Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Time management for one or six?

I have had many conversations about time management and multitasking with friends, family, and previous coworkers over the years.  I have to face it, when it comes to managing my time, I have made some mistakes.  I have been to seminars and read various articles in order to improve this area but I have to face the fact, I am a procrastinator by nature, always have been.  In school, I always waited til the last minute to get papers done, study for tests and it worked for me.  Deadlines are fine, but, you will find me handling the situation right before the due date. This is how I handle my time.

Scroll forward several years, I am now a stay at home mom with four kids (Ages 11, 9, 4, and 11 months) and a husband (48) in the house.  With six of us, time management has been a bit of an issue.  I have been told I can do better with managing my time (yes, I am writing this blog while I could be working on something else, but I have to have some outlet).  So, the question of the day is...does my time management encompass one or six?  Let me give you a scenario from this morning....typical, boys up and get ready for school.  Jeff up and gets ready for work.  I get breakfast for them and make lunch. I get the baby changed and give him a bottle.  Peyton is also up by now but she won't have breakfast until everyone leaves.  Kiss all goodbye and go to start the rest of my day.  I notice when everyone leaves the bags of trash by the door (we had a second Christmas the night before).  Three people have since walked past the trash leaving the house, not one of them made an effort to take any of them out.  The kids took their bowls to the sink, one wasn't rinsed out and still had rice crispies stuck to side and the sink had rice crispies in the bottom.  My husband's breakfast dishes were still on the table.  One of the boys left their light on and shades closed and the hair gel was left out on the bathroom sink and the bathroom light was left on.  All things that could have been and should have been managed by someone else, but I had to handle.  These are twenty minutes I could have used elsewhere.

So again, is it "my" time management that needs tweeking or am I coordinating for six?  See, if I am judged on my inability to manage my time wisely, is it a fair assessment when there are additional factors?  Just food for thought.....

No comments:

Post a Comment