Being a working mom is an adventure: constantly managing your time, responsibilities, work and family is a big ordeal. You may feel strained, tired, and you may experience times of mental fog as you wonder how come Carol across the street does everything you do but manages to stay refreshed and vibrant. The secret? Working mom time management tips. Whether you are a stay-at-home mom working part-time or you are a working mom looking for ways to improve her mom time management skills, you can benefit from some tips and tricks that working moms across the world were lucky enough to learn earlier in life.

Working Mom Work Time Management Tips

1.    Set Daily Goals the Day Before

Every busy mom knows that making a plan and sticking to it is all it takes to be able to look back now and then and say: ‘Whoa, was that a productive time’! Make your daily schedule and specify some three to five MANAGEABLE goals the day before. The importance, benefits, and value of goal setting cannot be overstressed. Busy mom time management is easier to perfect if you have the assistance of a simple sheet of paper.

2.    Establish Fixed Work Hours

Establishing Fixed Work Hours for busy stay at home moms that work from home may be a bit difficult. With young children running around, screaming, and acting unpredictably, you may find yourself hoping that school comes sooner than later.

Some moms use the split technique: two hours in the morning while the kids are still asleep, one hour in the afternoon when they take a nap, and some extra time here and there to brainstorm new ideas for an upcoming project. Before you know it, you will have four hours of work a day and will be able to accomplish your long-term plans.

3.    Learn How to Delegate Work Responsibilities

If you have boss mom time management problems, do not worry, since you’re not alone. Many people, not only young women with an entrepreneurial spirit, have issues learning how to delegate their tasks. The secret is to start small and build up.

Let your colleagues write your next report or prepare your presentation speech, and see how easy and good it feels to have somebody else do the work for you. Managing delegation to others on your team is less strain on your time than performing all the tasks by yourself. Not only will they take a burden off your shoulders, but they’ll also appreciate the chance to showcase their skills, especially if they are new in the company. This point brings us to the next topic:

4.    Do Not Be a Perfectionist

Someone once said that perfectionism only works until you realize that you cannot achieve those same standards you expect others to follow. If you are a perfectionist trying to balance work and home responsibilities, you will realize that this is no way to go. Not everything has to happen as you imagined it would, and not everyone can work at the pace you find appropriate.

Instead of trying to do everything yourself, let others do a part of your work, but let them do it their way! New people on the task equals new approaches, solutions, and ideas. Think of all the times when you needed a fresh idea to set you in motion. This is your chance!

Working Mom Home Time Management Tips

1.    Embrace Technology

Stay at home mom time management was never easier. It is the 21st century, so live up to it and let technology do the work for you. Amazon offers automated purchases of home pantry items, and Amazon fresh learns about your shopping style and converts this into great recommendations.

Roomba and similar solutions wash and clean your floors, and you have plenty of time to dedicate to your children and your work. With these 5 biggest smart home trends, it seems technology will be able to help out even more as time rolls along.

2.    Multitask – the right way

Contrary to popular belief, multitasking does not have to slow you down if you, as a busy work from home mom, know how to do it right. If you try to multitask two active tasks, you will fail at both. There is no way that you can stay focused on writing that email while also calling your colleagues to schedule an important meeting.

However, use all the resources you can to multitask while still focusing on one active task. Turn on your dishwasher, washer, and CrockPot all at the same time and focus on your work. By the time you have finished your work, you will have also cooked your lunch, done the dishes and the laundry. There is no need to have a laundry day anymore. Everything is done by itself when you need it. And with this new laundry folding machine, you won’t even have to fold your laundry ever again. 

3.    Stay Away from the Internet

It may seem like such a necessity, but spending time online is twice lost. The first time you lose it is when you just browse Pinterest or scroll through Instagram posts. It is also lost the second time because a planned 15-minute break easily turns into an hour or two of scrolling and a late dinner. Be smart and stay away from high-tech, at least for the time you plan to be productive.

Final Remarks

There are so many busy mom time management tips out there, so we tried to stay short but on the point with ours. Regardless of how much free time you have (or do not), there’s always a way to make more. Be smart and productive with your time management hacks, and make Carol from across the street want to be you, not the other way around.

Author Bio
Nicole Garrison is a proud mom of two and a digital marketing consultant. She currently works for Supreme Dissertations, where she uses her expertise to find new ways to engage clients and achieve a higher conversion. She is also an operations consultant at TrustMyPaper. Here she tries to find novel ways to help busy students. She hopes to travel the world once her kids are all grown up and embrace all the flavors of the Mediterranean.