Guest Post: Time Management--Especially For Women Who Work
While I believe that a woman's place is first and foremost in her own home, I understand that not everyone is in ideal situations. Some women are single mothers, some women aren't married and must support themselves, some husbands want their wives to work, some women must work full-time or part-time because of a financial situation.
My friend, Trixie, doesn't have children and is currently working outside the home due to various circumstances. However, her heart is at home and she is seeking to have a home-centered focus, even while working full-time. I hope her post is of special encouragement to those of you who might be in a similar situation and trying to figure out how to juggle everything you must juggle in your current season of life. Enjoy! -Crystal
Guest Post by Trixie from Farm Home Life
My husband and I own three small businesses (he is at home full-time working on the businesses) . In addition, I work outside the home for 45+ hours each week. It is a real challenge to keep God, husband, and home at the center of my life.
Even though the lion's share of my day is spent working outside the home I still boldly proclaim that I am a homemaker. Home is where my heart is. Here are a few things that have been especially helpful to me to help keep my heart at home while working full-time:
Give Your Day to God
I ask for God's care and protection and for wisdom on how to plan the day and accomplish what needs to be done. I also pray for His help to not squander my time.
Plan a Menu
Consistently planning a menu each week has been a lifesaver! A menu gives me the opportunity to shop for food only once a week, and then to do as many pre-meal preparations as possible. (You can read a sample menu and the pre-prep I did for it here.)
I tend to make more complicated meals on my days off and save the meals that do not take much time to prepare for weeknights. It is possible to cook most everything from scratch while working full-time. It just takes planning and preparing--plus time spent to find meals that really work for your time constraints. (See a whole year's worth of my menu plans here.)
Develop a Plan for Laundry
Is the laundry pile at your home ever empty? Mine neither! The best solution I've found for keeping the laundry as caught up as possible is to do one load each morning. As soon as I get up, I'll put a load in the washer and then hang it to dry. A few things go right into the dryer. As soon as they come out, I'll put them on hangers and into drawers, that morning. On Saturdays (a day off) I'll do the sheets and hang them outside weather permitting.
Decide What Outside Activities Are Priorities
My husband and I try very hard to be at home in the evenings. We attend church services and many family events but we are very careful to not let events take over our lives. If we attended every event we were invited to and took part in every fun activity that comes our way, we would never be home.
Seek Out Efficiencies
I'm constantly looking for ways to be more efficient in everything I do. For instance, 3 days of the work week, I spend my lunch hour running errands, the other 2 days, weather permitting, I walk for exercise. This frees up several hours of time at home for me each week. Any extra time during the lunch hours is spent working on things for our businesses.
My dear husband is my best source of advice and help in prioritizing projects and errands. I tend to want to do forty things at once and finish nothing--anytime I ask, he will sit down with me and help make a plan and figure out a way for things to work.
Develop a Positive Outlook
This is an especially challenging season in my life. Right now, I would like to be a full-time homemaker and work from home helping my husband build our businesses. This is our goal, and we are steadily working towards it.
However, we're not there yet and sometimes it is really hard and I begin to feel sorry for myself. If I am not careful to cultivate a positive outlook about my schedule, I find myself becoming bitter and not a nice person to be around. That is not fair to my husband, my employees, or myself. I pray for the Lord's help and strength to see each day through with a pleasant, contented attitude. Thank the Lord that He gives us a new start each day!
-Trixie blogs regularly at Farm Home Life and she'd love to have you stop by for a visit!
My friend, Trixie, doesn't have children and is currently working outside the home due to various circumstances. However, her heart is at home and she is seeking to have a home-centered focus, even while working full-time. I hope her post is of special encouragement to those of you who might be in a similar situation and trying to figure out how to juggle everything you must juggle in your current season of life. Enjoy! -Crystal
Guest Post by Trixie from Farm Home Life
My husband and I own three small businesses (he is at home full-time working on the businesses) . In addition, I work outside the home for 45+ hours each week. It is a real challenge to keep God, husband, and home at the center of my life.
Even though the lion's share of my day is spent working outside the home I still boldly proclaim that I am a homemaker. Home is where my heart is. Here are a few things that have been especially helpful to me to help keep my heart at home while working full-time:
Give Your Day to God
I ask for God's care and protection and for wisdom on how to plan the day and accomplish what needs to be done. I also pray for His help to not squander my time.
Plan a Menu
Consistently planning a menu each week has been a lifesaver! A menu gives me the opportunity to shop for food only once a week, and then to do as many pre-meal preparations as possible. (You can read a sample menu and the pre-prep I did for it here.)
I tend to make more complicated meals on my days off and save the meals that do not take much time to prepare for weeknights. It is possible to cook most everything from scratch while working full-time. It just takes planning and preparing--plus time spent to find meals that really work for your time constraints. (See a whole year's worth of my menu plans here.)
Develop a Plan for Laundry
Is the laundry pile at your home ever empty? Mine neither! The best solution I've found for keeping the laundry as caught up as possible is to do one load each morning. As soon as I get up, I'll put a load in the washer and then hang it to dry. A few things go right into the dryer. As soon as they come out, I'll put them on hangers and into drawers, that morning. On Saturdays (a day off) I'll do the sheets and hang them outside weather permitting.
Decide What Outside Activities Are Priorities
My husband and I try very hard to be at home in the evenings. We attend church services and many family events but we are very careful to not let events take over our lives. If we attended every event we were invited to and took part in every fun activity that comes our way, we would never be home.
Seek Out Efficiencies
I'm constantly looking for ways to be more efficient in everything I do. For instance, 3 days of the work week, I spend my lunch hour running errands, the other 2 days, weather permitting, I walk for exercise. This frees up several hours of time at home for me each week. Any extra time during the lunch hours is spent working on things for our businesses.
My dear husband is my best source of advice and help in prioritizing projects and errands. I tend to want to do forty things at once and finish nothing--anytime I ask, he will sit down with me and help make a plan and figure out a way for things to work.
Develop a Positive Outlook
This is an especially challenging season in my life. Right now, I would like to be a full-time homemaker and work from home helping my husband build our businesses. This is our goal, and we are steadily working towards it.
However, we're not there yet and sometimes it is really hard and I begin to feel sorry for myself. If I am not careful to cultivate a positive outlook about my schedule, I find myself becoming bitter and not a nice person to be around. That is not fair to my husband, my employees, or myself. I pray for the Lord's help and strength to see each day through with a pleasant, contented attitude. Thank the Lord that He gives us a new start each day!
Labels: Finding Time
posted by Crystal Paine at 3:52 PM
17 Comments:
Great advice - thank you for sharing.
I also use my lunch breaks in a similar fashion.
Another thing that helps me is to get up early while my husband and daughter are still sleeping and tackle cleaning and just get things organized. That way I have more free time to spend with them!
Thank you for posting this as sometimes I feel bad for working and not having children yet...but I know deep down that this is the season God has me in right now! Very encouraging...
Great post for those of us who work...thank you!
Just wanted to request prayer today. I have been working as a teaching assistant since my little one was 5 months old. I am now waiting to hear on the results of a teaching interview. My husband would prefer that I work, but my desire is to return home. If the interview does not pan out...I will be. I pray God's Will in this matter. Thank you.
My heart is so refreshed to know that I'm not the only woman who works full time and boldly declares that I'm a homemaker! I use my lunch breaks in a similar way as well. My husband and I are very involved in our church and with our families...we often feel like we are never home at night. We believe that this is only a season in our lives...Praise God!
Trixie,
I am in grad school full time while looking forward to family life in the near future, and I think about efficiency constantly.
Some of the tricks I've learned are 1) a project will take up all the time you give it, so set a timer for almost everything that does not involve people... and 2) know which hours of the day are your productive mental hours and those which are not.
I am a morning person, so I do my serious work in the morning, and I save simple, large-motor skill tasks like doing dishes, cleaning my kitchen, dusting, and doing laundry for evenings, when my brain is getting ready to rest. That way valuable time is not lost on simpler tasks.
Also, I keep a running list of things like errands and correspondance and save them all for just one discreet slot of time in the week: Sunday evenings are for all thank you note writing, bill paying, etc; Monday afternoons are for all errands and grocery shopping for the week. This really simplifies things and sharpens your focus.
Also, I don't own a television, so I can maximize free minutes by catching up with friends on the phone, or enjoying real silence, or catching up on a bit of a book.
Get your full morning grooming routine down to ten minutes...and think of it like an assembly line routine.
Needless to say, making your daily worship time your top priority will coordinate everything else in your day beautifully.
- Best!
I currently work outside of the home approx 34-36hrs per week. We do not have children at this point (not by choice). My husband wants me to work and I dont mind some, but would prefer more of a part-time situation.
When deciding when/if the wife should stay home, many people mention that the wife's income is so low after you consider gas money, clothing, food etc. I'm actually in a situation where despite working less hours per week, I bring home about $600 more a month than he does. This doesnt really help justify me staying home/working less hours :)
My heart is at home and I just continue to pray for God's will in our life regarding children and me working. Such an overwhelming hearts desire for something doesnt necessarily mean that's what God has planned for us.
I know this is something I have often struggled with in our marriage. I work full time so my husband can go to school full time. I know this is the best way I can minister to my precious husband during this season and he is always so appreciative of this. I have to remember that my great God and King knows this is exactly what I need to grow more like his son Jesus. If he knew staying at home would bring him more glory, then I would be at home! It really frees me up to praise God for whatever situation he has placed in my life. But again, I still do struggle with my attitude many times, but that only drives me to the Lord... where I only find true peace and joy. He really does know best, Praise God!
This post is very encouraging for those of us who work -- we may recognize that the ideal situation is for us to be at home, but some of us just aren't in a position to do so right now.
Like Anonymous, I am also working full time so my husband can go to school full time. I also have to remind myself that this is where God wants me right now. I believe that God put me in a situation where it is clear that I need to work for a season, and it would be wrong of me to insist on staying home just because it's right for most people.
Excellent post Trixie...I can so relate. My husband died 26 years ago, just before our 4th anniversary, leaving behind God's gift to us...our son, 9 months old. My heart has always longed to be at home as well, but out of necessity was in many places! I managed to homeschool my son, and keep our home together, but through the years, I have always been just TOO BUSY!
Recently, the Lord has ordered my life differently. After working full-time for 9 1/2 years (since my son graduated HS), my position was eliminated...3 weeks after I married my dear husband. We weren't quite ready to lose my income, but I am THRILLED (after the initial shock and rollercoaster emotions) to be able to devote myself to my home and my husband, learning all I can and pouring myself into being his helpmeet.
Your post contains suggestions that are useful to women in any situation. And well-written. Blessings to you and Crystal.
Great post. I work full time too (no children yet) and I do every single point mentioned in the post except laundry. That's the only way you can manage doing everything.
I have a question for Trixie though. How come you have so much laundry that you have to do it everyday? Especially since you don't have kids yet? I do laundry once a week and it is more than enough. At max 2 times a week (when I wash sheets) It is just a genuine question, please don't take offense...
What a breath of fresh air to us working ladies! I wish I could quit work too, but when I tell my husband he says he wishes he could his job! So, I guess I need to learn contentment for this season. And when I finally do get to become homemaker, I'm sure I'll scream for the outside world. Why is it we want what we can't have? Maybe God will give me a balance of both!
Hi Annek!
I appreciate your question about the laundry. We do have a lot of laundry for just the two of us!
My husband gets very dirty every day in his line of work. There is no way the bulk of his clothes can be worn two days in a row. In addition, he has to wear several layers of clothing in order to keep warm while working outside jobs. All this gets washed almost every day.
George is more than willing to do the laundry, but he is so exhaused after a long day that it is all he can do to keep his eyes open. It is usually easier for me to pop them in first thing in the morning. He puts them on straight from the dryer each morning -- no folding or hanging : )
Take Care,
Trixie
I've enjoyed reading these many comments to this post and the overwhelming theme seems to be the same: We women WANT to be at home! Our husbands, on the otherhand, DON'T! What is wrong with this picture? I think I have a small sense of what is going on. I think our culture has brainwashed our husbands into thinking that they shoudn't have to shoulder this responsibility of providing for the family and they mistakingly believe that the femanist movement has infected all women. We must WANT to work, right? It isn't difficult to understand their confusion. Shouldering the responsibilty is difficult and stressful, I know that. But God's design has never been for the wife to be the provider in the home. (Financially, I mean.) I really believe that men who are not truly walking with their Lord seem to be easily swayed by this world view, all the while somehow wanting to be taken care of in their home, like having their laundry done for them, and a hot cooked meal on the table when they come home (not all men, I must admit, but MANY) This is only my own opinion. I've yet to hear of a truly EQUAL balance in the marriages where both people work. The bulk of the home and housework is still expected to be cared for by the wife. For whatever reason, men are still conditioned to believe it is women's work. I realized this when my husband I and were in pre-marital counseling 23 years ago and the pastor asked us to fill out a questionaire about who should do what around the house. I think he said he should cut the grass but that was about all. After all, that is how he was raised. He had a stay at home mom. I have worked part time for 7 years, this a result of private schooling for the kids and four in braces. We have 4 teenagers. When people ask me "how is your job going?" I say, I love my job but I hate leaving my home. The fact is, my home requires so much work to be done and when I am not here, it simply doesn't GET done. Teenagers these days aren't sitting around playing video games and twiddling their thumbs after school and on weekends. They are competing heavily to get into colleges and participating in sports and clubs and comunity activities, and holding down jobs (imprtant, I believe so they can afford the things they want) and so while I try and hold them responsible for their own messes, the actual upkeep of the house (dusting, vacuuming, laundry, cooking, shopping, etc.) is left to me. I recently put in my notice at my job. I have felt bitter for many years that the few hours I work outside the home to help suppliment the family income has not been met with equal or even a fraction of help from the other members of the house in such a way as to pick up the slack. And there seems to be a lot of slack! Maybe that was never the "deal". I just assumed it would be a fair assumption. I was wrong. I love being a homemaker. I feel it my calling in life. While I love working at what I do outside my home, I can't truly enjoy it when in the heart of hearts I feel like a failure at the very thing that I claim to be most important and the one thing that I feel defines who I am, and that is being at home. Somehow the checkbook will balance. Somehow the bills will get prioritized and somehow our life priorities will fall into place. We will stop getting use to the things my income has provided, and we will start believing God is our ultimate provider. And I will be a happier woman. "If momma aint happy, aint nobody happy!"
Hmmm. Maybe I have something to add, since my husband and I both work long hours and since we just finished building a new house. We are both pretty focused on turning our new house into a place we both love. Unlike many of the women here, I have no desire to quit my job, which is in many ways how I define myself. I think one can make a 2-income marriage work as long as you have a high tolerance for dust and a few nights a week of microwave food. Here is my current system.
MORNINGS: Jog and walk the dog Monday-Thursday, just walk the dog on Fri - Sun.
MONDAY NIGHT: Work until 7:30 p.m. and then use the gym at my office until about 9:15. Home at around 10.
TUESDAY NIGHT: Home by 6. This is my night to cook, if I feel like it which I usually do. This is more of a hobby than an obligation. I think my husband would prefer if I didn't cook! Hang out with my husband.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Work until 7:30 p.m. and then use the gym at my office until about 9:15. Home at around 10.
THURSDAY NIGHT: Home by 6. It is my husband's night to entertain a mentally ill client so he doesn't get home until late. I get home early to walk the dog. I take about 3-4 hours to clean the house (sponge down kitchen counters, vacuum bedrooms, swiffer living room and kitchen floors, mop bathroom floors, wipe down sinks, bathtubs and toilets). Every fourth week or so, I don't have time to clean the house so my husband will do it over the weekend. Tonight I have a Board meeting, so my husband and his client will come home to walk the dog and my husband will clean the house this weekend.
FRIDAY NIGHT: Work until 7. Home at 7:30. Husband and I usually get pizza or Chinese food and watch a movie. Sometimes we go out with friends.
SATURDAY: Husband and I do errands if I have time. If not, he does them. Grocery shopping and other errands are his responsibility. I always do one special household project. It can be really small (5 minutes spent arranging the glasses in the cupboard) or something more involved (touching up the baseboard moldings where they got stained when the floors were being done). I also will do one extra cleaning project -- whatever is necessary such as cleaning out the refrigerator last week. It is my husband's night to cook, if he feels like it.
SUNDAY: This is either a day of pure relaxation or, if I am busy at work, I spend the day in my home office. My husband will cook again, if he feels like it.
LAUNDRY: We each do our own, and either of us might deal with the sheets or towels. Usually we do it at some point on Friday night or Saturday while we are watching movies or relaxing in some other way.
YARD WORK: This is my responsibility due to my husband's disability. I have never done landscaping before, so I am a little nervous. I am thinking that I will try to cram that into Saturdays. I will mow the lawn and do one other yard project. My mother helped me chart what should be planted and where.
I probably do a bit more than my husband, although he deals with bills, errands, and phone calls for repairs, etc. But if I don't have time to do something, I just don't do it and he fills the gap.
I'm working with no kids as well, and this was a very helpful post. I'm fortunate that my full-time job has flexible hours, so I go into the office by 7 and leave at 4, which allows me to have dinner cooked and on the table by 5 or 5:30. Major housework tends to get done on the weekends- I echo AnneK's observation that I never have THAT much laundry to do, though, Trixie, I could see having more if my husband had a dirtier job & couldn't re-wear clothes. I definitely echo what Trixie said about saving more complex meals for less-busy nights- we'll still eat a fancier meal on a weeknight, but it will have to be a night when we don't have any other activities, and we might not eat till 6:30.
Things have gotten busier since recently adding a dog to our household, and now we have a yard & garden to take care of for the first time, but I trust everything will work out and we'll find time for things. I think a big part of making the household work with me working is the support and help of my husband- he does everything from throwing a load of laundry in to taking care of the finances to going grocery shopping with me to helping think up a meal plan. I know I can't do it all on my own- and everyone's happier when everyone pitches in! If I had a 'go it alone' mentality, I'd be stressed and sleep-deprived, and home would not be a haven.
Great Post, I appreciate it so much that you took time to share. I work outside of the home, and find it is hard to stay on task.
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