WFH TIPS! “I have NO idea how you’ve done this for 3 yrs” – messages like this started to show up in my inbox after COVID when many moms started WFH for the first time. I reassured them that I had 3 years of “practice” unlike them who had to adjust so abruptly. Here are a few things that help me.
1.) Separate work/mom time. See if your employer is flexible in the hrs you have to be on. Can you work after bedtime or during nap time? The weekend? When I DO work while they are around me I make sure to give them a learning activity to do whether that be an educational iPad game, a puzzle, coloring, etc. I make my work time, their work time. Making them feel empowered with a list of “work” to do while you work can bring them along in the responsibility of it vs it seeming to them like we are choosing work over them.
2.) Take breaks to be fully present with them. If I have a zoom call I have to be on, when it is over I make sure to fully unplug, and give them 110% of my attention. The more my kids get focused mom time during the day, the better they play independently.
3.) Try not to multitask work in front of them. It is a lot easier for my kids to know when I’m working vs me being head down in my phone and not focused on them. I also put my phone away most of the day when I don’t have work time.
4.) Use your productive time wisely. Maybe you realized that you can get an 8hr day done in 2hrs if you’re not distracted. Instead of fighting for “time to focus” with your kids at your feet all day, try sacrificing getting up 1.5hrs earlier to do the big chunk of things you need to do without distraction and fit that last .5hrs in throughout quiet times.
5.) Call in help. Find a nanny for a few hours a week, call in grandparents, etc. Not only is this much better for your productivity to knock out things uninterrupted, but you are a more focused PARENT afterl. This takes a village and asking for help is OK.
These days might be hard but you’re getting extra time with those babies that don’t keep. Soak up every moment, because one day they won’t yearn for your attention and you’ll miss it!
