Balancing your world with children in tow is one of the great mysteries of life. We can all feel that when we are trying to juggle a full-time job and everything that comes along with it, the balance is never tipped in our favor. With so many guides out there talking about the need to look after yourself, you may ask yourself “when is there the time to actually do this?!” But there are so many other aspects that need to be considered. Take the fact that you are at work or you are trying to run a business; these can all contribute to the feeling of guilt or stress because you are not giving your child 110%. So what does it really take for us to balance our lives in the right ways?
Asking Yourself If What You Are Doing Is Really “Essential”
We can all feel pressured because of the cost of living and everything going up, but this is because we are accustomed to a certain lifestyle. When it comes to a career, the fact is there are many jobs out there that offer part time hours, and you may believe that it’s not possible to go down to part time hours with your current employer, but when you start to think about how you can change your lifestyle to give more of yourself to your children, this might be the ideal solution. But in doing this, you’ve got to ask yourself if the road you are on is actually benefiting everyone. You might very well say that you’ve got to work to get to the next stage of the career ladder, but if you are pipped to the post by someone else for that promotion, the solution would be to set up your own business where you have complete control over your life. If what you are doing are things that can be changed, they can benefit your life incredibly.
Get Scheduling!
A lot of resources out there talk about the benefits of scheduling your life. The fact is that a lot of people don’t like to have every aspect of their life marked out, but when we feel like life is spinning out of control, this is the perfect solution. But the best way to schedule your lives is to figure out your family’s priorities. These could include some of the following:
- Chores for the children.
- School or family events.
- When bills are due.
You can opt for a calendar that has everything in place so you can organize your life accordingly. And of course, the benefit of having a calendar means that you don’t need to keep this information in your head! We have to remember that as beneficial as it is to challenge our minds, when there is so much going on we are going to feel full to the brim. This means that we may start making mistakes and become forgetful, and it’s not just going to impact us, but the family as well.
Staying Connected With Your Children
If you are dropping your children off early in the morning and you’re not seeing them until close to bedtime, unsurprisingly, you’re going to feel guilty because you don’t see them. But there are amazing ways for you to stay connected with your children when everybody is not together. If you’ve got an older child, you can send answer phone messages or a text giving them support or a message you love them is all that you may need to help stimulate that bond. If you’ve got younger children, you can potentially record your voice or video reading a children’s book. There are many options for recordable storybooks to try. But when we are trying our best to spend more time with our children but we can’t physically be there, we’ve got to use technology to our advantage.
Be Disciplined!
This is not just for you, but for the children as well. When you are making phone calls or checking emails, time limits can seem somewhat pressuring, but if you are looking to capitalize on quality time with your children or partner, you need to be strict. It’s also important to avoid multitasking, especially when you are with your children. If it is too tempting to go on your phone, you could benefit from hiding your phone and even if that temptation to check your phone is there, you could get one of these box timers so you physically cannot access your phone, so you have no choice but to focus on your children! Because we all feel that we need to spend more time with our children, yet the allure of our phones is always there, sometimes we have to learn how to sever the ties with our devices! And this all begins with that old-fashioned notion of discipline!
Creating “Me Time”
With everything that goes on in our lives, we can feel that there is no time for ourselves, but so many of us can benefit from a little quiet time alone. A little break from everything helps you to recharge, but it can also give you that all-important perspective so you can decide on how to best tackle problems in your life. We can’t be effective parents if we are under the weather or cranky, so we must remember to schedule time for ourselves to feel more relaxed. Whether it’s a bubble bath or reading a book before you go to sleep, fitting in time for a hobby is a very simple thing that makes you feel like you are looking after yourself.
Creating Special Family Activities
If you are pressed for time, you can create activities that you can fit into your schedule. This may mean having a family breakfast before going to work. If your children don’t like getting up early, this could ruffle a few feathers, but when they get into the habit of having a little family breakfast, even waking your children up 10 minutes earlier can set the template for the day. If you feel like you’re not spending enough time with your children, this is one little thing that can work wonders.
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