This is not the post I was planning so let me tell you why.
This morning I woke up with a plan for the day in my head. Yes it is the 30th and the AJE Component of the Month reveal is tomorrow. I have to finish that piece up and I also have to finish a submission, oh and I need to get my post for you all up for tomorrow.....UMMM wait......OH NO!!! I have to get it up today! How did I screw that one up? Okay I need to adjust my morning and write the post before I go have lunch with my son.
This is my typical morning. Up at 6:30 to get my daughter and hubs out the door and then breakfast for my son, lunch packed, teeth brushed and backpack ready. He is off at 8:30. I spend a little bit networking and chatting on FB then housework. That usually takes me to lunch were I check in with FB and try to catch up on blogs (yes that has been a struggle) Then there is a little more housework and possibly a bit of beading time before my son gets home from school. Then dinner planning, cooking, homework (yes homework in first grade) more housework. I usually get about an hour and a half to bead while sitting with the hubs watching TV.
So why did I tell you all of this. Well as I was rushing around this morning to make a space to write what I had planned it hit me. It seems 2013 has brought many exciting things to the jewelry aspect of my life in which there is now actual work. (I am not complaining about that part at all) I know alot of you have full time jobs on top of your full time "art work and I won't eve"n ask those of you how you do it! I can not for the life of me figure that out. What I do what to know from those of you who do stay home and have "art work" with kids (even furry ones require alot of attention) How do you manage your time?
Any assistance is appreciated but I will warn you cutting the housework part will fall on deaf ears because I have way to much OCD for that. LOLOL
Have a great day!!
Kristen
I struggle with this exactly. And I have found that you HAVE to make time for your artwork as if it were an outside of the home, full time, job. Because if you do the housework first, the housework will be done and the art never will. I wrote a post about this very subject, and while it doesn't exactly give answers, it might help you feel better in that you're not the only one struggling with this. http://thebluebottletree.com/time-management-while-working-from-home/
ReplyDeleteI still struggle. But I think a lot of the struggle comes from thinking of my art as "not a real job" and so when I spend time on it I feel guilty. I have to get over this. This IS my job. And I need to stand up and own it. The laundry can wait. Good luck!
Its a juggling act for sure Kristen. Being a stay at home mom is a full time job. We may not leave the house for 8 hours and sit in a office tower downtown, but we have lots to do and often the 'fun' stuff for us has to be squeezed in here and there. I find myself doing a lot of tidying up after my son goes to bed at night and that leaves me time in the morning to focus on my beading jobs. Then the afternoon can be used for a little housework, supper planning and the various other little errands that come up.
ReplyDeleteLOL, was going to suggest housework, but when you work from home it can drive you batty to try and work with a mountain of laundry staring you down. What I have learned (and have to continue to remind myself) is to schedule time to get my "art work" done. That includes, making, blogging, listing, pinning etc. It's my guess that you are already very organized and have a routine down, so my other suggestion would be meal planning in advance. I do my dinner planning two weeks at a time, that way I don't have to think about it daily and I only go for groceries once every two weeks. Unless of course we run out of bread or milk, but that's a quick trip.
ReplyDeleteI do try to meal plan for the week but it seems something always comes up. Thank you for your advice!
DeleteI just had a very similar conversation with a friend about this. We decided it is time management and making your work (art work) a priority. I believe you must treat it as a job that you MUST show up for. Set times for work and set times for the amount of time you spend on the computer vs creating. That is my solution. Your schedule sounds very similar to mine and I am trying very hard to stick to my set schedule. If I don't do this I tend to do "house" stuff when I want to be creating. And yes that might mean there has to be some adjustments to cleaning. It is hard working from home so some limits have to be set
ReplyDeleteYou are so right. You can get so caught up in other things. Making time is going to be my priority!
DeleteWell, you know how much I struggle with this, so I'm eagerly reading all the responses!
ReplyDeleteMy best suggestion is to get/use a crock pot! There are times during the week that you can make a meal that will be great for the next day too, thus giving you that extra time you NEED to get to the work you really WANT to do. Also I find freezing make ahead meals helps to defray the dinner time prep work. Hope you find a solution that works for you!! Have a great week and know that we appreciate your blog, Kat
ReplyDeleteLOLOL I will dig it out of the cupboard this week! Thank you!!!
DeleteI have been feeling just as you are, Kristen. I have not even started my Component of the Month piece, much less taken photos or blogged about it. I have another challenge due the same day and I have to get an AJE blog post up on Friday.
ReplyDeleteI am supposed to be retired! Ha! I like the idea some people mentioned, of actually scheduling time for our art. And, I think for me, another issue is time management. I need to see where I am wasting time during the day, what I could do more efficiently and what activities I could drop or lessen.
Whew I am glad I am not the only one!! Time management is a huge issue for me too!
DeleteOh so true! I am a full time working artist and freelance instructor. With a household to cook and clean.. and furry kids and myself to exercise... I def. schedule studio time, and that schedule is sacred. I make many lists, and run errands in groups when I am in the area of that task. I love time commuting, and sometimes prepping materials for a class can be a time drain - necessary but a chore. I try to schedule 2 days a week where I do not have to leave the house - unless the gym in the late afternoon. Uninterrupted time! No lines to stand in. no red lights. Sure I will do laundry while I work from home. but I try to leave all other household tasks til later. Like I wont unload the dishwasher until I am prepping dinner. Some days are better than others. I don't know how those of you with children do it!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the peek into your schedule too. I will be scheduling my time better to insure that I have creative work time in there.
DeleteHi Kristen,
ReplyDeleteGood luck with this, I know you will find a way to cope with your situation.
Therese
I really wish I could give you some good tips Kristen! I am really lucky in that I've made a business out of my jewellery and jewellery components and teaching jewellery making, and I have two and a half days of childcare in which to work, as well as teaching evening classes two days a week. I still don't have enough time for everything, and there are definitely times when I feel that I'm running like crazy to stand still! I think that it's part of being creative, and part of being a mum.
ReplyDeleteI do know that the only way that I can cope is that my partner is wonderfully supportive, and that by having set working days I have the rest of the week to get the chores done and spend quality time with my boys. And cooking large batches of food to go in the freezer helps a lot too!
I have worked both sides of this: with kids, and post-kids with a full-time day job.
ReplyDeleteOver 25 years ago when my kids were little, I was a stay-at-home mom with my own business as a freelance architectural design and illustrator. How did I do it? When the kids were napping, I worked. When the kids wanted to play I set up a play area next to my work area (at that time, pre-computers, I had a giant "E-size" drafting board in the basement with a carpet next to it for the kids). After dinner and the kids were down for bed for the night, I was back in my basement "studio", often until about 2 - 3 am working like mad to meet my deadlines. When I had to go see clients, I arranged babysitting with a neighbor. During all this time I was also working on my house restoring woodwork, wallpapering and painting, etc. My husband was an associate in a law firm (right out of law school) and typically worked about 60 - 70 hours/week. Needless to say, pretty much ALL of my time was occupied.
Now, I am in my 50s and am basically keeping similar hours with a different setup: I have a full time day job as an interaction designer. I usually get home around 6 pm, take a nap, have some dinner and hang out on facebook and work on my etsy shop, etc. This is basically my computer time. Then I head up to the studio for the rest of the night and work on production, shipping, whatever has to be done. I go through periods where I am up until about 2-3 am doing this; other times I finish earlier. I totally crash Saturday mornings, sleeping in to catch up on rest for the week. Then back in the studio all weekend. I still don't watch much - if any - TV. We don't have cable or dish, just apple TV for renting movies. I treat myself by watching a movie every now and then. Lately I have been doing this a lot! I'm stressing from other things going on in my life right now (selling a house, getting ready for a move, buying land for the new studio, planning the studio construction, etc.) so I'm finding I need more down time.
Looking back I don't see a huge amount of difference in my work / family / social patterns. I think we all get used to making things work (our schedules) in order to keep our businesses running. I feel so fortunate that I've been able to maintain several creative careers over the course of many years (I've worked in a variety of creative fields since the early 80s). I've always managed to make money and keep things going. SO worth it!