One of the biggest challenges that a home – based professional is likely to face is the issue of balance. How exactly do you keep up with work and the myriad of other things that you have on your plate? It is never an easy task, and the answer is different for each person. The answer is also highly dependent upon what things you are trying to balance.
In the couple of years since I became a home – based professional, I have found myself in various positions with regard to how balanced my life is. Since my primary occupation is that of a stay at home mom, my balance is tilted heavily in the direction of taking care of the little guys. I do have other roles in my life that need attention, though. In addition to being “Mommy”, I’m a wife, the owner of two home – based businesses, the party responsible for cooking, cleaning and sometimes mowing the lawn, and an individual.
When I neglect any of the roles that I play in my life, I feel a nagging sense of discomfort. Since I do not like the feeling of being out of balance, logic would say that perhaps I would avoid situations that could lead to that feeling. Of course any home based professional knows that this is easier said than done. There are things that do keep me from going completely out of balance, though, and those are my routines. They are not complicated, fancy, or expensive. They are just the simple things that I do to keep my life and my home as balanced as possible.
What are these routines? Well, there’s the morning routine that includes breakfast for myself and the kids as well as keeping the kids away from the sleeping husband (he works until late at night) and making breakfast for said husband before he goes to work. There’s the day of the week cleaning schedule that keeps the house from looking like a total wreck (unless I skip a day or two). Then there’s the evening routine of getting the boys fed, cleaned up, and to bed before getting as much work (and maybe a few chores) done as I can before I have to go to bed. I have yet to find a perfect balance that allows me to get everything done all of the time. However, the simple routines that I have in place serve as a road map that keeps me on track so that I do not slip into chaos, disorder, and imbalance.
Photo by jdurham on morguefile.com.