the juggling act ...
Posted by Karen Lee on
Ne hao ma (cantonese for how are you)!
Meet our cute little guy ... Jack! Since he came into the world, so many aspects of my life changed ... 'ah-huh' say all the mums reading this! But the biggest challenging was mastering the juggling act ... and with next to no sleep!
Whether it's a work-life juggling act, or the household-newborn juggle, it's a heck of a change to adapt to.. and for someone with a 'work-is-life' attitude this was a major life changing event for me!
Don't get me wrong, in my work life I've had many juggling acts to master, but this new motherhood act was a whole new ball game!
Outside of ch!nadoll gift boutique, I am a full time working mumma. My day job is in an industry that traditionally doesn't fit well with a work-life balance, where deadlines are tight, the environment is supercharged and days are long.
When returning to the workforce, it was extremely difficult to change my well defined priority being 'work' to the new little guy. Recognising I had a new responsibility was not as easy as I thought it would be. Even on his birthday, I worked back late ... a regrettable example of how my priorities were so wrong.
On weekends I try to manage the business-family time juggling act. I have orders to create, new products to design and promotions to plan as well as spend time with hubby and the little guy. Hence the delay between blog posts!
What I am about to share with you is how I (try to) manage my juggling act. For the most part, it's about ensuring my work-life balance is 'balanced' and I maximise my time with hubby and the little guy.
Tip #1: Set yourself boundaries
If there is no requirement to work back, then don't! If it can wait until tomorrow, then let it wait! If you don't have to go in early, don't!
The boundaries are there so your work life doesn't impact on your personal life. This has been one of my hardest learnings ... and I'm still learning how to do this!
Tip #2: Plan your family time
Give yourself something to look forward to by planning family activities and outings.
When you have personal plans to look forward to, you'll manage your work priorities better.
We recently took the little guy to the State Coal Mine in Wonthaggi (where hubby and I met). Driving into town made me realise how lucky we were to have a little guy to show off where it began.
Tip #3: Keep special days special
Special days and events don't come around often so treasure them and plan ahead.
I've repeatedly made this mistake since I started full time work again ... I didn't plan for father's day, missed hubby's birthday, and was home late for the little guy's birthday ... the list goes on and I'm on a quest now to keep our special days special!
Tip #4: Communicate
Last but not least, make sure you are communicating with your partner, particularly when your work demands are higher than usual. They might surprise you and offer you support or help, but at the very least, it will allow you to manage their expectations!
We hope you enjoyed reading this blog. We would love to hear about your juggling act and how you manage yours!
Jo tau (cantonese for good night)
Karen