9 time-saving tips &
tricks

Being a parent has been the best thing that’s ever happened to me but also at times made it feel as though I never have time for myself. In our household, both my husband and I work full time, meaning life’s pretty hectic. Over the last few years, we’ve created a system that’s helped us tremendously, so we can spend more time doing things we love like playing with the kids. Here are 9 tips for efficient time management, reducing stress, and cherishing family moments. They’ve really helped us and I hope they really help you too!

1. Think positive! Don’t use sentences such as “I am so stressed” or “I don’t have time for anything”, as those thoughts only make you more stressed. You need to accept that everyone has the same hours in the day and figure out the right balance so enough time is allocated to the things that are important to you.

2. Create a to-do list every day, or a rolling to-do list if that works better for you. Your phone is an excellent place to keep you list, as you’ll always have it with you. You can divide the list into different categories such as Do, Delegate, Differ, and Dump; and always remember that you need family and personal time. An hour on the sofa to relax can be as important as anything else!

3. Multitask routine activities. For example, you might go for a walk and make phone calls simultaneously. That being said, if something is particularly important to you, you shouldn’t full bad in giving it your full and undivided attention.

4. Share household responsibilities between all family members. Even small children can have some jobs, such as making their beds, unloading the dishwasher, or packing their bags for the following day before bed. One thing we do is create a chart showing the different jobs each member must perform and make it visible to all family members will help. We found that by showing our excitement in completing our tasks then the kids would be eager to do there’s as well.

5. Weekly planning. Every Sunday, we review the week ahead. It is good practice to have your own calendar and a family calendar. For the family calendar, you could use a paper calendar in the kitchen or a digital calendar to synchronize family schedules, such as appointments or extracurricular activities.

6. Breakdown big tasks into steps. This is as valid when looking at work and household tasks. E.g., if you must declutter a very messy room, don’t feel bad to do a bit each day for a week rather than try a cram it all into one.

7. Plan meals. If you struggle to create nutritional and easy meals, there are good meal planning apps to help you, which automatically create grocery lists. You can also do your shopping online, rather than going in store. Think how much prep you need to do for each meal and do as much prep as you can during the weekend.

8. If you’re having a quiet day, why not do some bulk cooking. Make the most of the freezer so you can save them for times when you don’t have time to cook. For example, if you come home late after extracurricular activities or a long working day. Also, doing this means you are less likely to eat impulsively whilst saving money on take outs.

9. If you have some spare income available, look at outsourcing time-consuming tasks. Housekeeping and cleaning are examples of time-consuming activities that can be outsourced relatively cheaply. A good professional house cleaning or housekeeping service will help you to focus on your family and your job.

This article was written by Maria, one of our longest serving cleaners at Scrubs Cleaning.

If you are interested in our housekeeping services to save you time, why not Contact Us to see how we can help!