I’m Mentally Imbalanced
Read more about: Featured, Mommy Guilt, Work-Life Balance
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I believe actions speak louder than words. So instead of just saying that I want work-life balance, I do things to try and make it happen, like frequently stopping during the day to play with my toddler who flits around me as I work from home.
But do thoughts speak louder than actions?
What I mean is that while my body is achieving some level of work-life balance, my mind is not. In other words, even though I’m not always working, I’m often still thinking about work when . . .
- I’m playing with my kids
- Watching their soccer games
- Making dinner
- Watching T.V.
- Reading a book in bed
I rationalize that this mental imbalance is okay because I’m building my business and love the work that I do. But then there are those moments, when I’m truly “in the moment,” that I see the difference between just being there in body and being fully present for my family. That’s when I know it’s not fair to them to only be there in body and not in mind.
So now I’m making a conscious effort to focus my thoughts and attention on what I’m doing at that moment, unless it’s laundry than I’m going to let my mind wander! 
This is my way of achieving work-life balance, not just in body, but in mind too.
Shannon Hutton draws on her experience working full-time, part-time and from home with three kids to blog about the universal challenge of achieving work-life balance. She also uses her Master's in Education and professional experience as a School Counselor to address parenting and school issues in her weekly 
I completely relate to what you’re describing. And at first, I felt like I should always be “present” and “fully in the moment” when I was with them, that if I wasn’t, I was cheating them and myself out of their childhood.
But the reality is that I’m not the type of person whose true age is 5 or 8, my true age is more like 42. “True age” in the sense that it’s the age I’ve always felt. My husband says his true age is 12, which explains why being in the moment with the kids seems to come so much more naturally to him. (In our case, it’s not b/c he has less to think about or do.)
I try to shoot for two times a day when I am completely present and fully focused on my kids. Some days, I only get one. And that’s okay. It’s a balance that works for us.
Chief Family Officers last blog post..Do your kids want to work this summer?
My kids aren’t little anymore but I know I’m thinking about other things when I am doing something else. I think people do it all the time - we just call it multi-tasking. But with kids - it’s so nice to really be in the moment. You’re definitely right about that.
I love the pics of your little one - she is SO cute!
BetteJos last blog post..Catnip makes it all better
The very best thing I ever did for myself, in terms of balance as a WAHM, is stopped that kind of multitasking. Of course, my children are older, 4 and 8, but when you can, I do highly suggest that work time is work time and family time is family time and nary the two should meet. Of course,summer screws that, lol. But that is my general life philosophy. Once I stopped that on-off thing, all my writing, all my work, all my play improved 100 fold.