A couple weeks ago we asked all of you to tell us what’s keeping you from being your happiest mom selves. There was a clear number one answer. Here’s how listener Colleen put it:

I think I struggle most with time management. There are only so many hours in the day and I want to do it all. I am a part-time health coach working for myself, but honestly not working a lot right now because I feel pulled in a hundred different directions as a parent. I really just wish for more hours in the day. 

Even with the best of intentions, we all sometimes end up freaking out about how much we have to do— and therefore doing nothing at all, frozen in place like the dog in David Lynch’s comic strip The Angriest Dog in the World (which also handily serves as Margaret’s #oldilocksalert for this week).
In this episode we talk about the ways we manage our time to work smarter, like
Workflowy (use our link to get the first 250 items free)
Self Control app or the Chrome extension Block Site
Laura Vanderkam’s books and 168 Hours Time Management worksheet 

Amy also talks time management strategies with guest Jessica N. Turner, author of the new book Stretched Too Thin: How Working Moms Can Lose the Guilt, Work Smarter, and Thrive. We talk about “need to do” vs. “nice to do,” the non-negotiability of self-care, and what it means to thrive in all areas of our lives as working mothers.
The best time management secret?  Be more gentle with ourselves, not more demanding. The systems are in place to help us do what matters. Not to help us do more.
What would you do with a couple of extra hours in your day? Tell us in the comments— and then start putting that first!
Special thanks to our sponsors for this week:
When it comes to using your time more wisely, Prep Dish is the perfect example. It tells you what to shop for and what to cook in order to have healthy meals for your family for the whole week. You shop once, from their super-easy lists (that work great with online grocery shopping too, by the way). You prep once. The oven’s already on- cook three meals instead of one. Then you get back hours of time all week long.  What Fresh Hell listeners can get a free two week trial of prep dish by going to prepdish.com/wfh.

Acorn is a new app that helps parents find kids’ activities in and around town. Whether it’s superstar tennis, archery, banjo, magic, video game coding, competitive chess, live concerts, pinball lessons, or slime classes, Acorn has activities that will inspire.

Download the Acorn app now and make parenting a whole lot easier.

 
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