Being a busy mom myself, I know first hand how hard it is to get things done sometimes. Through trial and error I’ve learned what works, and what doesn’t and today I wanted to share some of my tips with you! I hope at least one of them is something new that will work for you.
1. Early to bed, early to wake.
I used to stay up until all hours and then sleep in as late as I wanted. Then I’d wake up feeling lazy and wouldn’t want to do anything. If you get a good nights sleep and wake up early, you’ll feel refreshed and be much more likely to get things done. Extra bonus if you get up an hour or so before your children usually wake up so you have that morning hour to clean your house or do any chores you need to without any distractions.
2. Make lists.
I am a huge fan of lists. I love the feeling of checking something off it and finishing my list for the day. It’s such a feeling of accomplishment. Lists also help me stay organized and on track.
3. Prioritize.
What things NEED to get done? What things can wait?
4. Be realisitc.
This has always been a hard one for me as I try to get way too much done in too little time. There will never be enough hours in the day and once I realized it was okay to do things tomorrow, I became realistic at what I could and couldn’t accomplish.
5. Remember what’s important.
While I love doing my errands all at once to get them over with, if my son is tired, needs a nap, or is simply over it, I stop. We go home, read books, play, and sleep. You can always get those “things” done later so remember to put your kids, family, and friends first when they need you.
6. Find down time.
If you’re a mom like me, it’s hard to squeeze in time for you. Sometimes it’s even hard for me to take a shower in the morning because my son might be screaming his head off the whole time. I’ve found that I can get a lot of things done at certain times of the day. When my son goes down for a nap, that’s my reading time. When he is content with playing by himself, that’s my cleaning time. Figure out when you can squeeze in “you time” and use it wisely.
7. Accept that you’re not perfect.
Once we all accept that we’re flawed, life is a lot easier an we don’t feel so bad when things don’t get done as quickly as we’d like them to.
8. Get help.
If you’re married, share the chores. One person can do half of the things while you do the others. Sharing the load with people who care about you can make things a lot easier.
9. Plan.
Plan meals, make grocery lists, and figure out your week before it starts. Monday is usually my planning day. I do “food inventory” and make a list of what I need when I go grocery shopping. I make a meal plan of what I will be serving that week and my husband and I also link up our calendars so we know when we will be home and where we need to be throughout the week. This makes things a lot easier and more organized.
10. Do more when you have time.
If my son decides to bless me and take a three hour nap, I do more work. I know that the next day he may decide to take no naps, so if I do more when I can, I won’t be behind when I have no time. I cook extra meals and freeze them when I can, put in an extra load of laundry, iron clothes I wasn’t planning to get to until the next day, anything that will put me ahead of schedule.
Now that I’ve shared my tips with you tell us what your best time saving methods are. Leave a comment and let us know!