As parents, if we had it our way, we would spend every waking hour with our children. Unfortunately, many of us have to work long hours to keep the household going. If you have young children, balancing a full-time job while looking after your offspring can be incredibly challenging. To help you find the right balance that suits everyone, here are some useful tips to take away.
Get Organized
Whether you’ve recently had a baby or have a toddler running riot around the home, all parents need to get organized from the start, especially if you’re working too. Time management skills are a must when it comes to juggling family and work. Creating a checklist and ticking off all your errands, chores, and work commitments can add more structure to your day and reduce stress levels.
Ask for Help
If you’re working from home with young children to look after, staying focused on your work can seem like an impossible task. Therefore, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Whether it’s your partner, family member, or finding childcare, you need to find someone who you trust, which will put your mind at ease when you’re working.
Stay Present
For some working parents, it’s just not possible being able to be there for every milestone and bedtime. If this sounds like you, there are other ways you can stay present without having to be there in person. Thanks to technology, you can FaceTime your kids when you’re at the office or working away. Being present for your kids both at home and at work is important for not only bonding but aiding your child’s development.
Make Time for You
When you have family and work commitments running alongside each other, many parents forget about their own health and wellbeing in the process. To be the best version of yourself both with your children and at work, you need to be getting enough sleep, following a balanced diet and performing regular exercise daily. While your kids will naturally be your number one priority, you need to be in the best frame of mind to care for them, as well as excel in your professional endeavors.
Reassess Your Situation
If things are sliding out of control and you’re having great difficulty managing family life and work life, it may be time to reassess your situation. For instance, if you’re working set hours that don’t correlate well with your day-to-day duties, it may be wise to look into apps like Shiftsmart, which can give you more control over your working hours. For those who are having money worries, it may be worth going back into education and studying for a course online that can teach you new skills, give you more career opportunities, and let you command a higher salary.
No instruction manual fits all when it comes to parenting and working simultaneously. Finding the right balance between holding down a job and looking after your kids can be difficult. However, it is achievable. Making note of the above and putting the tips into practice can transform your routine and help you get the best of both worlds.