There are two little known and highly unpopular secrets to getting more done in a day for SAHMs!
1. Stay at home more than going out!
2. Self-Discipline
No kidding! Now you know why I say they are highly unpopular tips? I have learnt in the past 8 years of being a wife, mother, housekeeper, cook….that staying home helps me accomplish much more.
Being self-disciplined alone is not enough because no matter how disciplined you are, you are losing time by being out. And staying home without being self-disciplined means nothing either.
Does that mean we are doomed to a life of being trapped at home? Noooo! You just need to make certain sacrifices and work your routine around it. Eg. You don’t need to go out everyday to run your errands. Plan your trips out carefully. Not only are you saving time and money (petrol cost if you drive or taxi fare) you are also saving energy – yours!
Going out too often zaps you of your energy so that when you return, you have no energy todo what you are supposed to do. So things pile up, stuff grows! Chaos reigns yet again and you feel overwhelmed.
But if you can plan out your outings carefully and limit them to once or twice a week, you will be able to get more done. Does that take spontaneity out of your life? Probably! But the trade-off of accomplishing what you need to do will certainly offset whatever benefits of being spontaneous. And like I said, I am not advocating staying home 365 days a year!
I know some who say that staying out leaves the house cleaner – coz there’s no one at home to mess it up, you see? I guess that would be ok if you had one or two children. I certainly cannot imagine me staying out all day, everyday with 5 children! Besides the overstimulation will probably make them hyper!
So try it – stay home for a week and do what you planned to do. You’ll see that much more gets accomplished!