Just today I was with some women who used to work, work part-time, volunteer, think about full time, and pretty much are all completely overwhelmed. Here’s what I keyed in on: one woman said, “When I was working I got a lot more done.”
I don’t know how families with mom and dad both working outside the home do it…and do the laundy, kid pick-ups and drop-offs, pay the bills, shop for food, and manage to feel like their lives are more than wake up, work, work, work, eat, eat, eat, go to bed and do it all again.
One of my friend just went from working part-time to working 5 days a week. I’ll bet that’s why I saw her with her entire family at Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner last night.
If working at home means that I’m available to get anything done at any time, then what tends to happen is that I get almost nothing done that doesn’t have a hard due date. I get an assignment; I write it. I have a concert; I practice for it. Picture day is tomorrow; I wash some clothes tonight. Snack for book club this morning; rats–out of time!!!!!
Last spring I piloted a schedule organizer called the TIP list. TIP stands for Tighten It uP (a name coined by my son). I think I’ll bring it back. It’s a DUH bullet list that’s so simple it’s ridiculous. Somehow, though, having “Shop for food” listed in black and white under “Monday” incorporates some accountability, especially with that little white circle beside it yearning, begging, gagging for a check mark right through it.
So I’m doing it right now. I’m writing the fall 2010 TIP list and I’ll go tomorrow and laminate it, so it’ll be tranported to dry-erase official-dom.
But, you know, it is Friday night. Do you think I can do it tomorrow?
-Cheryl