People ask me all the time: “How do you juggle it all?!”
Between three businesses and four kids (all ages 6 and under), I get why they ask – it’s a lot! Anna Dearmon Kornick and I got to chat on the It’s About Time Podcast about all of the systems, strategies, and balance with boundaries that have worked for me to keep all the plates spinning. If you’re here because you’re trying to juggle many things in your life, I hope this will be helpful for you! Check out the full episode here.
Balance with Boundaries: Saying “No” Is Freeing
When I first opened my practice, my life was squeezed around my profession. But now, I’ve been able to do the opposite, and put my family first. I no longer hesitate to tell my clients “no” to a meeting because I have field day at my kid’s school… and that has been SO freeing.
Shifting that mindset has allowed me to pivot my business to something that not only fits my life, but also allows me to serve my clients well. It was important to me to have quality client relationships and not just talk to my clients one time a year when they have their tax preparation. Saying “no” to the clients who weren’t a good fit allowed me to say “yes” to the ones who were great fits.
Don’t get me wrong – this didn’t happen overnight. It took becoming burnt out when we were expecting our 2nd child to know I needed a change.
Saying “no” to clients that weren’t the best fit for me was the scariest, but most freeing thing. I think as women and moms, we don’t want to say no and disappoint anyone. But I found I was telling my kids “no” more than I was telling my clients “no,” and that was backwards. Learning to say “no” in both my professional and my personal life has been really freeing – even when it’s scary!
When you say “no,” that typically opens the door for a better “yes” down the road.
A Calendar System
To juggle three businesses, four kids, and everything else life throws at me, I have some organizational tools that make up my calendar system.
First, I use Trello for my everyday tasks. Trello is an online task management tool. It has an online platform, a desktop platform, and a mobile app and is a great way to visually access your to-do list. I used to write everything down for my to-do lists, and I’d have to scratch tasks out if I needed to move them to a different day – but now, I can do that on Trello seamlessly.
The Trello mobile app was a huge help as well. My best ideas come during a shower, in the car, or on a run. I used to have to include my entire notebook with me, but now I can just open up the app on my phone when I have ideas or need to set reminders.
[Update 2023: I now use ClickUp as I have a team and it’s no longer just me. Trello is great if you’re just starting out, but I would actually recommend ClickUp over Trello.]
Next, I use a good, ol’ fashioned planner. I use a planner with both months and weeks to strategize our family dinners every month, and to strategize timelines for big projects (I’m a big fan of color-coded pens!).
Finally, I have a digital calendar for all of our meetings and appointments. My husband, Chance, and I have tried quite a few apps out there, but we keep coming back to the iCalendar in our iPhones. I utilize the alerts in the iCal, and I can also invite Chance to events, so it automatically pops on his calendar, too!
Let Go and Let Others Help
I’ll be the first one to admit I’m a control freak. It’s what makes me excellent at my job and allows me to juggle so many different things… but letting go and letting others help you is vital to getting so much done.
It might be something like delegating the laundry to Chance. He might fold and hang it differently than I’d like it done, but at the end of the day, the laundry is clean and put away, and I did not have to spend time doing it.
This could extend to having an assistant for a couple hours of week, and delegating tasks to them that don’t require you. Of course, I’d love to do everything, but there’s just not enough time in the day.
Needing help is not a sign of weakness. My time is valuable, and should be spent doing high-impact tasks. Not everything has to be done perfectly and my way, as long as it’s being done in a way that’s still good.
Quality Over Quantity
For someone who is just starting to juggle many different things in their life, I want to encourage you to focus on quality over quantity.
I always applied this to my practice – focusing on the quality of service we provide to our clients rather than the quantity of clients we had – but we’ve started to apply this to our personal life as well.
While we’re home with the boys, I’ve started to turn my phone off, stop working, and do quality activities with them. This meant breaking the habit of working while they were engaged with Play-Doh or books, and start actually playing with them in these activities.
Make sure the time you’re spending is quality, whether it’s time with your spouse, kids, or even with yourself. Consider making recurring appointments on your calendar for Facetimes with long-distance friends or date nights with your spouse, and really be present with them while you’re there.
Self Care
Additionally, being a good parent, spouse, and friend starts with taking care of yourself – so self-care is vital.
Struggling to make time for self-care? Put it on your calendar! Put in appointments for a manicure, for yoga, or whatever it is. For me, this looks like scheduling manicures every two weeks, my 15 minute morning routine, and my hair appointments.
Whatever you’d like to add – put it on your calendar and start small. You might feel like short time blocks – like a 15 minute morning routine – might not make a difference, but it might actually be exactly what you need!
Want more? Check out the full conversation here.
