Follow Me on Pinterest

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Work/Life Balance My List


Hey Y'all:


I am a working mom. I love and appreciate stay at home moms but working outside the home is a choice that I made out of necessity and desire. Necessity because my husband owns his own business without health benefits and desire because I always wanted to be a part of corporate America and didn't want to give that up when I became a mom...


With this choice there is a constant struggle to find the balance between work and life (life for me is my family and everything outside of my 9-6). So here is MrsDeveter's list on making this journey worth living.


1. Know when to say NO! This goes for work and home... you have to know when enough is too much! You have to be able to tell your boss "no I can't stay late today but I can come in a little earlier tomorrow to finish this project ." No at home can happen when family members are asking you to do things that you just don't want or have time to do. Saying no is big on my list and I think I've pretty much mastered it.


2. Realize your role. My friend and I always use the line "stay in your lane." Sometimes it's difficult at home and work to only do the things that you are responsible for. At home if your job is to take out the trash ... take out the trash. Don't sweep the floor, do the dishes and forget to take out the trash. You have to complete the work that is assigned to your hands. If you stay in your lane you won't be exhausted at the end of the day. This goes for home and work. If your job is to make copies and hand them out... do just that... don't read the copy and point out all the errors to the person who asked you to make the copies. That is their job.... STAY IN YOUR LANE!


3. Take a time out . This is really important to me. Even I work I take about 15 mins outside of my (unpaid) lunch to give myself a break. If you are a stay at home parent you need to do the same thing. When the other parent makes their appearance or when your little one finally takes a nap, you need to give yourself a time out! Spring is upon us, take a walk around the block, go to the gym something, read a chapter in that novel you started six months ago do something for YOU. Having time for yourself helps to take a step back and look at things from a different perspective. It gives you balance.


4. Recognize you can't do it all. Sometimes even the things that are assigned to you can be too much. Recognize that you are human and you can't do it all and you certainly can't be all things to all people. Realize and vocalize your limits and don't feel bad about it.


5. Have fun. The best balance in work/life is enjoying whatever you do. Whether it is working or taking care of your family. Enjoy it and give it your all. Apply items 1-4 and then fun and you have a very good balance in your life. The scale won't always be even but make sure that a portion of fun is always included.


What is the one thing you do to make sure you have balance in your life?


Until next time...

MUAH!

No comments:

Post a Comment