It is fantastic to be able to continue to balance home and work when priorities change. Previous articles been dedicated to the work//home balancing act. These articles have covered the plan/fail dichotomy and balancing work vacations and school schedules, and balancing family time vs office networking time. The next will deal with making each side feel special. This article is all about balancing home and work when priorities change.
Most families in America have at least one parent who works for pay either inside or outside the home. This means there are obligations that shift in priority. For example, when you have a major project deadline on Monday and major changes happened on Friday morning, your job will have a major priority over the weekend, which is normally family time. Similarly, if your ten-year old starts throwing up on Wednesday night and on Thursday morning has a fever, is still vomiting and in pain, your sick baby is your priority. This example is not unusual, it is part of life as usual for working parents.
In the world of changing priorities between home and work, preparation is key to success. When at home, it is important to make your spouse and children feel that they are important, special and one of the reasons why you work. When you have established a reputation as a person who loves family, appreciates family and believes family is one of the most important things in the world your family will be understanding when you have to put in extra time at work. At the same time, when you have established a reputation at work as someone who comes to work and works, doesn’t spend the work day on personal matters and gets the job done, when you have to take time off for some personal emergency, it will be more easily accepted.
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The bottom line is that your reputation at home and at work influences how those around you look at you. You must take care to create a good reputation as a person who is trustworthy, honest and cares about home and cares about work if you want to have each side be understanding when you must temporarily give a priority position to the other side. In conclusion, it is fantastic to be able to continue to balance home and work when priorities change. So the question for you this fantastic day is have you prepared your home and work for changing priorities?
That is a good point. Being present in the present, it is so hard for some of us.
It’s all about being present wherever you are and focusing on the task at hand.
You are absolutely correct. People must remember your point that what works for one person, may not work for others, you mut come up with your own plan for your own life. Excellent point you made.
This is so very true. You definitely have to create that balance, and what works for one person may be disastrous for another. It is a lot of work to balance but as long as you’re dedicated and committed to both sides, then you’ll have an easier time dealing with the changing priorities as they arise.