I once had a sales job where I was on the road a lot. My office was in my home and every day was up to me to fill. It was a job that required initiative, self-discipline, and time management. Many of my colleagues complained about the lack of time to complete all of the tasks needed in order to make money. One of my bosses discussed what he did when he was feeling the same time crunch. He carried a legal pad and documented his entire day in five-minute increments.
Identify one thing on your weekly schedule you can do without and replace it with kid time.After a week of time accounting, he evaluated and discovered how much time was wasted doing things that were insignificant. When he eliminated those things and replaced them with things that mattered, his business soared. Imagine if we took that same practice to our homes. We are all prone to busy schedules and conflicts. But one thing that should be a top priority is that your kids are spending time with you. If you’re having trouble managing this, here are 10 ways to make time for your children.
- Commit to a family mealtime each day.
- Write your children’s activities into your schedule book—in ink!
- Identify one thing on your weekly schedule you can do without and replace it with kid time.
- Take one of your children along when you run errands.
- Volunteer to participate in a regularly scheduled child activity, such as coaching a softball team or helping with a school activity.
- Identify one children’s show on TV that you secretly like to watch and make a point of watching it with your child.
- Develop an interest in a hobby you and your child can enjoy together.
- If your work requires that you travel, take one of your children along with you when your business trip can be extended into a long weekend.
- If your work schedule is flexible, start your work day earlier so you can get home earlier in the afternoon to be with your family.
- Leave your work, cellular phones, and pagers at home when you go on family vacations and outings.
Huddle up with your kids and ask, “If there was one thing we could do together, what would you choose?”