Reclaim Your Work-Life Balance as a Working Mom in 2021

Inside: Struggling to reclaim your work-life balance as a busy working mom working from home? These tips on reclaiming your space and resetting your mind from Career Coach Becca Carnahan and Rocket Mortage will help!

Even before Covid-19 flipped the world as we knew it on its head, working moms faced a slew of challenges. I don’t need to tell you that, you get it.

Now, with our families consistently under one roof, it’s never been harder to reclaim our work-life-balance. Work is home, home is work, and it’s all a big boundaryless blur that can leave you spinning. Or at least it can be!

Moms know how to fix things though, it’s kind of our jam. So let’s try to pull ourselves out of this whirlwind with some tips and tricks that can help you reclaim your space and mindset, and decrease your stress while working from home.

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find your work-life balance in 2021. tips for moms working from home

What? Like Work-Life Balance is Hard?

Part of what makes finding work-life balance challenging while working from home is that we don’t have any separation between home and work. In some ways, this is great (no commute, no dress pants) but in other ways, it is crazy stressful.

I can’t be the only one who has gotten off a work call and then immediately asked her spouse if he was going to meet Tuesday’s deadline. Or called a client “honey” after running upstairs to a Zoom call after turning on Netflix for the kids. Yikes.

This also means that work clutter and home clutter can get jumbled together which might drive you nuts, even if you’re not a particularly Tidy Tammy. My housekeeping skills are nothing to write home about, but when a rubber duck is on my keyboard or my meeting notes get mixed in with the coupons, it feels super overwhelming.

Does this sound familiar? Here’s what can help.

Reclaim Your Space and Reset Your Mind When Working from Home

1. Closed Door Policy

If you have an office space at home, amazing! Try to leave work materials there and close the door at the end of the day so you’re literally leaving work at the door.

It’s not always going to work, but you can also keep a “no toys” rule in that room so it will stay decluttered and you’ll have less “but I should really go deal with that housework” stress during the day.

Establishing a work area that is “out of sight, out of mind,” even if your kids are still barging in during Zoom calls from time to time, can help you clear your work brain at the end of the day and turn on your family time brain.

2. Pack It Up

Many people don’t have a dedicated home office space though, so instead, at the end of the day pack up your laptop, charger, and paperwork and put them away on a bookshelf or in your now neglected work commuting bag.

Even just the act of putting away your work instead of leaving it on the counter can help create a better work-life balance and allow you to re-enter your personal life more smoothly.

3. Let There Be Light (And Green)

Whenever you’re working, also think about your surroundings and how they can impact your mood. Greenery, natural light, and an outdoor view increases productivity and can make a big difference in your happiness.

When you’re happier doing your work, you’ll be happier when you transition back into home life too. It’s science. Probably.

4. Standing Desk

I’m a huge fan of my standing desk and can’t recommend it more highly as a work-life balance tool. That’s a lot to ask from a desk, but it does truly help.

With an adjustable desk, I can sit for part of the day and stand for part of the day. It’s better for my health to get off my butt and in turn that makes me feel better mentally. In a stressful time, every little bit helps!

If you don’t have a standing desk, you can makeshift one with your kitchen counter or an ironing board!

5. Walk and Talk

Getting some exercise into your day is a great way to help reset your brain when you’re stressed, but if an exercise break is going to make you MORE stressed then that’s beside the point.

Instead, enter the walking meeting!

Skip the Zoom call and instead schedule one of your meetings over the phone. Then take that phone outside and go for a walk while you talk. If the kids are home you can set them up with an activity (or a TV if we’re being honest) and your partner can be on call as needed while you’re out. Or, worst case, you walk around your house on the phone.

A little bit of moving can go a long way in helping you reset, move away from a messy area that’s driving you bananas, give you a quiet “office space” outside of your house, and maintain your health. That’s a lot of wins!

Reset, Recharge, and Find Your Work-Life Balance, Working Moms!

Looking for some more pointers on how to strike work-life balance while working from home?

Scroll through the visual below, provided by Rocket Mortgage. These reminders on what to focus on when things feel out of control, setting boundaries, and treating yourself well all get a big thumbs up for this working mom!

Big thanks to Rocket Mortgage for sharing this infographic!

Share your best work-life balance advice in the comments below too. If there is one thing I know for sure, many working mom brains are better than one and when it comes to figuring out how to reclaim your space and reset your mind, that’s truer than ever!