Building and operating a business can be challenging, especially if you’re also in charge at home.

After a busy morning of getting everyone else ready for their day, you may not feel as ready to get to your own work.

Likewise, after a long day of serving your clients and growing your business, all of the tasks you have to do to keep your house in order may seem overwhelming.

First thing to know; you are not alone. Your experience is more common than you might think.

Here are just a few words of advice from Link Members on how they manage to juggle a busy life at home and at work.

1. Let Go of Stress

When it is your responsibility to take care of problems both at work and at home, you can feel stressed and overwhelmed.

Such feelings can make it difficult to work effectively or enjoy time with your family.

One trick which can help you to decompress is to get a little bit of “alone time”

An oasis of time to be by yourself between the hours you spend at work or with your family.

Do this before you go to work, just after you get home, or both!

For example, you might try leaving for work early and listening to your favorite music in the office. Or you could make time for a walk, jog, or cycle ride right when you finish work for the day.

If you practice meditation, a 7 minute mindfulness mediation can work wonders to clear your mind between the two environments.  There are several guided meditations on YouTube, or you can look at Phone Apps like Headspace to guide you. 

This will give you a chance to unwind and clear your head from the stresses of working or taking care of the household.

2. Find Quality Childcare

You may have a hard time staying focused at work if you’re concerned about the care that your children are getting while you’re not around.

Make sure that you find nannies and babysitters that you trust completely, and that you feel are competent to be there for your kids while you’re away.

If you’ll be hiring help for childcare, make a list of all the criteria that you think are essential in a caregiver.

If they’re missing anything on that list, they may not be the right childcare provider for you. You will not truly relax and put the daily needs of your children out of your mind if you have nagging doubts about your childcare.

 See if you can set up a trial day with the prospective nanny or babysitter so that you can see how they get along taking care of your kids while you’re still there.

That way, you’ll have no worries while you’re trying to take care of your business.

3. Stay Organised

Being disorganized or planning activities at the last minute can have a negative impact on your mood and your work efficiency.

Try to keep your home and work area clean and well-organized so that you don’t have to sort through clutter to get things done.

At home, this could be as simple as establishing a place to keep everything that you use regularly.

You won’t have to worry about finding your keys if you put them in the same place every time you come home.

4. Bring the Two Together

Last but not least, preventing your home life from interfering with your professional life often means keeping the two apart whenever possible.

Instead, find ways to combine the two in creative ways.

For example, rather than withdrawing to a home office while you try to get business-related work done at home, get your kids and your partner involved.

Even if they don’t have any advice to provide when it comes to maintaining or growing your business, talking to them about what’s happening at work will give you a chance to vent and help them feel part of your success.