3 Time Management Tips From a Working Mom to Help Grow Your Side Hustle

Have you ever noticed high level executives and officials are often carrying a paper planner? In demand folks are too-often bombarded with notifications. I can easily become overwhelmed as a working mom--so having a productive morning routine, including the use of a paper planner template has become a game changer!  It is a mindfulness activity I use for my adult clients and can be easily adapted for kids. 

As a woman and working mom, it is important to manage my time to grow and scale my side hustle, and increase productivity! Once I touch my phone, I am immediately distracted by unread texts, emails, social media, or anything else that will derail my attention (and, ultimately, productivity). I have a finite amount of time and energy per day and I cannot waste any of it getting distracted by my electronics! If that sounds like something that you too are struggling with or can relate to, keep reading to find out what time management strategies I recommend to my coaching clients that will help you to easily grow and scale your business.  

Structure (Time blocking)

 I remember as a young student, my teachers would give us the assignment each night to “review our planner” with our parents. Now I know why; they were teaching us discipline, and the power of organization. My son is now 3 years old, he will be starting preschool in the fall. I will be incorporating this into his family time ritual before bed.

Time blocking has been one of the most useful productivity tools I have utilized as a solopreneur. I suggest clients start with small time blocks, such as 30 min blocks (a 30-min time out if you will). This is not done for the entire day! It is just to get your feet wet if this is something foreign. 

Discipline (Sticking to a Productive Morning Routine)

Each person will be different depending on their life circumstances. For example, I do my most productive work earlier in the day. I block my work day from 9a.m.-12p.m. for writing, admin, and other busy work. I see clients the second half of the day, from 1p.m.-5p.m. and finally, I block 5p.m.-8p.m. for family time. We eat dinner together, talk, walk, ride our bikes, bathe, and have story time before bed. 

Moderation (Limit electronics at night)
I try not to get back on electronics, but sometimes I will do more work from 8p.m.-9p.m. Then, I begin my evening routine to wind down. I will provide more detail later on how to limit electronics in your morning and evening routine. This is also a structure which is vital for my well being.

In addition to the above, I make an effort to review my planner template every morning and evening. I will lend this to another article which delves deeper into productive things to do in my morning and evening routines and the importance of both for mastering mindfulness as a leader–or if you’d like to know more, schedule a time to chat with me about your business coaching needs.