Dealing with Work at Home Mom Guilt
I think it´s just ingrained in moms to feel guilty. As a work at home mom, you feel guilty when working . . . because you could be doing laundry or washing dishes or painting with your kids. And when you´re doing THOSE things, you feel guilty for not working. It´s really a vicious circle!
Dealing with work at home mom guilt isn´t easy and I can´t claim to have the perfect solution, but there are definitely some techniques that can help you manage a little better.
- Take breaks. I use this one a lot. When working, work in 30-45 min. segments and then take a 15 min. break to do something else like laundry or make bread.
- Time yourself. There´s something about having a deadline, even a self-enforced one, that gets you moving. Knowing that you have just 10 minutes to wash dishes or clean the stove will get it done a lot faster. Your kids will be more than willing to help you remember to stop when the timer dings.
- Set a schedule. Having specific working hours will help eliminate the guilt of doing something else when you aren´t supposed to be working. I have yet to implement this one, but I´m working on it!
- Make a Master list. Rather than have two separate lists, one for the house and one for work, combine your top 7 items into one master list. This will help you prioritize everything.
It seems to be pretty normal for moms in general to feel guilty. If you`re a work at home mom, that doesn´t mean you stop feeling guilty just because you have a career AND time with the kids!
I´ll be covering more on work at home mom guilt in the near future . . . as well as some great resources if you´re feeling guilty, so stay tuned.
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You are so right, moms are “wired up” to feel guilty.
Setting up a master list/schedule is essential. Sticking to it as much as possible, no matter how difficult, is also a must. It is so easy to get off track and then end up working late into the night to catch up.
I can’t say enough about having a schedule for your day when you are trying to get work done from home. Even if that work is just cleaning the house. Having a set routine makes it possible for you to get all the things accomplished in your day! The schedule also helps me to make sure to take time with my kids. That’s why we work from home anyway right? So we can be home for them?
Jo, I end up working late at night entirely too often!
Sarah, a schedule is a good idea, but I´m not very good at sticking to one . . . the master list works best for me, rather than scheduled hours.
I love a list too and hadn’t thought of combing home and work. I will have to give it a try.
Also I have a free e-book to download on my my site that you might be interested in called Planning With Kids Top 100 Tips.
Thanks, that looks like a great resource!