Moms have to juggle multiple tasks and responsibilities every single day. If you are a work-at-home mom or WAHM, you know that time management is essential. This article hopes to share eight simple time management tips for WAHMS that will help streamline your days and give you peace about working at home while raising your kids.
Table of Contents
Tip #1 – Create a Schedule
Having a loose schedule of how your day should go can help keep you on track to make the most of your time. Start by outlining things you know need to happen, including meals, errands, nap time, after-school pickup, wake time, and bedtime.
Fill in times to work around these tasks. Sticking to a schedule lets you know what needs to be accomplished so you aren’t just winging it every day.
Tip #2 – Work When You Are Most Productive
Some people are early risers and like to get started the moment they jump out of bed. These WAHMs may find it best to wake up an hour before their children so they can get in some work before the day even begins.
Others may get more done once everyone is asleep at night and the house is quiet. If your kids are still around naptime age, take advantage of that time as well. Learn when you are most productive, and schedule your work time during that time frame. This ensures you are making the most of the time you allow for work.
Being productive is like working double-time. You aren’t as distracted, and you get so much more accomplished. Working during your productive times is one of the best time management tips.
Tip #3 – Prioritize Your Tasks
Just because you are keeping yourself busy doesn’t mean you are necessarily being productive – or managing your time well. Look at your schedule and figure out what needs to get finished TODAY. Of that list, narrow down the 3 most important tasks of the day.
Focus on your most urgent tasks first, so you can knock them out. Priorities are important. Even if you only get one big task done a day, that’s better than three not-so-important tasks. Anything else you get done on top of your priorities list is just a productivity bonus.
Tip #4 – Identify and Eliminate Time Wasters
The worst thing you can do when you are a busy WAHM is get distracted. This can throw off your entire schedule and end up with you wasting two hours on Facebook while the laundry, dishes, and work deadlines are left looming over your head. Use free Google Chrome extensions to block your biggest time wasters, like social media.
Don’t burn yourself out, though. You should schedule breaks into your day and give yourself the freedom to enjoy these distractions during those times only.
When you are working, close all social media and even turn off the TV. Set timers for your social media scrolling time, and listen to music or a podcast that keeps you focused on the task at hand.
Tip #5 – Work with a Timer
Challenge yourself to get things checked off of your to-do list efficiently by timing yourself. Within your schedule, you can create time blocks of 15 to 20-minute increments for work. Once the timer goes off, give yourself five minutes to get up, stretch, take a bathroom break, or even get a drink or snack.
You’ll soon find that working in these short stretches trains you to get more done in the same time than if you just sat down with no time limits to work.
If these periods of time are too short, lengthen them to your liking. Preference and productivity comes in all kinds of shapes and sizes.
Tip #6 – Do a Brain Dump Often
Sometimes it’s not our surroundings that make us unproductive, it’s our own minds. If you have too much to think or worry about, you likely cannot focus on the task at hand.
A few times a week, sit down and take at least ten minutes to do a brain dump. Get all of your thoughts, feelings, and even to-do lists out on paper. If you journal, you may find it helpful to do this often. Simply releasing all the jumble living in your brain can be helpful for getting your focus back.
Tip #7 – Get Help When You Need It
Sometimes, even managing your time as well as you can isn’t enough to get to where you need to be. There are so many things moms have to do to keep everything running smoothly, on top of household duties. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
Get your family members or friends to watch your kids for a few hours each week. Maybe you have a sibling or a cousin who’s interested in your side hustle and would love to help! A mother’s helper is another option, as they come to your home to watch your kids while you work undistracted.
Delegate household chores to your partner and older children to free up time in your schedule. Some tasks in your business can also be done with the help of your kids and partner.
Tip #8 – Don’t Forget Yourself
It can be easy to look at your schedule and think about everything you need to do for your family. However, you must include yourself when thinking about all the people that need to be taken care of. You can’t manage your time efficiently if you are constantly running on empty.
Schedule in some self-care time, whether it be a bubble bath, 15 minutes of sitting outside enjoying a cup of coffee each morning, or reading for 20 minutes each night. Alongside that, make sure you’re happy and healthy the way you make sure your family is.
Sit down and eat when your family does, and take breaks and days off as you deem necessary. You need to recharge your batteries so that you can properly take care of the home!
Time management for work-at-home moms isn’t as difficult once you have a solid schedule in place. It just takes a bit of practice, patience, and diligence.
