As a working mother, you have many demands on your time. You probably start the day much earlier than you would like to. You have to make sure that the kids are dressed and have all of the homework, supplies, lunches and other items that they’ll need throughout the day. Then you head out to work, where you frantically rush to complete projects on time and still get out at a decent hour. When the work day is finally done, it is time to head home to after-school activities, dinner, homework, bath and bed time. This doesn’t even include housework, time for paying bills or even just some time to read a good book.
That is why it is so important that you leave your work at the office when you do come home. You already have less time than you would like with the people who are most precious to you. Why spend that valuable time doing work that should be done at the office? It may seem impossible to get your work done without bringing it home, but there are some simple steps that you can take to leave your work at the office door.
Prioritize Your Day
The first thing that you should do every morning is make a list, in order of importance, of the items that you must accomplish that day. Then start with the most important item and work your way down. If you have trouble prioritizing your work, show your manager a list of all of the things that you have been asked to do. Tell your manager that you do not have time to do everything on the list, and ask him or her to prioritize the work for you. This allows you to know which projects are most important to your manager, and those projects should be the most important to you. The other projects will just have to wait until they are in a higher position on the priority list.
So many of us get caught up in clearing unimportant (but easy) items out of our in-boxes, or returning non-urgent telephone calls or emails, that we wait until late in the day to get started on the work that must be finished. Then we end up bringing that work home and wondering why we can never have a peaceful evening at home with the family. The single most important step to getting out of the office on time and with an empty briefcase is working on the most important items first. This sounds so simple, but it takes real focus to make it happen.
Just Say No
As women, we have a difficult time telling others no. We feel that we aren’t doing a good job, or that others will think badly of us, if we turn down a project. However, there are many times when you need to do just that. If you are asked to do perform a task that falls into a co-worker’s job description, replying “but that’s not my job” won’t get you anywhere (other than possibly looking for a new job). On the other hand, replying that the co-worker can help get that information more quickly and accurately than you can shows that you are a team player who wants to get the work done in the most thorough and efficient manner.
Politely refusing to do someone else’s job for them does not make you a bad employee, or a bad person. Refusing to spend hours upon hours on a project that is not a priority for your manager and/or your company shows good judgment. By selectively saying no to projects or tasks that are distractions or a waste of time, you can free up your time for the items that top your priority list. This means that you are more likely to get those items completed at the office rather than at midnight at home.
Change Your Attitude
Many working mothers are closet perfectionists. We feel that we should be able to accomplish everything on our to-do lists in a timely manner. If someone asks a working mother what her biggest fault is, she is likely to respond that she has a problem with time management. That may not be true. Instead, that mother may fail to realize that it is absolutely impossible for any one human being to accomplish everything that she has been charged with doing.
What is required is an attitude adjustment. Instead of focusing on everything that hasn’t been accomplished, focus on what has. Instead of assuming that every project must be completed immediately no matter the personal cost, consider whether a later response will suffice. In fact, consider whether the project or task even needs to be completed at all. If you can force yourself to more realistically assess how much work can and should be accomplished during your working hours, you may find that you are better at time management than you thought you were.
By prioritizing your day, remembering to say no when appropriate and focusing on doing a great job instead of being the perfect employee (or mother), you’ll find that you have much more time for what is really most important to you. Let’s face it: having more time for the people most important to you is the true measure of success.
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