I know it’s not something you really want to talk about. But if you are a work at home mom, one of the crucial elements for building a successful business is learning how to create time for your work, your play and your home. Now you may be doing well enough that you can afford a maid, a nanny and a butler. But for most of us, that’s only a pipe dream — and others just prefer not to outsource that job because you know that your family should be capable of cleaning up after themselves better. So here’s a bit of insight from my own personal days and how I manage to get all the things done around here that absolutely cannot get overlooked.
Make the most of weekends
I have discovered that the best option for me is getting as many things done around the house on the weekend as a can. My husband is home so he can distract Mackenzie (although she’s getting old enough to help with more things now without causing a mess) but it also prevents me from interrupting my work to go change a load of laundry or vacuum the kitchen. Yes, I do still do some basic cleanup during the day, like conquering the chaos that is my kitchen after cooking, unloading and reloading the dishwasher, a quick tidying up here and there as needed and maybe even some decluttering. But for the most part, all of this takes less than 1 1/2 hours a day.
Clean as you go
I know this can be tough for all of us, but trust me, it makes so much difference. For example, if you’re cooking dinner and you make a huge mess, using every pot and pan you own, you are going to regret it if you wait until the next day to clean everything up. Putting off the tasks until later only encourages procrastination which will also roll over into other parts of your life. And the more you let pile up for “later”, the bigger the mountain of tasks becomes, making it even more foreboding when you are ready to get back to it a day or five later.
Get others to pitch in
This actually goes hand-in-hand with cleaning as you go…except that the person who makes the mess is responsible for cleaning it up. Obviously, they can solicit some help from others if someone else is willing to help (or if they can’t complete the clean up on their own). But just because you are mom doesn’t mean you are the clean up crew for your husband, your kids, your dog and anyone else who happens by your house. You’re in a family, not a prison camp. If they don’t all pitch in to keeping things in order, you are never going to be able to stay on top of all the housework AND get your work done. If you have to use chore charts, bribes or whatever to get the habits started, do it. But also let your family know that you simply cannot fulfill your own dreams and be the support arm that they need if they do not pick up the slack and support you as well.
Get rid of stuff
It may seem overly simple — or maybe it just seems plain crazy. But if you have less to clean, you also will have to spend less time cleaning. Limit the number of knick-knacks you display — because who really wants to dust 30 delicate bird figures every week on just one shelf? Streamlining the number of possessions you have also means you have more space to put your belongings. And I find that when something has a “home”, you are more likely to put it back where you found it.
Another trick that I try to implement is that when ONE new item comes into our home, TWO items go out. So if Mackenzie gets a stuffed animal or new toy, she and I go through her things together (at about 3 years old she’s starting to get the concept of giving things away for the benefit of someone else) and she selects something she no longer plays with to give away. And because I just brought home some new kitchen gadgets from our trip to the US, I now need to go through my drawers and get rid of the things I haven’t touched in the past 6 months.
Using these 4 simple tips can create a huge impact on how you manage to stay productive in both your home and work. What sort of tricks do you use to make sure you stay on top of both life & work?
