How to Balance Between Career and Family: Practical Tips for the Working Woman

The modern woman is a kind of super heroine, who somehow manages to juggle taking care of the family and working her ass off at her executive position in that company that everybody knows. You bask in her matriarchal glow of the achievement of feminist independence, and look at your own life and feel depressed. So, very depressed. Unless, of course, you are content with doing the noble thing and give up you job for the kids. Or doing the opposite, and leave your husband do the dirty work.

However, it is possible to have both your career and spend time with your kids, if you manage to organize and balance your time.

The most basic thing to do is to set aside time for both your family and your career. Plan ahead your visits to the zoo, or your games of monopoly, and make it clear to your workplace that these times are not to be touched - your kids are more important that those petty issues at work.

When you are spending quality time with your kids, it is important that you don't allow your work to creep in. For example, don't bring home your work unless you really need to (i.e. your deadline is 6 am the next day, which also means you need to stop procrastinating), or if you have to, wait until the kids are asleep to do it.

Set aside time for your work, and stick to it religiously. Make sure that your workplace understands that you are a mother, and you have your needs, but at the same time show your dedication to your work by doing what you have to do effectively at work. Plan for project time, and even overtime when the need arises.

Explain to your kids that you need to spend some time away to do your job, because the people at your company needs you, and that you will make it up to them with extra ice-cream during the weekend (make sure you keep that promise though). Planning well prevents broken hearts resulting from those last minute recalls to the office from home, stopping you from going to see your son's big baseball game, or your daughter's debut performance on stage.

However, sometimes, no matter how you plan, you cannot squeeze everything in, or worse, you might burn yourself out by spending too much energy trying to balance work and kids. If you can afford it, hiring someone to do the laundry, cook and do the groceries can be a very worthwhile investment. It frees you up to spend more time with your kids, and you can come home slightly later knowing that dinner will still be ready even without your supervision. Hire somebody you feel you can trust, or even better, hire your own spouse.

Balancing your work and family life not only makes your children happier; it makes your life easier, and postpones that appointment with your doctor about the treatment for hypertension. Don't miss that chance to watch and grow up with your kids - when you look back you'll realize how much of yourself you've put in your kids, and feel that pride swelling up in you as you think back on how you were that supermom.