If you’re a working mum there is no doubt you are juggling a lot of things while we are in isolation: remote learning, your own paid work, keeping everyone fed, bathed and clothed. It’s a lot to do in the confines of your own home with very little outside help.

During this time I’d love for you to think about how you are spending your time now, make note of the tasks/chores/activities you’re enjoying and the things you aren’t enjoying. By taking stock at where you are at and keep one eye on the future (where you’d like to get to), you can to start to put things in place to organise the life you want.

Take stock of the things you are juggling

As you go through each day, take stock of all the things you’re juggling

If you are lucky enough to still be working and have your own work to do at home. There is lot to do!
We are feeding everyone more meals, in more quantities, more frequently every day.
We are supervising remote learning and keeping them on task and reminding them to get off of their devices at particular times and back on and off and on again.
We are getting out for exercise as often as we can among all the things we need to do.

What’s life going to look like after all this?

As we continue this juggle I think it’s worth a bit of a thought as to what life is going to look like when we get back on the hamster wheel.

Do you want your life go back to ‘normal’?
Will you continue to get up at the same time of the morning and race around like a headless chook or will you give yourself some more time to yourself before your day begins.
Will you continue to make lunches for everyone or handball the responsibility to them
Will you still work the same hours in the office or find out someway to work less hours get more done and perhaps more of those hours from home?

Plan now for the future

Now is an amazing opportunity for you to organise the life you want. With a clear picture of how you want your future to look, you can make a plan with systems and processes to support your ‘new’ future.

Want to work shorter hours? Do you need to work smarter or be clearer on your tasks and priorities and leave the office on time? Or do you need to get a new job?
Want to work more from home?
Want to eat healthier food by creating a set of 4 – 6 weekly meal plans?
Want to spend more time with specific people? Get it in the diary.
Want to get the family involved in running the household. Say no when someone tells you it’s your job. Have a detailed discussion, now, about who does what.

What next?

We are not sure when this time at home is going to end but we can work now to manage it for when it does.

Among all your juggling now have one eye on the future. Start to create the systems around you at home to support the life you want to live.

I’ve created a template to capture where you are now and where you want to go. Set a timer for 20 minutes, sit down with a cup of tea and plot out what life looks like now and what you want it to look like going forward.

Need help?

Julie Cliff at Space and Time is a Melbourne based professional organiser helping working Mums create an ecosystem at home that supports the family. Space and time clients find that organising coaching helps them get everything done, and give them more time for spontaneity, enjoyment and relaxation. Find out more about the services here or you can book a consultation with Julie here.