We’ve been struggling with the idea of work-life balance as a parent. And we wanted to chat with you about the ways we’ve been trying to maximize our productivity in our businesses while also enjoying more time with our kids:

Being a parent is one of the most rewarding, yet challenging, roles you can take on in life. Not only are you responsible for raising happy and successful children, but you also have to manage a household, juggle work commitments, and maintain a social life. It can be difficult to find a balance between all of these responsibilities, but it’s important to make sure that you’re taking care of yourself as well as your family. One way to do this is to write everything down. Having a visual reminder of what needs to be done can help you stay organized and productive. Additionally, try to schedule some time for yourself every day, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Taking some time out for yourself will help you recharge and be a better parent and entrepreneur.

Today`s Goal: Keep a running list of everything that needs to be done. This can help to prevent overwhelmed feelings, as you will always have a clear overview of what needs to be accomplished. Additionally, this can also help you to prioritize your tasks and ensure that the most important items are always completed. Taking a few minutes each day to update your list can help you to stay on track and maintain a healthy work life balance.

Episode Highlight:
02:19 – Making sure that we start our days off on the right foot, and really dedicating like the first two, three hours in the day, to getting ourselves in the right headspace.
05:51 – You need to decide that my mental and physical well being is first priority in the morning. And that sets the stage for the rest of your day. And then you pick a handful of things that you want to prioritize for the day that you want to get done.
08:49 – Seeing it happening, looking at your results, looking at what you’ve accomplished and how far you’ve come. It makes it that much more motivating to keep going to.
15:10 – I think the big takeaway from this episode to manage your work-life balance as a parent is to write everything down first off because if you don’t know what you have to do, it’s just gonna like it’s gonna keep growing, and you’re gonna forget about things but it’s also going to be in the back of your head.

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Episode Transcript

Lyss: Hey, everybody, welcome back to another episode of The Making Mommy Move Show. We’ve got Larry on again with us today. I’m really trying to get him on consistently because I love talking to him, because he’s my husband. But also because he gives another perspective like, as a spouse, as a man, as a business partner, and entrepreneur, especially when we’re trying to grow our business together. We’re, as you know, we’re married. We’ve been married for almost four years now. And we have this entrepreneurial dream and big goals to accomplish in our life together. And I think it’s really fun, especially because today we want to talk about work-life balance as a parent.

Larry: Yes, big stuff.

Lyss: This is something that we struggle with. And I’m sure you guys may also, if you’re growing your businesses and trying to do all the things, we are often pulled in a lot of different directions at the same time, and it can be difficult to manage. So tell us some of the things that we’ve been doing.

Larry: Yeah. What have we not been doing?

Lyss: Well, trying to be on top of the way that we manage what we’re doing and also like, prioritize, so that we still get the family time in and our relationship time and move the needle?

Larry: Yeah, we’ve been a lot more intentional about our mornings, making sure that we start our days off on the right foot, and really dedicating like the first like, two, three hours in the day, to getting ourselves in the right headspace. And you know, like mentally, physically making sure we have good breakfast, we go to the gym, we get all of our thoughts out on paper before we really start the day, but a little bit of time with the kids before they go to daycare. And then from there, our productivity is just so much better. Because we know we might spend three hours in the morning not being productive in a work sense. But we’re being productive in a in a self care and self development sense.

Lyss: Yeah, that’s important. And I think that’s something that isn’t talked about enough is like the importance of self care. Because if you’re not filling your cup up first, you have nothing else to give across the board. So in regards to like a work life balance, when you are prioritizing both your health and work, you’re able to see everything move across the board towards the goals that you want to reach personally, like we want to reach our goal weights, we want to be fit, we want to be healthy, we want to like all these things that we keep saying we want to do. But like when we’re prioritizing it in the morning, we’re actually seeing the results happen.

Larry: Yes. Is that something that everyone says like, I want to lose weight, I want to spend more time with my kids, I want to my business has to grow faster. But if you don’t start with yourself, and putting yourself in the right headspace first thing in the morning, the needle is gonna move a lot slower and everything else, because you’re gonna wake up, you’re going to be grumpy, you’re not going to want to do what you need to do for the day. And it might take you a couple, two, three hours in the morning, before you get the ball rolling in your business work. But it’s so crucial to do that, because I spent 10 years as a mechanic and wake up in the morning, wake up at 536 o’clock via work, you know, 637 o’clock, not spending any time in the morning, taking care of what I need to take care of not eating breakfast, not spending any time with the kids or any like mental exercises, no journaling or anything like that. And it really makes the day hard, you don’t get motivated, you just kind of are waiting through the day until you come home when you get to go to bed. So now that full time when our businesses and I have that free time in the morning, you spend those two, three hours really make it a priority.

Lyss: Well, I think that’s something that we could touch on because you’re making it intentional to have that quote unquote, free time in the morning. Because as entrepreneurs like it’s really easy for us to just jump up and get started with the day or say, You know what, I got a really busy schedule today, I don’t have time to get into workout or eat breakfast or journal. Even though all of those things may take two hours of the day.

Larry: Yeah, of your 12 hours that you can be productive throughout the day. If you take two of those, you still have 10 hours to kick ass., and but that’s something to is that then a lot of people don’t touch on is your priorities. Because if you make everything a priority, nothing’s a priority. So you need to decide that my mental and physical well being is first priority in the morning. And that sets the stage for the rest of your day. And then you pick a handful of things that you want to prioritize for the day that you want to get done. Because if you have a to do list, it’s 15 items long, you’re not going to put your full effort into each and everything. Because you’re going to want to get the whole list done. But if you make that list five items, and you say, All right, I spent like two three hours in the morning doing what I need to do for myself and then X amount of time this this and this your chances of those things being done with better quality and to a higher standard or a lot better.

Lyss: Yeah, well, I think that’s something that could be helpful is to look at it like by the week instead of by the day also. Because if you have like these intentions for the week, then you’re able to break it down and it’s not so overwhelming. So it might be you might have 15 things on your list, but if you’re only doing three per Today over the course of five days, you’re going to have a lot more space to be able to do it, you might actually get more than that done. Yeah. But those are just your intentions for the day so that you’re still moving the needle toward the goal, like at the end of the week.

Larry: Yeah, it’s definitely important to set yourself up for success. And that’s, you know, a very broad statement. But to simplify, it’s just started off on the right foot, you know, make sure you do what you need to do to put yourself in the right headspace. And something that I thought was a lot of malarkey was writing and just getting stuff down on paper. Because Liz says it all the time, everything that’s in her head that she wants to get done or anything, it’s written down, we have about 1000 composition notebooks, I see a monitor desk over here, it just off the screen, and each one of them is halfway full of just her mind. And I always just keep everything in my head, and I’m like, Okay, well, I gotta do this, that and the next. And then it sits in my head for days, weeks. Yeah, and then I forget, it gets pushed off so far, that it’s, it’s gone. But hurry down, I gotta send emails to these people, I got to do set up these accounts, I got to do this, that and the next, if I write it all down, I see it. And I’m like, okay, the total time to do these tasks, it’ll probably take me a day to do these five tasks, because none of them are big, they just need to get done. And you can prioritize and say, Okay, these are off my list out of my head, gone. What’s next.

Lyss: And then you also see, like, at the end of the day, we have these goals. So one of them is to grower Jersey Street business. And the other is to grow your real estate business and like garden and the pines and whatever else we have going on. So it’s like this is moving the needle for this business is moving the needle for that business, this is moving the needle for us. And being able to see it like written out is a lot easier to know that you’re working and actually accomplishing anything. And then like on the mental side, it also helps because then you actually feel like you’re making a difference and seeing the progress. Where if you’re not writing it down, you might just feel like you’ve just been working for no reason or like nothing’s really happening. And it’s like, seeing it happening, looking at your results, looking at what you’ve accomplished and how far you’ve come. It makes it that much more motivating to keep going to.

Larry: Yeah, I was gonna say that something that’s big is the fulfilling nature of completing tasks. And when it’s in your head, you constantly will think of new things to replace whatever you just finished. So if you have to send emails to five people, and you send those emails, you’re like, alright, well, now I have to do this. And now if you do, then you keep finishing things, and you keep piling on your list and the things become less significant. Because they’re just stuff that’s been in the back of your head, like, I really got to fix the squeaky gate outside. And you’re totally off track of your work in your productivity, to grow your business that you’re outside, you know, weed whacking, instead of doing what you need to do, even though you feel like it needs to get done. It’s not a priority per se. So to have those things written down and say, Alright, this is what I’m doing today, or this is what I’m doing this week. And then once you get to the end of that list, you write down your next set of things, because what you’re writing down is what your brain is telling you is the most predominant the most the highest priority.

Lyss: Yeah. And in touch on like you feeling like you need to do some stuff like around the house, you could create like blocks, essentially in your day to say, Okay, for the first two hours are going to prioritize myself. For the next four hours, I’m going to prioritize my business and move these things and get these accomplished. And then the last two hours, I’m going to prioritize housework. So that might be weed whacking might be mowing the lawn, fixing the game, or doing laundry or whatever it is just to keep you feeling safe in your house and your household. Yeah. So breaking it down into blocks, you feel like you’re moving the needle, you’re feeling accomplished, you actually are moving the needle on Yeah, accomplishing your goals. And you also feel like you’re able to get stuff done that needs to get done even if it’s not a priority, per se.

Larry: Yeah, it makes you feel productive and more than just your business aspect. Because you’re moving the needle in your business and completing whatever task you feel like you need to complete for the day for your business. But then also when you pull up to your house after being out and you see your yard looks like crap, or that like your flowerbeds are all full of weeds and will you know just the stuff that they look at, you’re like, Wow, it really looks like crap. You can put that on your list and say I’m gonna give myself two hours to read the flowerbeds. So that way they can pull up your house to see it’s like alright, I feel better about that. And it’s just something that makes me feel good in the sense that like, you know, your property looks better. It’s a different sense of accomplishment. Yeah, outside of CES, I know that sending emails and making phone calls isn’t always the most fulfilling activities. You get it done because you know, that’s how your business grows. But at least for me, I know sitting on my computer for two three hours even though I’m I’m doing the most meaningful work. It doesn’t feel as fulfilling because I’m a very active kind of hands on person. I want to be outside using my hands moving around. So to be able to express that in the sense of yard work or fixing something or whatever, I guess it adds to a quality of life, at least personally.

Lyss: Yeah, some of you might relate. Some of you might just want to outsource those things. And yeah, whatever feels right for you.

Larry: cuz you can spend 100 bucks a month on a landscaper, that’s gonna come and mow weed, whack your lawn, and you won’t have to worry about it.

Lyss: It’s whatever it’s important to you, whatever you feel like you need to do and makes you happy at the end of the day, he enjoys your work. So yeah, it’s like kind of like peaceful and like,

Larry: yeah, it’s just kind of like, a lone time in my head and get to like, scroll through thoughts as I’m doing kind of like a mindless activity that’s productive. Because when I’m sending emails and making proposals and stuff like that, it’s very intentional. And I’m using a lot of brainpower. And I guess it doesn’t leave a lot of room for creativity. And it’s kind of a weird feeling. But to be able to organize my shed brings me some sort of inner peace to know that like, my crap isn’t everywhere. And I feel okay, even though I go on The Shed like twice a week, and I’m in there for 30 seconds, but to know.

Lyss: Like a sense of calming and like control, yeah, to know,

Larry: when I go in there to grab something and off the fight my way through all the stuff that’s on the floor, I get it, go grab it and get out. So it’s the stuff that lingers in the back of your head, that’s just kind of annoying, make time to get that done. So it’s not in the back of your head. And as the weeks go on, and as you’re crossing things off your list off of your back end, list, your priorities for your business, the time for that grows, it should, it shouldn’t. Because if you’re, you know, if you have 10 hours, from the time you drop your kids off at daycare, to the time that you pick them up, say you spend three hours on yourself. And then you spend four hours working on your business. That leaves you what three, another three hours that you can dedicate to whatever else that as you finish those things, that means that you can either spend four hours in the morning, instead of when you’re done with the gym, you can listen to a book, or listen to a book or meditate or, you know, do sit in a massage chair for an hour and things that bring you joy. Yeah. Or you can add another hour onto your workday. Or, you know, you can take that extra three hours you and your spouse and you get some time together before you get the kids have some some mommy daddy time. And it makes it easier to structure your day. Yeah, I think totally once you want to get the stupid crap out of the way over time you open up your schedule. And like you said, you can delegate that stuff. If you have eager family member that likes to clean organized, say, hey, you know, throw me a couple of bucks. If you want to clean my shed or you know, the somebody that you know, that would mow your lawn for you throw him 50 bucks, and they do a good job, just dump 50 bucks a week to mow your lawn, whatever to get that out of the back of your head and, and done.

Lyss: Definitely. So I think the big takeaway from this episode to manage your work life balance is to write everything down for itself. Because if you don’t know what you have to do, it’s just gonna like it’s gonna keep growing, and you’re gonna forget about things. But it’s also going to be in the back of your head.

Larry: yeah, it’s just something you forget about, but it’s still there. 

Lyss:  So you need to like brain, dump it to get it out. And then you’re able to actually see the progress that you’re making to cross it off and see that you’ve been productive, that you’re moving the needle, that things are getting done, you feel productive, that you feel fulfilled and accomplished, because these are all feelings that we need to feel as humans, right. So when we’re actually feeling accomplished, we’re going to be that much more productive, we’re going to do that much better things, we’re going to have better time with our kids and like with our families, and just like as a person feeling like for ourselves.

Larry: And the quality of a workload will be better, too. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, definitely.

Lyss: Thank you guys for tuning into the show. We’d love to hear what your biggest takeaway was from this, what kind of actions you’re going to be taking to prioritize your work life balance, and make sure that you’re able to have the self fulfilling and self development time where you’re able to actually like fill your cup up in the morning. And also move the needle on your life and your business, both professionally and personally. So that you feel accomplished and feel like you’re living in a beautiful home and like you’re able to do everything that you want that you keep your promises to yourself and follow through. Yeah, love to hear it. tag us on Instagram. It’s @lyss.morton I don’t even know what yours is any Yeah, and

Larry: I’m not on it. Don’t bother.

Lyss: Send us an email or anything like that, and we’ll love to hear it. Tag us and we’ll see you the next one. Bye for now.