A question I am often asked, " how do you juggle all the various roles you have effectively to create. a balance as a midlife soloprenaur?" I think the short answer is that making the decision to live life with intention has enabled me to view my priorities differently. As my life has changed over the last decade, I have been able to stop the chaos and decide what work - family - self balance looks like for me moving forward.
In this post I am going to explore my top 8 tips that help me to balance my schedule. Balancing all the caps we wear at one time can be a challenge, hopefully with a few smart strategies, a journal and some guidelines it can become a little more actionable for you too. Lets dive in.
Set Clear Boundaries
Soloprenaurship can be a very lonely place sometimes however, this is only overshadowed by the overwhelm of tasks, to-do lists and unending challenges that we place on ourselves. The constant desire to say yes to everything without thinking of the time of day puts us under immense pressure.
We must set clear boundaries and stick to them. Use your calendar, planner or note pad to block periods in your day for particular tasks. Seperate the different areas in your life with different colors, this is a great opportunity to get creative.
for example- blue = family, Red= work, Lilac= personal time. Remember we all have 24 hours in any given day, allow for breaks and travel time, in doing so you will not be so overwhelmed or likely to overbook your time.
Plan In Advance
Plan your week in advance, take time to plan out all of your tasks, appointments, birthdays, special occasions, meetings ahead of time. I use Sunday as a day to prepare for the week ahead. This gives me an overview of how busy I am going to be. This is simply a plan, it can and will change for sure, however its good to have an overview of the potential plans in advance to prevent mental chaos.
Family Time Is Critical
For me, my top priority infact my most important value in life is my family. For me family time is sacred, its my deal breaker. My#1 item to be scheduled is family time. No matter your background, whether you have children of your own or not, the one thing that we all have in common is that we have a family of some kind. Sometimes family is not the conventional blood relative, some of us consider our friends as family. before I block time for anything else- I always block out family time.
As my brood have now become young adults with their own lives to lead it does become more difficult to carve time out together, I am very mindful of this , so that is why I check in with them and allocate time that suits them to keep our family connection secure. Living a busy soloprenaur life can often mean that days pass to weeks more quickly than i'd like to admit to so this is my important task or balance.
Delegate & Divide Responsibilities
As women in general I think we can be guilty of trying to cram in a lot more than is necessary. That belief that its our responsibility and feeling guilty when we don't, feeling that we have not fulfilled our role as wife/mother/ partner. I am here to give you permission to delegate some of the household chores to others.
Not only does this give you space to breathe but it will give your family a sense of team and participation in keeping the living space jointly organised. Perhaps it can become a quality time exercise spent taking care of the home you all share.
Adaptability Is King
Although an organised life may be necessary so that we can keep the cogs of life all turning in the one direction, allow yourself the freedom to be flexible. Life has many twists and turns, at some point even the best plans must change. Make sure that you can be adaptable. Don't feel so pressured to keep to the plan like a regimented order, relax and be mindful that the plan is pro-forma, able to change and be re organised at any moment.
Schedule Self Care
You are worth it. As a soloprenaur, you have a heavy schedule, you are balancing work, family, education and relationships and under each role title there are many sub roles that no one else sees you carry out, therefore it is imperative that you schedule some time for you. This is not selfish, nor is it time for guilt or shame that you are putting yourself first. This is necessary if you are to be able to focus on all your other roles, don't forget to schedule it.
Communication
Telling your nearest and dearest about your schedule for the week ahead is of the utmost importance. Perhaps you could get together with them and share your schedule so that you can support one another when time is limited. We all have a role to play in one another's lives, perhaps this can be a way to better understand the challenges we each face in day to day life.
Regular Reflection
Finally reflect. At the end of each week look back at how your plans and scheduling has helped or hindered your week. Take time to be intentional as you reflect. What worked? continue with that process. What needs altered? Make the necessary changes.
Planning and scheduling for balance is a work in progress, your plans will always need to change , just as your life will change. Some things we have no control over. Your journal is a powerful tool, organizing and prioritizing the important tasks in your life.
I hope that I have given you some new ideas on how you can balance your life more effectively. If you have any questions or require any further advice, please feel free to reach out , I'd love to hear from you.
xx Lei
Science is organised knowledge, wisdom is organised life - Immanuel Kent
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