Tuesday, April 5, 2011

The Working Parent Lifestyle

The thought of having a successful career and balancing being a parent can be overwhelming.  As a parent (or perhaps you are thinking about starting a family) you must decide what suits you best based on your personal needs, financial goals and the needs of your children.  You can choose to be employed full time or part time for a company or pursue the entrepreneurial path.  Whatever you decide you will have to make some lifestyle adjustments in order to achieve that elusive ‘work-life’ balance success.
Here are some challenges you may encounter while balancing work-life:
1.                  Leaving Your Child:  You may find it difficult to adjust to not being there every moment of every day.
2.                  Saying Goodbye:  Leaving your child can be extremely traumatic, particularly if your child is crying. 
3.                  Obsessive Thoughts:  It can be difficult to focus on work while you are away from your child.  You can develop obsessive thoughts about their safety and general well being.
4.                  Guilt:  the bane of many parents existence.  You may find yourself caught up in the childcare debate and find it difficult to not feel like you are in some way abandoning your children.
5.                   Tiredness:  You will soon discover there are not enough hours in each day to complete all your tasks.  Especially days when your child may be sick or sleepless.
Consider these 12 tips/solutions for your work-life balance success.

• Prepare the night before to avoid the morning rush.
• Always avoid planning meetings first thing in the morning.
• Learn to say no – this is vital both personally and professionally.
• Learn to prioritize.
• Get rid of any perfection ideal.
• Have a solid routine so that you and your child know what is expected
• Delegate as much as possible.
• Have a plan for what will happen if your child is sick
• Eat your main meal at lunchtime, so you only need to prepare something light at dinner.
• Use the internet to get as much of your shopping done as you can.
• Use lists to prioritize and make sure you take great pleasure in crossing items off.
• Take time out for yourself, either alone or with friends.

Share with us any tips or solutions you have found helpful to you in your work life journey.

Roselle

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