Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That!….Tips and Hacks to Have it All!

Even during the pandemic, life goes on. Besides the extra safety precautions and reduced social life, my routine has been pretty normal. The months have been passing by with work, family time, blogging, cleaning, cooking, constant organization that gets no where, and the list goes on and on.

A lot of people ask me….how do you do it? I always answer that I look at lack of time like any other problem you solve. I consider what are the factors and variables. As many of you know I work a full time job as a Community Liaison, have a husband (who works an unconventional schedule) , 2 year old son, 16 year old stepdaughter, dog named Sport, a blog, an active Poshmark account and a great group of friends! I pride myself on making time for all these things and decided to share with you some tips on how I manage it without a mental breakdown!

Prioritize…..All of us are at various points in our lives and that is FINE! Honestly, I think back to when I was 22 and the thing that worried me most was what I was going to wear to work and what happy hour I would head to after! Now, at 36 (37 in 3 weeks) I’m a wife, mother and these things take top stock! God, family, work and in that order. I save time by prioritizing my tasks associated with these 3 as constants. The remaining time is allocated amongst my other ventures and leisure.

Lists, planners and calendars…..OH MY! I’m a physical planner junky, I must admit and after the thrill is gone, they usually end up in drawer mid year when I would fall off from jotting things down. I’ve always used Outlook at work over the years at various jobs but didn’t unlock the full potential until I started my current position this June. Beginning a job working from home a majority of the time via Zoom and Teams meetings made it necessary for me to keep everything straight! Now, I put everything into my Outlook calendar. It keeps me organized in ways that paper can’t. I have the app on my phone and at a glance the night before I know everything I have to do the next day and alerts 30 minutes before the task. I literally can plan my week and month and never cross.

Mix it up………Never get complacent with doing things one way! When you do this, you sometimes get married to an idea that really isn’t functional. If something isn’t working, try something else IMMEDIATELY! What do you have to loose?

Money matters…..If you can afford it and paying for something or someone to do a task is easier DO IT! For example, you may splurge for someone to do a deep clean of your home twice a month. Maybe you’re working from home but overwhelmed with your small kids, so you do daycare. I recently found that we were eating out a lot and felt guilty about it, but to hell with that, I’m doing the best I can. A few to go soups and salads are not going to kill your family. One huge example regarding my blog was investing in a photographer. My stepdaughter Jacelyn was a god send when I started. She took all my photos for me and we had blast! She is getting older, school is priority and with my work day, I needed someone on the whim. For instance, I shoot a lot on my lunch breaks at work. Conveniently, I work downtown so it’s super easy to wear a fit, shoot and change. My photographer meets me up the block or so to shoot quickly. Yes I’m spending but it’s worth it, to not be in the strain of missing weekend family time.

Don’t overcomplicate things…..Now, do you want to be lackluster at work, heck no! But organize your schedule in a way that does not put you in peril! Give yourself ample time to complete assignments my scheduling specific times to work on specific projects or tasks. Tackle the hard things first at the top of the day and week to give yourself grace toward the end to avoid burn out.

Start early……Are you working from home? Before you turn on the laptop in the morning, get up a little earlier. You would be surprised what you can do in 30 minutes! I can load my dishwasher, throw some meat and veggies in the crockpot and some laundry in the washing machine in that amount of time! If I don’t do another piece of house work the entire day, that’s enough to keep us civilized.

Lean on those that love you!……If your friends and family offer help, take it! How many times has someone said to you, “If you need something, let me know.” But you say, “No, I’m fine!” Use all resources at your disposal. A friend going to the post office, ask if they can take your items along for drop off. On a tight schedule but the kids are lit, ask a family member to come by and do an activity with them while you sneak away to another room on your computer for a hour. So many times, we overlook solutions that are right in our faces.

I hope these tips are helpful! Make sure you share your time saving tips and hacks in the comments!