something worth considering. Kinetic sand provides a great sensory experience for kids as well.
I would like to leave you with a thought:
“You will never feel truly Satisfied by work until you are satisfied by life”- Heather Schuck
In order to feel satisfied with your work, you need to create a satisfactory life, which means balancing your family life along with your work life. I really do hope that these Time Management tips will help you stay focused, motivated and also create a healthy work-life balance so you can spend some quality time with your family and are not neglecting them for your work.
Hi, I’m Alifya. I love doing fun activities with my daughter, Hussaina and write all about it here! My crazy hobbies include:
A. Binge watching Friends upto a point of memorizing it!
B. Watching Air Crash Investigations and Mega Structures on
NatGeo and
C. Reading Harry Potter for the thousandth time!!
I work from home. I really appreciate the tips for time management. It is hard juggling work, the house, the kids, and to find time for yourself.
That is so true Rochelle. Thanks for the appreciation.
I didn’t realize until you just said it but I don’t actually have a day where I plan to do nothing but relax. Sometimes it happens unintentionally because I’m burnt out! But I think this is what’s necessary to AVOID the burnout for working moms and WAHMs.
Yes, it is very important to have that day. You actually look forward to it, which motivates you to focus on your work through out the day.
The keep-kids-busy portion of this post is essential – THANK YOU for including suggestions for this! And I love your magnet idea, too! I guess filling in the squares in my Bullet Journal, and setting timers on the stove for myself, function the same for me (the stove timer is loud so I HAVE to pay attention to it, wherever I am in the house, because I can hear it from everywhere!)
Haha, this stove timer idea is great. I may have to try it next time!!
Great tips! I have started to really take advantage of the quiet mornings to squeeze in some work. It’s so much easier to focus when the house is quiet!
Yeah, I believe that is the time when you can actually focus all your creative energies and get some great results.