Quite often, whether you work inside the home, outside the home, or both, there will be occasions when you have major projects or tasks – with or without a deadline – you need to get completed. However, if these tasks aren’t “critical” they often get pushed aside. As Moms, making time to fit such things into an already-busy schedule can be super-challenging.
We recently talked about why you and your time are just as valuable as anyone or anything else on your “to do” list. So, we won’t really go into that again. However, even if you understand that and believe it, it can still be difficult to make yourself take a time out and take care of larger or ongoing projects or tasks that need to get done. Especially, if the task or project is not necessarily one you want to do or that is urgent. But instead, is something you know you need to do, but that doesn’t necessarily bring immediate value (or consequence if not done) to you or someone else.
Examples of these kind of tasks might be your household budget and bills, preparing tax documentation, cleaning out your closet, or even something as “simple” as organizing your pantry. None of them are necessarily “critical” and the world won’t end if they don’t get done. On the other hand, if left completely ignored or unattended for an extended period of time, any of them can build to be a much bigger project (or of greater consequence) that is exponentially harder to deal with in the future.
Thus, it’s surely smart to figure out a way to stay on top of such things in the present—even when it seems or feels like your available time is at a premium.
Integral to trying to do more with the limited available time you have, is making time count. In other words, when you make time for something, you also make sure that you get out of it the most available benefit.
How do you do this? How do you make the most of your time when you are “making time?”
- Be prepared. Know what you are going to do to get the project completed and create a plan for making sure it happens on a realistic timeline.
- Be proactive. Make sure someone else is taking care of your responsibilities at work, with kids, etc. so that you don’t spend this time worrying about those responsibilities getting done while you’re working on knocking your task off your list.
- Be upfront. Help others understand the importance of what you are doing. Don’t diminish the nature of what you’re working on because while doing it may not seem vital to today, if it’s important enough for you to worry about it, it’s important enough to matter.
- Be focused. Cut out distractions while you’re getting the project done. If you are trying to watch TV, talk on the phone, work on the computer, etc. at the same time, you’re most likely not going to work as fast – or efficiently – as you could if your attention was focused.
- Be flexible. Ask others for help. Sure, sometimes this can make things actually take longer. However, it can sometimes work to your benefit if you have other hands assisting. Especially, when it comes to sorting things, clearing or taking out trash or clutter, etc., even little hands working with you can make a positive difference. Not to mention, it teaches valuable habits (such as organization) and can help to ease “mom guilt” if you can turn this time, into time spent together.
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