“Part-time” Doesn’t Mean “Half-ass”: Lessons of the Working Mom
Being a working mom is just about the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Am I right?
I know that for a lot of us, the struggle with being a working mom is mostly internal. It’s hard to know how to draw the line in the sand between work and personal life. It’s hard to feel “in the moment”. It’s hard to feel accomplished. It’s just hard.
Many of the hesitations working moms possess stem from this diseased “Pinterest-perfect” culture we live in. It’s so easy to look at other moms on social media and think, “damn, they’ve got it together—I wish I did, too.” Comparing our lives to others is a natural side effect of social media and I’m here today to tell you that it’s totally bogus. No one is perfect. No one. Being a working mom isn’t easy, so give yourself a break.
I recently had a conversation with a woman who works more hours than I do. She threw the number of hours she worked into our conversation like cold snowballs, hitting me in the face and knocking me down. I left the conversation feeling defeated.
- Was I not doing the right thing by lowering the number of hours I worked?
- Was she more successful because she works full time?
- Am I missing some secret about working hours and success?
I felt like I was standing on the other side of a wall, peering over at a world I didn’t deserve to be a part of now that I had a baby. Working, successful women: there. Me: here.
Hours later, I found myself annoyed at the nagging, insufficient thoughts I had circling around my head. I watched my daughter trying to crawl across the living room rug, feeling totally out of the moment. And then it dawned on me… I was here, with my daughter, and I wasn’t appreciating the fleeting moment because of something someone had said to me hours before. I had to get over the negativity within me if I wanted to get on with my life.
Just like that, this phrase came into my head, “part-time does not mean half-ass.”
Working fewer hours doesn’t mean my struggle is any less in my profession. And just so, working fewer hours doesn’t alter my productivity and success. In fact, by slimming down the hours I work, I’ve learned to become a much more efficient worker bee for my business.And I’m proud of that. So, today I’m going to talk about how to maximize the working hours you do have in order to feel like the bad-ass working mama you are.
Get Ready BEFORE You Start Your Work
Okay, this little trick has totally transformed my work. The night before I’m going to work, I sit (maybe with wine, maybe watching The Good Wife…) and I plan out the hours that I have to work the next day.
I start by making a list of all the projects that I have to complete. Then, beside each project, I give myself a projected time frame to complete them. How long will each task take me to finish? I like to make a semi-timeline of what I want to accomplish. I say “semi” because writing is a creative art and I have to recognize that if I’m not feeling the project at the time I have it scheduled “it’s okay” to be flexible and rearrange things.
But by creating my to-do list the night before, I always wake up better prepared for the tasks I need to do. Plus, because I know I actually have work to do, I’m more apt to rise from bed, pour my coffee and fully wake up before the babysitter arrives to watch June.
Be in the NOW
This is huge. When I work, I work.
- I don’t sign on to Facebook.
- I put my phone on silent.
- I ignore the cute baby laughs coming up the stairwell and into my office.
If you want to make the most out of the time you have, you have to hustle. And a major part of mastering the hustle means learning to ignore distractions. Work your hardest during the day so that when you punch out, you can play!
Think 1 Month Ahead
Okay, this something that has completely, completely transformed my organizational system at work. This the one thing I do that makes me feel like I have it together… like I’m not a complete scatter brain. At the end of each month, I think about the upcoming month. And by this I mean, I actually sit down and write out a calendar with all of my projects and deadlines for the month to come. Then, I use that calendar to create my to do lists (as mentioned above). It’s kind of a lot of work to make this mega-calendar, but by creating it I ensure that I won’t miss deadlines and other important projects. As I finish each project, I then go ahead and highlight each project on my monthly calendar.
Here’s the bottom line, ladies: Don’t let yourself feel like you aren’t doing enough…. Because that just isn’t true.
Being a working mom is hard, but it’s totally worth it too. Go easy on yourself. You deserve a break.
I want to know.. what are some simple tricks you have implemented into your schedule in order to maximize your working hours? Leave a comment in the section below. I’m curious to learn what works best for.