6 Time Management Tips for Moms

6 Time Management Tips for Moms

Many of you have expressed the challenge of not having enough time to
accomplish all your needed tasks and not being organized. Having good
organization and management skills is absolutely imperative to your
business. Being well organized can greatly affect your successfulness.
Applying a few of the following tips will help you become more
organized and make better use of your time.

1. Learn to delegate
Most of us are mothers and as moms we tend to automatically take on
everything and are used to doing everything ourselves. There's
absolutely nothing wrong with delegating different tasks.

2. Set business hours
One way to keep yourself and your business organized is to set regular
business hours. You know Monday through Friday 1 - 4 or whatever times
works best for you and your family and try to stick to it as much as
possible.

3. Keep your office organized
Have a place for everything keeping like things together.

4. Group like activities/errands
Keep track of errands that need to be done and try scheduling most of
them on the same day.

5. To-do lists
Having a to-do list keeps you motivated and lets you know what needs
to be done at all times.

6. Plan for tomorrow
Make it a habit to review the following days schedule at the end of each day.

Take a few minutes right now and start a list of everything you need
to get done. Take that list and re-write it by placing the things that
most need accomplished and place them at the top of your list. Once
you're finished get back to work and cross off tasks as you go. Not
only will you find yourself getting more accomplished you'll also find
a sense of fulfillment.




When you're juggling business and family under the same roof, you
never know what the day will bring. We can't free you of snow days,
sick days or other frustrating setbacks, but we can help you be better
prepared for them. These tricks will help you easily regroup when
surprises happen and keep you from falling too far behind in your
work.

Build a Safety Net into Your Work Schedule
Be prepared for the unexpected by building extra time into your
deadlines whenever possible. Push yourself to get a project done a bit
earlier than it's due. That way, if something derails you along the
way, you'll still get the job done in time. And don't make a habit of
working right down to the wire; it's downright dangerous.

Plan Ahead for Holidays and Vacations
Note kids' school vacations and holidays far in advance on your
calendar so you can adjust your schedule to accommodate any upcoming
changes in routine. Perhaps you'll need to lighten your workload
during those periods or delegate some of your work to an employee or a
trusted colleague. And don't wait till the first day of summer to line
up camp or a mother's helper for the kids. Start thinking about this
now. Few women have the luxury of closing down shop for the entire
summer just because the kids are home.

Have Loads of Backups
A mompreneur can never have too many contingency plans. Before a
crisis hits, think about other times you might get your work done.
Will you be able to work before the kids get up? Can you pull a few
late-nighters in the office without falling asleep at your desk? Do
you have some alternative child care you can call into action in a
pinch? Having these solutions in place ahead of time helps you stay
calm and collected when problems inevitably occur.

Snatch Windows of Opportunity
Have small, simple jobs on hand that can easily be picked up and put
down again. For example, perhaps you can add up business expenses
while snuggling on the sofa watching Teletubbies with your sniffly
toddler. Or you can answer email while snowbound kids watch a video.
Sneak in phone calls or complex projects while kids (hopefully!) nap.
Most importantly, don't despair. Think of how much worse it would be
if you worked outside the home. This crisis will pass, and you'll
appreciate the flexibility you had to shepherd your kids (and your
business) through the rough spots.
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