A long time ago, I made the decision that I was not on Earth to pass the time. I wanted to do things that I love, flourish in my daily life.
That was before I had children. After I had my first boy, I decided that I was going to stay home!
A few years later, my reality was different; I still wanted to be home with my kids, but I had also managed to turn a hobby into a paid job. I had everything I could dream of but it did not happen overnight.
When I talk with my friends who are making life decisions, I always tell them that they must identify what is important to them in life. They need to ask themselves the right questions. By asking the right questions, I came to the conclusion that I wanted to see my children grow up and that I also wanted to write. The game plan for that: have an understanding and available husband… and be really organized!
In the past two years, I have been there for my kids, but not 100%, not even 50%… At the beginning, I was working all the time (including evenings and weekends). Of course, I was always available to be there for them if they wanted to show me something or if they were upset, but they were spending the days with my husband. I have also always been available for family outings, but I realized I was working too much.
When I was thinking about my life goals, I was not there yet.
I managed to stop working on evenings and weekends last year. I was really happy, but I realized that being in my office from Monday to Friday was still a lot. I managed to cut my Friday afternoons and kept this schedule for several months. Then two weeks ago I questioned myself:
What are my priorities?
Being able to pay the bills and eat, of course! Do I need a big house? To go to the beach? A brand new car? Not really! So, do I need to work 5 days a week to live? No. Can I cut tasks or commitments that are not related to my life goals? Yes! And that’s what I did.
So I am testing my new schedule of… 3 days a week! So far, I told my clients that it was a special schedule, temporary… but my fantasy is to keep it year-round. 3 days of work, 4 days with my children!
When we ask ourselves the right questions, when we know how to identify our priorities, we can make some changes to have happier lives!
Blogger at Marginale et heureuse
Marie Noelle Marineau is the founder of Marginale et heureuse and co-founder of the stay-at-home moms' blog Mamans Zen. She loves cooking, playing with her kids and writing about parenting.
Latest posts by Marie-Noelle Marineau (see all)
- A Letter to the New Mom I Was - February 20, 2018
- Good Things Happen When You Ask Yourself The Right Questions - November 2, 2017
- We Say Children Learn By Example… - September 28, 2017
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