Hilary Glann is married with two sons and four pets. A former executive with HP, Hilary now runs a marketing consulting firm that helps technology companies achieve their business objectives by using marketing as a competitive advantage.
As a working mom, time is your most precious commodity. Motherhood and career are both all consuming activities; you don’t have time to do it all yourself. Therefore, since they’ll probably notice at work if you ask others to do your job for you, your only choice is to outsource some of your family chores to others.
This can be difficult for many of you because, after all, no one can shop, clean or cook for your family as well as you can. But you’re not Martha Stewart who actually gets paid for being a household wizard. Instead, focus on being Mom at home and let others take care of the rest. Here are some simple ways to have others do work for you:
Buy on line: Many grocery stores now offer affordable home delivery. And, if you plan ahead, you can get free or inexpensive shipping on many other Internet purchases. Okay, so on line shopping is not without its perils – one time Safeway delivered 12 pounds of green beans instead of 2 because I typed the order quantity wrong. Or, there’s the king sized dog bed that looked just right for my small retriever when I bought it on the pet supplies web site. But green beans and gigantic dog beds aside, on line shopping can save you tons of hours and shopping hassles.
Have someone else clean the house: Get back the time that you’re spending cleaning your house. If you can’t afford or can’t find someone to clean your house for you, then make house cleaning a family affair. Spend a couple of hours together as a family on Saturdays cleaning your home. Sure, you’ll have some uneven results from the kids, but really, who cares? The kids are learning how to be self sufficient, the family is all working together, and you’re not a bitter solo toilet scrubber.
Be an Excellent Carpooler: Seek out carpool opportunities for as many of your kid’s activities as you can. Sell your children on the ‘green’ benefit of carpooling if they dislike the kids they have to carpool with. Carpools take some upfront time to organize, but can save huge amounts of time in the end.
Make Your Kids Part of the Solution: Most kids ‘needs’ vastly outnumber their means. Instead of listening to endless whining from your kids about the toys, gadgets and other things they need in your life, have them earn these rewards by working for you. If your kids ask for specific things, work out a plan with them to take on extra chores to “pay for” those items. One friend of mine had her son do the dishes for a few months to earn a new bicycle. After he got the bicycle, he asked if he could keep doing the dishes because he enjoyed earning the extra money. Similarly, my son earns a subscription to a special satellite soccer channel by carrying out some very specific chores each week. He can stop doing the extra chores at any time – and we’ll stop paying the subscription fee.
Many moms are uncomfortable putting their kids work – between school and extracurricular activities, so many kids are already overscheduled. But, kids who help out more at home are learning about the value of money and the value of their time. Plus, they’re gaining an appreciation for how hard their parents work to support them. These are valuable skills that will make them self sufficient when they leave home. Any child over the age of five can contribute to the well being of the family in some way or another.
There are many other ways to outsource work to others. It’s up to your budget, and your creativity, to figure out the right balance of do versus delegate.
As excerpted from 42 Rules (tm) for Working Moms Super Star Press, 2008
Author Resource:-
Laura Lowell is the executive editor and author of "42 Rules for Working Moms." She has gathered practical advice and information from working moms all over the world to share with others. She lives and works in Silicon Valley with her husband and two girls. http://www.42rules.com/working_moms/index
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