ways2work - Parents and carers
Remaining at work
By now, you are a few months into your new role. Your work and family routines have become established. Now is a good time to review your needs to see if they are being met.
Review
Ask yourself these questions:
- how am I finding juggling the roles of worker and parent and/or carer?
- am I getting the support I need at home?
- am I getting the support I need at work?
- what can I change and what can't I change?
- are the financial benefits of paid work outweighing any other negatives?
The Balancing It All checklist provides a more comprehensive list of questions to help you think all this through.
If you haven’t already, now might be the time to talk to your employer about the sorts of work arrangements that might assist you to make improvements – visit Starting the conversation for some ideas.
As your needs will change, you may need to revisit these arrangements from time to time.
Anne Marie, a 45-year-old mother of two works part-time at a local real estate agency. She and her boss came up with some changes at work to allow her to find a better balance between her work and family. Read more about how returning to work part-time helped one mother ease back into the workforce...
Family time
Now that you're spending less time with the family, it's important to try to schedule some time each week for the family to get together. This could be a special activity, or a simple daily ritual like eating dinner at the table, that will help you and your family to feel connected. Try to:
- allot set times for family activities
- ensure that each family member understands the importance of and is committed to this family time each week
- remind everyone of your scheduled time and try not to let other things get in the way
- make it a rule that everyone must turn off their mobiles during family time – even you!
Relationships Australia provides some hints for families on good communication.
Remember to look after yourself
No one benefits if you are stressed and burnt out, so:
- understand your limitations and set realistic expectations on what you can do
- go easy on yourself when you don't achieve everything you set out to do
- understand what makes you stressed or upset
- learn and use stress management techniques – meditation or yoga for example
- just because you are having a good day or week or month, that doesn't mean you must push yourself harder
- make sure you take breaks at work
- try to eat well, get enough sleep, participate in social activities and do some exercise, even if it's only 15 minutes a day
- share the jobs around – you shouldn't do everything!
Tell Us Your Story.
We'd like to hear from you about your experiences of balancing work and family.