Time Management

Discussion in 'Working Women' started by anayasree, Jul 27, 2022.

  1. anayasree

    anayasree Silver IL'ite

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    Hi wonderful ladies,

    I always get best suggestions, so coming here to ask for some advice on time management. I am doing something wrong and I wanna know from other working women how you manage?

    Currently I am serving notice period at a very laid back company, so I "actually work" only for like 4 to 5 hours per day and it worked well. But cant do that in my future company and I am also at the stage where I wanna be more productive and move up in my career. My husband has a traveling job, when he is home which is very rare he helps, but really cant depend on him. Both my jobs are completely WFH.

    So here is my current schedule:
    1. Wake up at 6.30 am. Check/Answer office emails until 7.30am. Have coffee, etc.
    2. Start preparing and packing lunch only for son. Wake him up, feed him BF, drop him at daycare and by the time I am back it is around 9.20 am.
    3. Prepare lunch for me by 10am. (Reason I prepare 2 lunches, my son doesn't like rice items for lunch, so he eats what I prepare for my lunch at home for dinner).
    4. Work until 2.10 pm. I do take a 30 mins break in between for bath and lunch. I go to pick him up from daycare.
    5. After coming back feed him some snacks, take him to a private class and by the time I start working again it is 4.30 pm. I work until 6 pm.
    6. Finish both of our lunches, and I get back to work after putting him to bed around 9.30 pm. Depending on how much work I have left I might work until 10.30 or 11.30 pm. But I just cant work beyond that.

    (Note: The daycare is about 15 mins away, so about 1 hour time gets wasted in just the travel alone :( )

    My current company doesn't care when I work as long as the work is done and this has worked best for me. I understand I might or might not be able to do that at the new company. Please help me to do some time management. I cant figure it out by myself. I do have the option of putting my son at before and after daycare ( his current timing is 9am to 3pm, but I feel sad to send him from 8 am to 5 pm).

    Pls pour your suggestions ladies. I feel I can do some tweaks somewhere and improve my time management. Just don't know how and I have never done meal prep during the weekend, so any suggestions on that will help me too.

    Thanks in advance!
     
    Last edited: Jul 27, 2022
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  2. SGBV

    SGBV IL Hall of Fame

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    Even though your company doesn't care the timings of your work, it is definitely a matter of concern when it comes to work/life balance.
    You will be on work mode since 6.30 am to 11.30 pm. This is literally the whole day. Although, you may not feel productive enough, working throughout the day before the computer may harm your physical & mental health to a great extend.
    I do not see a family time here. Especially time with kid or self. They are important to be productive in your life.

    I worked from home during 2020/2021 due to covid. Mine was 8 hr job. Apart from meetings, I had the flexibility to work at any given time as per my convenience. I preferred this option given the flexibility that offers. But this made me on "working mode" 24/7.
    There was no time for self or relaxation. I badly missed office & the clear demarcation between office work & house work worked that time.

    You must plan your day in advance. It is a matter of reshuffling the tasks efficiently.

    Spend some "me-time" as soon as you wake up in the morning with a cup of coffee. Just 15 mins to feel the aroma of the coffee while siting in the terrace hearing birds singing and watching sunrise. It is heaven. It can boost your day!
    Cook b'fast & lunch at one go. Cut veggies for both, use same vessels. This will minimize the use of vessels, washing & cleaning the kitchen part, and the time spend at the kitchen. Plan your menu smartly.
    For ex: If you cook sambar for idly, cook in bulk so that you can use the same for rice later. Cut onions, chilies etc.. enough for both b'fast & lunch. So, you don't have to re-do the same again.
    In any case, finish cooking within 1 hr, so you can leave kitchen at 8.00 am maximum.

    If your child is not too small, teach him self management. He can wake up on his own, eat breakfast on his own. This will save your time. You can utilize this time to pack his lunch & prepare him.

    After coming home from day care, you may start actually "working". This time, you can work uninterruptedly for 4 hrs (10.00 am to 2.00 pm) and then have lunch break for 1 hr. You may also take a nap after lunch and then continue working for another 2 hrs till 5pm.

    Arrange your kid's private classes after 5pm or else hire a reliable private taxi/transport that can take him to the class. This will save your time & focus.

    You can plan dinner after 7pm, after relaxing for an hour with kid in the evening.
    Dinner preparation should not take more than an hour.

    You will have the entire night from 8.00pm till you go back to sleep in your hand for relaxation & entertainment. As your child grows older, you may want to help him with home works or teaching etc...
    Unwind your day with preparation for the next day. Either cooking or ironing cloths or washing whatever... This simple pre-arrangements may save a lot of time the in the next morning.

    You may also hire helps for cleaning, vessel washing, laundry..... But I wouldn't do that, because I usually do the cleaning part while cooking, laundry part in the machine while bathing. It is just a matter of smart managing.
     
    Last edited: Jul 28, 2022
  3. Srama

    Srama Finest Post Winner

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    Dear @anayasree ,

    I feel you are spread too thin jumping between activities. I personally prefer to get all household work done first thing in the morning. So, I would suggest something along these lines -

    6 to 8.30 - cooking, cleaning, getting kid ready, getting yourself ready, dropping him off to day care.

    Work - keep the hours of your child's day care hours ie., 9 to 3 or if you can extend 9 to 4. Once you step out to pick him up, you step out from work. This is like 'sleep when the baby sleeps' suggestion.

    May be an hour or so for catch up work before you sleep. If you feel, you must address emails before work begins maybe the first half hour or waking up half an hour early will help.

    I am sure with the suggestions you receive here, you will figure out a schedule that works for you. You are doing awesome! Best wishes.
     
  4. sociallifein30s

    sociallifein30s Gold IL'ite

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    one important thing is trying not to open the mails first thing in the morning.
    We need some time for ourselves. once you open the mail, you get sucked into the work world.
     
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  5. anayasree

    anayasree Silver IL'ite

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    @SGBV @Srama

    Thank you so much for your replies! You both are so right, I think I am juggling between personal and office tasks a lot and hence feeling not productive at all. I will take ur suggestions of finishing all cooking by morning and once drop my son at day care I will completely focus on my office work. I have also enquired about before care, I still am not ready for after care, but I think the 1 hour time saved in the morning will make a huge difference.

    @sociallifein30s You are right, the early morning email check was a bad idea.
     
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  6. Ruby2019

    Ruby2019 Gold IL'ite

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    Have you tried looking for aunties in your local area who may help with cooking? You can order some basic meals a couple of times a week. Also husband is there for a reason. When he’s around, he has to do it. As long as he sees you managing it, he won’t step up. Set expectations clear.
     

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