Encouragement

The Balance Struggle: Home & Work

I was a source of endless energy and I was on a mission to start iMOM. I thought I could do it all, in the beginning. When we started working on iMOM I only had to be in the office in the morning and had the whole afternoon to run errands. All the random little things that pop up daily in a family of seven. Once we were up and running at iMOM, I increased my hours to 9:00-3:00. I thought I could handle it but suddenly I had no time to tie up all the loose ends before I picked the kids up from school. The to do list–laundry, errands and never ending meals spilled over into time that formerly had been reserved for my children. My daily responsibilities were impossible and my endless energy came to an end. Three things became very clear to me:

  • I am not a disciplined: The reality is, all we can get done is simply that—all we can get done. I was undisciplined and I did not ruthlessly prioritize my responsibilities.  I constantly allowed myself to be pulled into something that wasn’t a top priority because I hadn’t clearly defined what was a priority.
  • I couldn’t let go or say no: Not only was I working at iMOM, I was also heavily involved with my kid’s schools. From chorus booster club, to football mom, I just couldn’t say no to volunteering. I loved serving and being with my kids at all their activities.  But at the end of the day if you are there but rushed you are not very fun.
  • I was stressed out: Being overloaded stressed me out. How I felt was an integral factor in the mood of our home, so my stress got the better of me and my family too. It became really hard to be the mom I wanted to be.

We all know that when momma isn’t happy, it’s hard for anyone else to be happy.  I had rather badly mismanaged the delicate balance between home and work. The balance struggle can be managed but you must be disciplined with your priorities and you must let go or say no to some opportunities.

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