3 Meaningful, Distraction Free Hours for Working Moms
Many working moms wish there were more hours in the day. Since we’re allotted 24 hours per day, often times we need to give ourselves grace because it all simply can’t be done in 1 day. When you’re working and raising kids, it’s important to find pockets in each day that fuel you and help you make the most of each day.
In addition to being a proud mom of 4, I’m a wife, who runs a business and works a full-time job. At one time, I was even running 2 businesses, while working full-time. I look back now and know that was too much for me at that time. However, that season taught me the importance of structuring my day for personal and professional success. Every person’s day and responsibilities will look differently; however, today, I’m sharing 3 meaningful, distraction free hours for working moms to incorporate in their day.
Me Hour
Every single day of the week, we should be carving out at least 1 hour for ourselves. Heavy emphasis on at least. I get it, there is so much to do in 1 day, but there is no person, no responsibility, no nothing, that is more important than yourself. As women, we have to prioritize ourselves and fill our cups before we go filling the cups of everyone and everything else. As the saying goes, self care is not selfish. Now, how you spend your minimum of 1 hour per day is up to you, but I encourage you to make it time well spent, instead of bundling it with chores etc. For example, if you love Target and spend an hour there, but most of that time is spent buying groceries that’s not really a me hour…it’s running errands, so let’s call a thing a thing.
Get in your mind that you deserve at least 1 hour day to do whatever you want. Whether it’s taking a nap, reading a book, enjoying a glass wine while watching your favorite show by yourself, and more, do something for you. Plus, feel free to break up your time. If you want to do a 30 minute walk in the morning, and 30 minute wind down in the evening, do it! And again, I can’t say enough that the bare minimum should be 1 hour, but we should be shooting for more than this ladies as often as we can. We deserve!
Last thing, I encourage you to enjoy your me hour without your phone, unless you’re listening to an audiobook or podcast. Scrolling Instagram for an hour shouldn’t be the goal. Doing something that brings you joy and refuels you should.
Power Hour
Now, let’s shift gears to productivity. If you’re like me, you have goals and a never ending to do list. First things first, give yourself grace. Our to do lists aren’t realistic which is why they are never ending. However, sometimes we don’t complete tasks because we’re distracted or not focused. So insert the power hour, where you can intentionally work hard without distractions for 1 hour straight. When up against a deadline this works, but it’s better to be proactive and choose your power hour on a normal basis to achieve daily/weekly productivity. Decide on your 1, 2 or no more than 3 goals during this period.
Here’s an example of how I used the power hour 1 day last year, while running 2 businesses and working full-time:
10:40am - 11:40am
Emailed order and questions to production company for Glow Gear
15 minute meeting with client
emailed 4 vendors for client’s event
emailed team member for updates
emailed 3 more vendors
responded to high priority work emails
After this, I took a lunch break, and then got back to work. Most of our jobs will require multiple power hours throughout the day, but commit to at least 1 per day to move the needle on your goals and tasks.
Family Hour
Last, but certainly not least, is the family hour. With kids generally being gone all day at school or camp, and our partners at work themselves for those in relationships, we don’t really have a whole lot of time available each day for our family. Although the days are long, the years are short. Before we know it, the babies are big and time flies. So intentionally connecting with our family is important to do. Now, there are days when we have after school activities, have to cook dinner and more, so our family hours will vary in how they look day to day. The primary key is to be present, so just like with the me hour, put your phone down for at least 1 hour in the evening with your family. Enjoy dinner together (and you can even cook together). Watch a movie together. Talk about how your day went. Laugh and have fun together. People don’t always remember what you did, but they remember how you made them feel, so make sure they feel like they were a priority in spite of your long busy day.
I hope by committing to at least 1 hour a day in each of these categories, that your days feel a little more easeful, happy and well rounded. Let me know if this post was helpful in the comments.
Have a glowing day!