How To Change The World And Still Be Home for Kid’s Tea

Linzi Boyd - 30 Nov 14

Think back to when you were in your 20s. If you were anything like me you had a BIG VISION to change the world and become the next Oprah Winfrey – more to the point, you knew you could do it and nobody would stop you!

THINK AGAIN… TICK TOCK TICK TOCK your maternal clock kicks in and before you know it, you have a couple of kids and a gorgeous husband at home, and life is no longer your own. The vision you once nurtured now appears compromised by the ‘WORK/LIFE balancing act’ that nobody prepared you for.

The question is can you change the world and still be home for dinner with the kids? If Sheryl Sandberg can do it, so can the rest of us.

It’s all very well kicking it at work, but feeling miserable when you miss your kids’ parent evenings can leave you feeling flat about the day’s achievements. So in the end you have to ask who wins?

However, fear not, because if you really want to change the world and still be home for the kids, I believe there is a formula. Implementing an invisible weighing scale that measures out the balance of your week will help to make sure that you are levelled out on both sides of your work and life balance.

Whether you are the owner of the business or working for someone else, there must be ground rules in place so that everyone knows how you measure out your time!

Here are some golden rules for working mums who still crave the work life balance you always dreamed of…

1. Putting work in your life’s balance
Know what balances you need in your life – if it is four days a week and Fridays off plus being home for 6pm to put the kids to bed then acknowledge that, and own it. Most working parents I know take their laptops home and on the odd night work a late shift from 8pm until late to clear the day’s incomplete workload. What if it is not about the hours at your desk, but rather it is about the projects being completed. How you make that happen should be on your own clock as opposed to the one that hangs in the office.

2. Friends in the right places
It always helps having a friend at the school gate who’s always clued up on all the dates for the school activities are, and then make sure you put them in your diary so that everyone in the office can see them – Memo in Google drive: ‘Leaving work at 4pm in 6 weeks time’ gives everyone plenty of notice. My friend Fiona is a school ‘must-have’ for any working mum!

3. Brain Holiday
Holidays are a must in the diary and a #brainholiday is a necessity for any woman who requires space for creative thinking, as well as quality time with the kids. The world continues to spin when I take the month of August off, so ensure parameters are in place, which mean if you leave your business for any period of time, it will stay standing. Make yourself available mornings and evenings so that you can make your calls and clear the decks. That way your mind can be on the kids and creative planning for the rest of the day.

4. Partnerships unite
Having a partner at home and good co-worker to have your back creates space for you to be both a working mum and a parent. There needs to be an understanding, both at work and at home so that when the weighing scale tips more one way, or the other, both your partner and co-worker will support you in your quest for success.

5. Live out your Passion
In my little book of rules, I have always said that when work starts to feel like a job it is time to get out. I ask myself a question to help keep myself in check when I start to moan, “WHAT AM I GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?” How am I going to change it? Being a mother of two, I feel that if I am going to be away from my kids for any period of time, then I should be working on something that I am passionate about. That way, as they grow up, they get to see me happy and passionate about the work I do, doing what I love and be a part of that side of my life.

Whether you are working for someone else or running your own business, it is most important to stake a claim on the life you want to lead and to stay focussed to make it happen. It is no good living a life you don’t want to live, since I find that the only person who loses out is normally you. It is always hard to juggle – I can’t imagine that any man or woman find it an easy task, but I will say that the sooner you find a way to be content both at work and home, the easier it will be to change the world and enjoy your kids as well.

Motherhood is different for all of us… if you’d like to share your thoughts, why not join our Network & start posting?

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Linzi Boyd

Linzi Boyd is a serial entrepreneur and mother to Kai, 6 and Isla, 3. She is married to Gary and they live in London. Linzi launched her first business at the age of 18 (a clothes shop in Leeds), followed by a footwear brand, and then Linzi set up PR company Surgery Group 15 years ago, and this year has launched celebrity agency Midas as well as The School of Brand Fame. She has also written a book about how to make your brand stand out, called Brand Famous (have a read!).

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