A little better planning

For weeks I’ve been intending to update my blog. One of my goals for 2009 was to give this blog more attention, partly for my own interests and partly as a way to showcase my writing. OK, back on the saddle!

One of my challenges has been getting a handle on my schedule. When you work from home, particularly with a 1-year-old and two dogs constantly underfoot, life can become a time management nightmare. Most days I’m up at 5:30 a.m. and finally collapse about 9:30 or 10 at night. I’ve been trying to squeeze in full-time childcare, freelance work, exercise and some personal writing projects into my day – not to mention laundry, vacuuming, dog brushing, grocery shopping and, well, you get the picture.

My plight is certainly not unique. Countless parents juggle work and family, but I find working from home brings a whole new set of challenges. When I worked in an office, I devoted eight or more hours a day to work and then dealt with home life when I was home. Now, the lines are somewhat blurred – making phone calls, changing diapers, folding laundry, running to meetings, checking e-mail, filling a sippy cup.

Fortunately, my freelance work as writer/editor and PR professional with a local firm has been gaining momentum. More work is coming my way, and I am definitely not complaining. But over the last few weeks, I’ve simply been reacting to the task that’s screaming loudest – whether that’s deadline or daughter.

So, this week, I’ve embarked on some efforts to bring more order – and I hope more productivity – to my life. After talking with my husband, we decided to divide up some additional household tasks. For example, three days a week Clint is responsible for dinner and three days a week I am. Another three days a week, Clint gives Katherine her bath and gets her ready for bed; I do it the rest of the week. I’ve also asked Clint to give Katherine her breakfast one morning a week, so I can wrap up work or just get a quick shower.

I’m also working to create a realistic to-do list for each day. I’ll take the half dozen or so items that are high priority and then tackle those in order of importance. My ultimate goal is to assign a time to everything I do, such as 5:30-6:15 a.m. Pilates; 6:15-6:45 a.m. shower and dress; 6:45-7:15 a.m. e-mail; 7:15-9:30 a.m. take care of Katherine and so on, assigning out day. My hope is if everything has a place on my calendar, it will make it tough to overlook and keep me from being distracted.

Of course, the best-laid plans can go array … Gotta run, someone is screaming.