Every day, Americans struggle with finding the work-life balance Michelle Obama is championing in her role as First Lady. For stay-at-home moms and dads, time management is also challenging, especially as they often juggle household duties with volunteering at school or in the community. Brushing up on your time management skills can reduce stress and wasted time and make you more effective as a parent.
Focus
Focus significantly improves how effective you are at home, at work or both, according to Mind Tools. Whether you're preparing breakfasts for your children, shopping for groceries or assisting your children with homework, you'll accomplish the task quicker and more successfully with laser-like concentration.
Create Priority To-Do Lists
Filling your day with low-priority tasks is one of the key characteristics of procrastination, as Mind Tools explains. On the other hand, priority to-do lists enable you to determine and accomplish the most important tasks first, relieve stress and help you stick to deadlines. When creating your list, break down large tasks into smaller steps. Attach a priority status to each task and move them up or down the list as necessary.
Ask for Support
Sometimes it might seem easier or quicker to just do a task yourself. However, you can do only one task at a time, so others are sitting on the back burner. Getting your family to perform some household duties frees up some of your time. Also, "American Baby" magazine recommends sharing the load with another parent. Take turns helping each other with shopping, child care or the school carpool.
Create an Organizing System
Get into the habit of keeping things in their place. This will significantly reduce the amount of time you spend running around looking for missing items, such as mittens or car keys. Create a filing system for important documents, such as immunization records, insurance papers, utility bills and tax returns. Or, organize children's clothing into labeled drawers and shelves.
Use Internet Services
Paying bills, researching products and shopping online can significantly reduce the time it takes to complete these tasks. Set up automatic payments to free up even more time. Also, shop online at well-established websites for items such as cookware, clothing, stationery or computer needs.
Be Comfortable Saying "No"
When you're used to be relied on, saying "no" might not come easily. However, denying a few requests from your family, friends or coworkers, can open up whole blocks of time you did not have before. It also encourages self-sufficiency in your children and spouse or partner. A good rule of thumb is to say "no" to smaller, less important tasks and "yes" to the bigger stuff.
