Hi everyone. Well, this is the 6th edition of Work/Life Balance Wednesday. We
hope you're finding this column at least mildly useful--if not for the tips
themselves, then at least for the sense that we're all in this together. To
that end, in fact, rather than pulling from work-life balance tips you can find
on the web, I've been drawing from conversations I've had recently about
work/life balance. Same story this week.
This week's tip is: USE YOUR COMMUTE TIME TO TRANSITION.
One of the hardest things about juggling parenting and work is our kids' demand
for our attention the second we walk in the door--no matter how long or
stressful our day was or how many little things we still need to wrap up since
we ran out of work to get home on time! To help ease this pressure, use your
commute time to shift your mindset from one to the other. First, do some
end-of-day organizing--making a quick list of the tasks that require follow-up
is great, because then you know it's all written down somewhere and you can
safely put it out of your mind until it's time to return to it. (It also helps
prioritize the few things that do need to be done right away.) Next, take the
rest of your subway time to be with yourself and just catch your breath--read,
shut your eyes, whatever. As soon as you step off the subway car, start
thinking (happy thoughts!) about your kids and focus on those for your walk
home. You'll be much more present, and much happier, when you walk in the door
and the hours that follow. When the kids are asleep, you can pull out the
list--or just leave it for the morning!
I know some of you must have figured out some survival tip worth sharing:
please do!
All best,
Amarah
PSP Work/Life Initiative
