7 Rock Solid Thoughts About Time Management Tips For Busy Moms That Will Turn Your World Upside DownTo all the moms out there – you can back me up here – being a mom is like being a superhero isn’t it? You must have superpowers, or the ability to multiply yourself, to be in more than one place at a time. I promise that if you adopt a few of these ideas you will gain much needed time and reduce your stress.
I know how incredibly busy your life as a mom is. There is so much to do! Whether you have just one child or several children, a supportive spouse or you are a single parent, using time wisely is critical. Don’t we all secretly wish we had a Mary Poppins to help us out, with a bag full of everything we can wish for and with the ability to clean the room with the snap of our fingers? Sadly, we are not Mary Poppins or have superpowers, however we still have some control over our time and how we manage it. Here are some tips for all moms out there, that will make your lives easier and more efficient and turn you into super-charged moms!
Lists
Honestly, this is the best tip out there. Try getting up 20 – 30 minutes earlier and making your to-do list when the house is quiet. You can clear the cobwebs by reviewing your list, preparing the lists for the next couple of days adjusting what didn’t get done that still needs to get done into available slots. It is best to just write down everything you can think of – get everything out and on paper. Then build your lists according to the time you have available but schedule them all! Being Having all your tasks in front of you and on a list provides focus and ensures that you get things done. It also feels good to cross them off as you complete them!
Priorities
Let’s face it, some stuff is more important than others. That's why it's important to take the lists from Thought 1 and prioritize each of them. This helps you know which are more important and must be done. If you don’t get your entire list completed, however you got your top three priorities done you can reschedule the others. It’s important to understand what you can postpone and what you can’t. Always prioritize the higher priority tasks first.
Prepare the night before
This one is powerful! Prepare what you can for tomorrow. Try preparing lunches and snacks, lay out the children’s clothing, get school or daycare backpacks ready, set the breakfast table so you don’t have to spend time getting things ready in the morning when it’s typically cra-cra. Put what makes sense by the front door – backpacks, lunches, laptops, homework, purses, keys, etc., so the frenzy doesn’t consume the last few minutes of the morning ritual. This is when stuff gets missed, lost, forgotten and you put your mood in peril early in the day!! ☹
Track your time
Track how long it takes you to complete a task and your ability to schedule your time will start to get more accurate. Then you can fine tune what you are able to schedule. Don’t forget to schedule some open slots in your day to accommodate unanticipated things that always pops up.
Small Bites
Sometimes, the problem with finishing something is that we’re too scared to even start. Maybe it’s a really big task, and you have put it off because of how big the task appears. Remember, no matter how big a project is it can be cut into smaller bites. That way, instead of being terrified from the gigantic mess that is the room only focus on picking up the clothes from the floor. And then return the toys to their place. And so on.
Avoid Procrastination
Yes, that is like the hardest thing to do, ever. But it is crucial if you don’t want to end up with a million things you forgot to do or thought you’d do later. Obviously, you must let some things wait for tomorrow, because you just can’t fit them in your schedule. Don’t be hard on yourself if that happens. However, don’t let things wait on purpose, especially if you can fit them into your day, because you just “don’t feel like it”. Don’t ignore it just because you don’t feel like doing it at the moment. You’ll be thankful later when check that task off of your list. You’ll be thankful it’s not on the “thought I’d have time for it later” list. We all hate that list. Avoid it if you can.
Use a Planner
Buried in lists now? It’s easy to lose or misplace lists. Why not make things easier for you and map out a weeks’ worth of tasks and get a grip on what needs to be done? There are literally 1,000s of planners, both electronic and paper planners. I’ve searched years for one that does it all and will continue to search for one that fits for me. If you are just starting out tracking your tasks something from WalMart, Target, Dollar Store, etc. will get you started out. I don’t have many fixed appointments during the week and the few I do get placed in the time slot on the planner. If I don’t have an appointment, I use the “time slots” as a to-do list ignoring the time. It is really helpful to be able to see your entire week spread out in-front of you.
Conclusion – Finding Some Peace
Maybe not completely related to time management, but so essential to your well-being and ability to manage your time – is carving out a little time for yourself. Even just 10 to 15 minutes a day! Make this a task and put it on your schedule. Having a few minutes of peace and quiet will ensure that you keep some balance. It’s tough and for me it’s really tough. I must set an alarm to remind me to stop what I am working on and take a small 5-minute break. My Focus-To-Do timer accounts for breaks after every 25 minutes of focused time so it is just a matter of turning on the app and I can focus on my task at hand.
I hope you can use at least a few of these thoughts in this list to improve your time management skills and experiment on what works best for you. Search for new techniques using Google, or YouTube and experiment - that is truly the best tool you can have. Things will get better and easier the more you adapt to your new time management habits. You will see. [for more helpful tips check out my blog entitled: https://www.arthurellisphotography.com/family-blogs
You got this!
Arthur Ellis is a family, headshot, and boudoir photographer located in Charleston SC. He can be contacted through his website at: https://www.arthurellisphotography.com/
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