We have our own life goals and plans to advance our careers, but it’s difficult to find time to take action.

It’s not a secret that we have a lot going on as working moms. Every day can feel like a dream sequence where our family needs us on the right, work needs us on the left, our friends are pulling us to the front, and our community’s calling us at the back. 

And still, there’s a baseline of things that you just have to do each day – laundry, meal preparation, getting your kids to school, etc. There are so many different things that take up not only our time and energy but also our mental space. Where do we find time for ourselves and our plans?

We have to accept we can’t do it all on our own. 

If we want more time, energy, or mental space, we will need to get some support.

There’s nothing wrong with needing support. The idea that we need to do it all is silly. We don’t. We only need to do the things that matter to us and the things that keep the lights on and the food on the table. 

So, where can we find assistance or relief?

Here’s a two-step process to figure out how you can get support.

First, you need to look at everything that’s going on in your day, your week, and your month. Then make two columns: things you’re not an expert in and things YOU don’t need to do.

Look at each task and put them in the first column if you just don’t do it well. It could be preparing presentations or cleaning the house. If you’re not an expert in it, write it down. 

Or you can put them in the second column if it does not have to be YOU doing it. You don’t have to prepare dinner, wash the dishes, or create that spreadsheet at work. If someone else can do it, write it down. 

The second step is exploring each task. As we go through them one by one, we’re going to figure out, “Is there a person, an app, or a service that can help us do this?”

Let’s take meal planning. When I’m not in a rush, I love to cook. But as it turns out, on most weekdays, I am in a rush. I’m in a hurry to spend time with my kids or to sit down and relax. I do enjoy preparing meals, but I don’t have to be the one doing it. That’s something that takes up headspace and time for me during the weekdays.

Cooking during the week is not necessarily my favorite thing, but there are people, apps, and services that can help me. People: my husband could help cook. He can help make dinner and help plan the meals. App: Some apps can have food delivered to your door each and every day. Service: There are people that you can hire and meal subscription services that you can set, and every day you will have a meal show up to your door, and you can just throw it in the oven, right? 

It may not be cheap, but it’s out there, and that’s the point. Write down for each of the things you’re not an expert in and the things you don’t have to do, the people, the apps or software, and the services that can support you. 

Once you’ve done that, the fun begins. Start going through your list and figure out where you can make this work, where you can either call up, text or request that someone help you with one of those tasks. Look into the apps and software that might automate or allow you to move through some of these tasks. Where there are services, price them out and see if it makes sense for you to leverage them sometimes. It might be something that you sign up for for the year, but it also might be something that you sign up for the week or even the day, depending on what is going on. 

Remember this: if you don’t take the time to figure out how you can get the support you need, you will never have it. 

More importantly, if you don’t ask for it, you definitely will never have it.

So take a moment and do this. This could take 20 minutes or longer, so if you can’t do it right now, block your calendar to get it done. You have to take action to see results. 

Take Action

So if you’re looking for support, try this exercise within the next three days. Let me know if you don’t find a way to get more support.

I know you already have what it takes to create a less stressful life, but sometimes you just need a little push in the right direction. In my free video course, More Time and Less Guilt by Next Monday, I outline the steps you can take to have more clarity, how to say no, and have better, more productive days.

How would you like to have More Time and Less Guilt by Monday?

Take action to start believing in yourself at How To Get Unstuck.