Over the last few months you may have heard me mention some cut backs we did to this site, in efforts to create a better balance in our life and schedule.
While this site has been a big part of our lives for the last 7 years, over the last 2-3 interest in couponing as a whole has gone down considerably. Not to mention, many people (including our own family) realized that eating healthier was more of a priority than getting cheap food (yes, even if it was for FREE).
Not everyone is there yet and we certainly don’t expect everyone to ever be there – but it’s a conscious decision we needed to make.
This site has been an incredible amount of work and dedication over the years – to say that it has been easy is an understatement. Our site is a small business – just like many of you have a small business… never once was it something that took a few hours a day – more like 15-18 hours a day, every day and even on family outings and trips.
Back when I started this site, I had just given birth to baby 2…. fast forward 7 years, and I now have 5. With each child I have had to rejuvenate, and re-focus where we were going, after all…. my kids are pretty important people.
When my kids were smaller and not as mobile, it was easier to work on blog posts as they slept… or as they bobbled in their bouncer or enjoyed time in their swing. I knew that would change, however, when they started to walk.. and it did. At that point, with each child, I have had to change, and re-evaluate my efforts to see what works and what doesn’t, on a consistent basis.
During the summers, I have 5 here, sometimes 6, during the day (cousins like to play too…) – this school year coming up I will have 3 under the age of 4, and while 2 are very mobile, one is not…. yet anyways. Considering I make all of their meals, give them all baths, and get them started on projects, the only time I have to focus and truly get things “done” is when they are sleeping.
OR, when I have help – which is usually not the case :)
Not to mention household chores come into play too – lest we neglect the laundry we have a pretty big problem that’s not as easy to solve! :)
All in all, after 7 years of working at home with kids, there are a few things I have learned…
1. Keep a running list of items you need to do
I keep a list, on the counter and on my phone, and on the computer.. of things I NEED to do during that week. I am always adding to it – sometimes taking away.. and I actually don’t have one list but “two” – work and personal. Each day I can count on getting 3 .. maybe 4 major things done, depending on what they are.
You will be surprised to see how efficient you really can be when you narrow your focus for that day.
2. Use timers
Timers are essential for me, and I could never live without them. From the microwave timer to the oven, to my phone, to the old fashioned hand turn timer, I have several.
Once the baby, or my 2 next oldest fall asleep, I know that I have only 2 hours – MAYBE, to get things done. That’s a 2 hour rat race to see how much I can knock out..
I’ll set 30 minutes for food prep (dinner) in the kitchen, and 15 minutes to write out a few blog posts. Then I’ll set additional blocks of time for editing pictures or brainstorming post ideas. It helps me stay focused.
3. Get up early
Getting up early is essential – since the kids don’t wake up until 6:30 or 7… getting up at 5 allows me to get at least 90 minutes of work completed before everyone’s feet hit the floor. I’ll admit that I find it hard to get up at that time, but it feels so much better to know that I’m ahead of the game before the day even begins… then when nap time rolls around, I have a few extra hours to prep ahead. And, after dinner, I have more time to sit down and spend with my husband as we try to find a movie.
Since I am breastfeeding my newborn, I can still manage to plow through work even if she wakes up and decides she needs to eat during that 90 minutes.
4. Schedule social media
Social media is one of the biggest time wasters out there – as much as I love it {at times}, I try to get OFF of Social Media during the day in efforts to get more accomplished at home.
But.. doing this requires that I schedule my social media ahead of time – once a week I will schedule my social media posts for a period of 5-7 days – that allows me to forego checking it constantly, which leads you to get sucked into mundane useless information… The people who are closest to me know that the best way to reach me is by phone (husband)… and that I try not to check messages through the day but instead at one point in the afternoon and again before I go to bed.
5. Set a timer on your Social Media
As we mentioned, social media can make your break your day in terms of schedule and time. I have friends that live on social media .. and I often wonder how they get anything accomplished in their day.
With 5 kids at home, I really don’t have the time to sit on social media to constantly share posts.
If you use chrome, you can pick up the extension StayFocusd – which allows you to set a timer on specific sites – from 10 minutes to 30 minutes a day … at the completion of that timer, you are blocked for the rest of the day. It works – and it works well.
6. Get a better handle on your email
Email can take up a better part of your day – and in some cases, you might feel inclined to answer every single email that comes through your inbox.
As much as I love getting emails, I have gotten to a place where I can’t respond to them ALL anymore… if I did, I would be doing it at the expense of my children – and they are my most important parts of my life.
Only respond to those that you truly need to… and accept that it is OK. Time is valuable – it’s also just as important to unsubscribe from junk mail so you aren’t overwhelmed every time you log into your inbox.
7. Set boundaries
This can be a really huge struggle – when you are working on something important and your kids want to head to a movie, or, they want you to play on the water slide outside with them….
So you tote your laptop outside, or you mention that if they give you 20-30 minutes you will play the game with them.
When you are working, handle your work – answering emails, scheduling social media or concentrating on the article you are writing. But when you are with your children, put the phone away (including Facebook)… so that your kids know that there is, and should be a difference between work and play.
8. Don’t forego sleep
It’s so easy to find yourself up at night once the kids go to bed, trying to get things done…. I’m guilty of that and I’m sure many of you are too.
When each child was born, people would say to me “try to sleep when the baby sleeps”… (I wish I had a nickel for every time I heard that…) – unfortunately when you have 4 other kids at home, that’s not an option :)
Be as productive as you can during the day so that when the evening rolls around, you can go to bed with everyone else – if you don’t, you will compromise your immune system, health and mentality. You won’t be fun to be around, and if you end up getting sick, you won’t be any more efficient.
9. Set a routine
When you have one child, you might be able to have some type of schedule … but as each one comes along and adds to that, it gets harder to have a “set” schedule.
A routine though works well when you have multiple children – keep that routine during the week so you can get more accomplished. For example, I know that now that it’s the summer, my kids wake up at staggered times starting at 6:30, 7, and 8 a.m. Since my boys are up earlier than my girls, they do personal hygiene so that the bathroom is open for the girls when they wake up. From 8 – 9 a.m., everyone sits down for breakfast and then after we clean up the kitchen we have 2 hours of nap time (and work time!) before the smallest wakes up.
For many, the flexibility of being a Work at Home Mom sounds exciting – but on the flip side, many may not realize that it takes discipline and productivity to work at home with kids. It’s easy to get distracted …. whether by other kids, Facebook, family members, laundry and even dishes.
MOST moms I know are already busy with household responsibilities – they can’t even imagine having time on top of that to work.
Last thing to remember is that it’s impossible to do it all – and that is OK to give up some things in order to make other things work – but with effective planning, and organizing you can make it work for you.
[…] Read the full article here […]