Whether you’re the mom or the dad of a household, there are likely things going on at home that you’ve recognized could be done in a smoother fashion. Especially if you’ve come to find that you’re spending too much time on unimportant tasks or things aren’t being taken care of the way they should be, you may be starting to feel desperate for some simplicity and order in your life and the life of your family. So to help you find these solutions for your family, here are three tips to help you better manage your household.
Make Your To-Do Lists Shorter
When something needs to get done, it’s common to put that item, along with everything else, on your to-do list. And while this is a great way to ensure that you don’t forget something important, creating these long, detailed to-do lists may not actually be helping you to get more done. According to Libby Kane, a contributor to LearnVest.com, long to-do lists can distract you from the most important tasks as hand and make you feel like a failure if you don’t get everything on your list done. To keep this from happening, try to keep your daily to-do lists to the three most important things you have to do that day. By doing this, you’ll ensure that the top priorities get taken care of and you’ll feel more accomplished when you finally check that last thing off your list.
Create Routines
Even if you have an extremely busy family, you can still create certain routines that help make your home run smoother and keep your lives simplified. According to Apryl Duncan, a contributor to The Spruce, it’s important to remember that your family’s routines don’t have to resemble any other family’s routines. If you have routines that may be considered unconventional but they work for your family, then by all means, keep at them. As long as your routines are helping you get things done and keeping your loved ones happy, they’ll help you to better manage your lives overall.
Set Specific Times for Specific Tasks
While many families wish for more time in the day, what families often need is better structured time during the day. For example, Laura Vanderkam, a contributor to Fast Company, shares that if you choose certain times to accomplish certain tasks, like no doing chores on the weekends, you’ll end up finding ways to get more done during the week. For most things, people will use all the time allotted to them for a task. So by giving yourself only a finite amount of time, you’ll learn how to work within that limited timeframe.
If you’ve been looking for ways to better manage your home, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you do just that.