Time Management Tips for Busy Moms

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I am a busy mom with 18-month-old twins. And if you’re reading this, I’m assuming you’re a busy mom, or just a busy person, too. Part of the most difficult part of being a working mom is managing time. Now you’re responsible for your schedule and your children’s schedules. For me, time management is a challenge. Here are the time management tips that I have discovered to help me live my best busy mom lifestyle.

Invest in a good planner.

I am partial to the Happy Planner, but there are a ton of variations available. I suggest you take a look at what’s out there and see which one you like the best. They all have pluses and minuses to them. I like the Happy Planner because it’s colorful, they sell matching stickers, and the layout works for my schedule. Use your planner to keep track of all the schedules. I use different colors to represent the different schedules in my planner so I have a color for kids plans and different colors for my personal plans.

At the beginning of each week, take out your planner and write in all the activities you know you have scheduled during the upcoming week. You can also make it a fun, creative activity for yourself by using stickers and colored pens to decorate your planner pages. Make sure to leave some space for activities that will come up at the last-minute on each day. I also like to include goals that I want to do each day/week. I then make sure to check in with my planner every day to see what’s on my to-do list. This also helps me keep track of where I am in terms of reaching my goals.

One useful tip I have for using a planner is to be realistic when you’re filling out your plans. Don’t write down that you’re going to do 20 things after work when you realistically only have time for five things. Know your limits and don’t over schedule or over plan yourself.

Keep a family calendar in a central location.

A personal planner is great for keeping up with your schedules, but I’ve also found that it’s helpful to have a master calendar for the family. You should place this calendar somewhere where the family can see and have access to the calendar. I put our family calendar on the refrigerator in the kitchen. This calendar should include big dates and appointments that affect the family. For example, on our master calendar, I mark the days that the kids don’t have daycare or I don’t have work, as well as doctor appointments and vacations. I don’t include smaller appointments or to-do tasks on this master calendar, those are reserved for my personal planner.

You can also color code the master calendar so that you can see large-scale plans by quickly glancing for certain colors.

Set limits on your time, and stick to them.

There are always things competing for your time. In order to have good time management skills as a busy mom, you need to set limits and stick to them. Don’t commit yourself to more appointments than you can handle. It’s important to take stock of your activities and see where you can cut back on things. Relax time is sometimes the most important activity you can schedule for yourself.

Another key point is that you have to remember that kids can be unpredictable. Kids, especially babies, don’t care about schedules or plans. They have meltdowns when they want to have meltdowns. They throw up and throw things when they feel like throwing things. They take off their clothes when they want to take off their clothes. And they get sick when their bodies decide to get sick. Take this fact into account when you’re planning out your schedules. Leave space in your calendar for the unexpected things that can come up when you’re dealing with kids.

Use nap time as your time.

This tip can be taken a few different ways. If your kids are still taking naps, you should absolutely use this time to your advantage. If you’re like me, this could be the only block of time you have during the day when you don’t have to worry about watching and entertaining children. I try not to schedule any concrete things to do during nap time. Sometimes you need to use nap time to recharge and take a rest yourself. Because we all know that there are hectic mornings where you count down to nap time and when it comes you just want to lay down with a glass of wine and some Netflix. Don’t be afraid to take that time to relax and recharge. Having good time management skills means recognizing when you need to schedule time off.

But, if you’re feeling motivated during nap time, plan to do some things that you can’t do when the kids are awake. For me, this could include writing or taking photos for my blog. or prepping food for dinner. Whether you decide to be productive or relaxed, just be sure to use the time to your advantage.

Remember that time management is hard, and it’s ok to not be perfect.

I am very familiar with “mom guilt,” and I think we are pressured as moms to be perfect at all times at all things. This is unrealistic. Time management is hard. It’s hard to keep track of multiple schedules at once, and you’re going to make mistakes. Accept that you’re not perfect and try better the next day. Time management as a busy mom is all about being aware of what things you need to carry out and carving out time for those things. But, it’s also about realizing when you need to cut things out.

Overall, it’s important to be mindful of your time. I like to do this by maintaining a tangible schedule and maximizing my down time with the kids. Comment down below and let me know how you like to manage your time as a busy mom (or dad, or person in general).