6 things we’ve learned about working from home with kids

There are a lot of perks to working from home, but it also comes with its fair share of challenges.

An increase in distractions and a sudden blur between the work-life balance can be difficult to navigate - especially when kids are added into the mix with the closure of schools. 

I constantly read articles suggesting it’s okay to leave your kids to it, focus on your job etc. The reality, at least for me, is different. I don’t want my kids to think that doing a piece of work is not important when a teacher has set it for them, and I’m fine with them learning to work under pressure. My goal is to make it work as well as I can without my head exploding or the kids being miserable. Fortunately, I’ve learned a thing or two in the last year that have helped me find a little balance between homeschooling and working, so here they are:

Time Boxing

Every evening, I choose the single most important work task I need to get done the next day, as well as some smaller ones. It's inevitable your working day will be cut short and interrupted, but this way you still feel a sense of achievement if you focus on a key task. Look at the children’s timetable and figure out when the best hours are to achieve your task, box in those hours for yourself, and make it clear you need to work.

I try not to respond to chat channels, like Slack, whilst helping the kids. It's frustrating for everybody and instantly increases your stress. Allocate specific times to catch up on emails/group chats and separate your work self from your parent self as much as you can. 

Strip it back

Cancel all non-essential meetings and rely on tech where you can. Record important zoom calls or use automated note-taking such as Otter.ai so you can catch up on things in your allocated hours. Try to remove work software from your home life as much as possible too. This might not always be easy, particularly when it comes to catching up with family, but if you use platforms like Zoom a lot in your work day, consider finding alternative ways to socialise. We often associate certain technology with work, which can increase stress and make you feel like you never quite switch off.

Organisation

Cancel all non-essential meetings and rely on tech where you can. Record important zoom calls or use automated note-taking such as Otter.ai so you can catch up on things in your allocated hours. Try to remove work software from your home life as much as possible too. This might not always be easy, particularly when it comes to catching up with family, but if you use platforms like Zoom a lot in your work day, consider finding alternative ways to socialise. We often associate certain technology with work, which can increase stress and make you feel like you never quite switch off.

Food

The little blighters are like begging dogs; all day long looking for food. We went to the extreme lengths of buying some of these lockboxes and putting all snacks inside. We purchased three little baskets where we put their snacks for the day. If they eat them in one go, that’s their decision but there’s nothing else. Otherwise, quite frankly, the Cooney family will be heavily contributing to the obesity crisis.

Whatsapp Groups 

Personally, I sometimes (not always) find parent WhatsApp groups a little competitive, so I steer clear - especially at the moment in times of heightened stress and uncertainty. Everybody has a different situation and as the wise Mr Baz Luhrmann said "Sometimes you're ahead, Sometimes you're behind. The race is long and in the end, it's only with yourself.'

Stress

I know from the first lockdown that this is a stressful period. We don’t know how long it’s going to last, so I do whatever makes me feel calm when I can. I move the classroom to where I exercise sometimes as that is what I find calming, so I can do that whilst still helping. My friend Bob in the photo also often takes a few punches. I also find that choosing a nice treat at the beginning of the week, like a really nice bottle of wine, gives me something to look forward to on Friday. 

Finally, to be very clear, I don’t always achieve the above. However, when I do, the juggle is far easier. My work moves on and the kids are also happier. 

Best of luck to everybody doing the juggle, and here is that brilliant song once again if anyone needs to hear it!