Tag: parenting and work

Maybe you’re already there. You’re married with a stable household income and a couple of kids you take to little league and swim lessons. Heck, maybe you or your spouse find an hour a week to volunteer in their classroom. Good on you! But how much of your time do you spend at work? Answering calls from clients that aren’t happy or need to be resupplied? Or maybe you’re not in sales and your boss needs you to meet that product release deadline so he can give a presentation to the marketing team. There’s no doubt, the demands placed upon you in the 21st century workplace mean that you’re always at work, even when you’re not.

It’s all too easy to become so consumed by your work that you neglect those that you’re providing for. Have you said no to attending your son’s flag football game or your daughter’s acting recital because work got in the way? If so, it’s a sign that your work-spouse-family balance might be out of order.

Have a Vision

It’s all too easy to toil away your time for dollars in the hope that it will make the lives around you better. It very well could, but only financially speaking. But what about you? What about your role for you, your spouse and the children you created together? Don’t they deserve the best you have to offer as a human and not just an ATM?

It’s easy to fall into the trap of providing so much that you forget about sharing your time – your most precious commodity. The demands of work will always be there. However, your health, time with your kids and prime years with your loved ones go by quick. Now. Now is the time to evaluate what is most important in your life. Ask yourself some tough questions about what is most important to you… You might very well find that the relationships with those you love are more important than your bank account balance.

Develop a Game Plan

You do this every day at work. Sales meeting at 9:00, new employee orientation handshakes at 10:30 and budget overview at 2:30. The rest of the day is filled with unanswered emails and voicemails, not to mention the tasks that you set out to accomplish in the first place. So, what can you do to get off the hamster wheel?

Time Block

It’s been well documented that the most successful business people structure their day according to what’s important, what needs to be done and what their family needs.

In that light, if you make a point to set time aside to answer emails for an hour in the morning (that’s when people are most likely to respond), engage the needs of your boss and colleagues in the late morning and early afternoon, and the remaining hours to whatever else needs to be done, you might very well find yourself leaving at closing time with the day’s tasks accomplished and excited to catch the last 30 minutes of your child’s sports practice.

Delegate

No one is going to question the job you do. Heck, they probably encourage you to take more time for yourself and family away from the office, but you refuse. The bottom line is that as your responsibilities grow, you have less time to get everything done. There comes a point that you can’t do it all on your own.

This is when hiring well-qualified help can become your greatest asset. Sure, there is the overhead of hourly wages, additional technology and equipment. But with the right training, this individual can afford you normal hours, quality time with your family and a restful night’s sleep. If done right, your bottom line should grow and you’ll find yourself with much less chance of an early stress-induced health scare.

Think Long-Term

It sounds redundant but the fact is that most of the workforce trades hours for dollars at the end of the month and repeats the process until it’s the end – whatever that may be. Even if you’re not raking in the big checks like your boss, there are still things you can do that matter long-term.

The Commodity of Time

This is something the younger generation of the workforce understands. Sure, millennials get a bad wrap for being entitled and lazy but, those that understand the value of hard work understand that Time is also as an asset that has an expiration date. While it couldn’t be more important to care for your family’s financial well-being, time is truly priceless. Ask yourself the question of how you can best spend your time with your family while you still have it. The paycheck will always be there.

Whether you’re where you want to be in your career or starting at the bottom and working your way up, you have people that depend on you. Your spouse or significant other, your kids and most importantly YOU. No one will ever downplay the importance of providing and being responsible so that you and those closest to you can be secure in the future. But there comes a point when you have to evaluate what is most important to you and your loved ones. If you answer some honest questions and set necessary boundaries, your work and life will thank you for it.