Dig if you will, the picture: my second baby was screaming, my 5 year old wanted all of my time, and the house was a mess. I didn’t know what to do, so I turned to google. All I wanted was time-saving tips for moms that I could implement RIGHT THEN. I needed the posts or videos to be simple, to make sense, and to give me immediate results. Apparently, that wasn’t possible just 7 years ago.
So, I did what any frazzled mom would do: I created my own time-saving tips that would work for me. Over the years, there have been some great tips that I’ve grabbed along the way from other moms. If you are having a day, week, or year where you can’t find time for you, here are doable time-saving tips for moms that will give you actual results.
Time Blocking
This is not a new time-saving tip, but it seems as if most moms aren’t aware of it. On Periscope, I’ve talked about how time blocking has changed the game for me during all of my busy seasons.
Time blocking is a simple way to assign a task to a certain amount of time. Many women use hourly blocks, but you can do this with 20 or 30 minutes of your time. Block out time to exercise, journal, eat lunch (please eat lunch, ladies), and when family time will start. Here’s a quick look at my current time blocking schedule during the weekday:
- hour 1 – wake up, eat breakfast, have coffee, make my short list
- hour 2 – homeschool
- hour 3 – homeschool
- hour 4 – lunch
- hour 5 – blog work
- hour 6 – meetings/business work
- hour 7 – email/social media check in
- hour 8 to hour 12 – family time
- hour 13 to bedtime – finish up work/wind down/prepare for the next day
The reason I don’t have actual times on the hours is because my day may start earlier or later, depending on that last part of the previous day. I give myself the option to either go to bed early during that time, or stay up and work on projects. Which means, I may wake up a little later or earlier the next day. In order for moms to save time and use it efficiently, we need flexibility.
{Related: How To Organize Your Week With One List}
Delegate The Small Stuff
One thing you may not have noticed in my time blocking schedule above is cleaning. I may wipe down items around the last part of my day, or wipe them down during my breakfast and coffee time, but I have allowed myself to not add cleaning to my daily schedule. It is now delegated to my kids, my husband, and a housekeeper.
Yes, a housekeeper! I wrote about how difficult this was to do, but how important it is for my mindset. Cleaning is something that can be delegated, without it having it take away from a tight budget. There are so many other things you can delegate as a busy mom, and this list shares 5 things mom can outsource without guilt. Genius!
Trick Yourself Into Self-Care
One secret way moms can save time, is to give some of that time to themselves. Sounds crazy, right? “How can I save time, if I’m using some of that time to go to yoga?” Here’s how: the more time you allow for yourself, the more energized you’ll be when it’s time to do work.
You’ll find that you will get so much done within a 20 minute block, when you aren’t distracted by how exhausted or irritable you are. But, we all know that taking time for ourselves is something that many moms struggle with, so figure out how to trick yourself.
Can you do a fun activity with a friend who will keep you accountable? Can you make the cost for a self-care activity automatically come out of your account? This will ensure you can’t back out, once the money is gone. Make it so self-care has to happen. I recently talked about my specific form of self-care, and I still continue to “trick” myself into do this once a month. Take time for you. Period.
