Five tips for surviving working-from-home with children
Just when we thought juggling family life as working parents was tough, we are now doing it with no childcare…during a pandemic. Excuse me while I look for that chapter in all the parental guides for my two children!
There are many challenges coming to us right now and no one is unaffected by our current “new normal”. However, to add children with little or no childcare on top of work that needs to be done (more than ever!) can make for a very stressful time indeed.
Most parents, across the country, are now working from home. Many have gone from entertaining colleagues at the water cooler to entertaining their children at the arts and crafts table and From team building to fort building.
Many families are also hearing stories from those parents that are out on the front line manning our hospitals, guarding the peace or helping the elderly. They leave for work not knowing what to expect but one thing remains certain - they are leaving an anxious partner at home who also needs to keep a smile on their face so that their children feel safe and secure.
The important thing we all need to remember is to go easy on ourselves. This is an adjustment for everyone and we all need to dig deep and find our inner strength to carry on not let fear, stress and anxiety get on top of us. Perhaps this article on
how to deal with conflict at work will help alleviate some brewing tension at home.
So here are five tips for surviving working-from-home with children:
Accept Murphy and his stupid “law”.
Accept that there will be days that will not go to plan. Yes, your baby will wake up from their nap right when you have a call scheduled. It’s Murphy’s law! Give in to it and know that tomorrow will be another day. People will understand and the world will keep turning.
Share your time, and the love!
Make sure there is shared work time amongst you and your partner. Everyone’s work is important regardless of who the breadwinner is. Like that, make sure you share the childcare responsibilities too. There’s never been a better time to build a deeper relationship with your children now that you see them 24/7. Share the love evenly throughout the day. These
free daily planner templates will help!
Take back control.
Be creative in your approach to work like never before. If you can get work done from 4-7 in the evening use this time to be assertive even though it’s not typical business hours. What’s typical these days anyway! Once the work gets done on time, no one will ask how. These simple work-from-home productivity tips will also help!
Communicate, communicate, communicate.
Be aware that your new working arrangement is an ever-changing and ever folding situation. Therefore, plan for a day or two ahead in terms of who can do what and when. Be open to change based on the changing circumstances and for god’s sake communicate!
Keep calm and carry on.
It’s so important to stay positive. In the midst of chaos, there is positivity to be found. If you are struggling to find it daily, join us on our
Linkedin,
Twitter or
Instagram accounts and #Recruitpositivity
Conclusion
Leo Varadkar was right when he said that not all superheroes wear capes in his recent note to the nation. Some wear scrubs and gowns, some wear face paint to keep their child entertained and many more bring joy through simple acts of kindness during this difficult time.
Keep healthy, stay positive and embrace your current situation. We may never get to share these moments at home with our children in the same way again. Do you need help with your recruitment so that you can stay focused on more important tasks? Check out our
hiring solutions for employers or get in touch directly with below.
Fearga is a senior consultant in HR and Talent Acquisition recruitment at RECRUITERS.
