How To Remain Productive During School Holidays

I know I am not the only one who struggles with how to remain productive during school holidays. This year it was proving to be even worse since we will be relocating to another country this month. You can imagine having to pack, make time to work on my goals and entertain the kids all at the same time. Insanity right?

In order to ensure I remain productive and register success with my goals, I came up with a strategy. These tips though small have registered success for both myself and the children and I hope you can use them too. As a disclaimer, for the tips to work for you, it depends on the age of your kids. Our Kids are tweens and pre-tween as they like to remind me these days. Younger children tend to have a short attention span and some of these tips may not produce the same results as if the kids were older. Never the less I think you can give them a try and just customize them to suit your needs.

#1. Wake Up Before Everyone In Your Home

My morning routine even on a normal school day sees me waking up at 5:15 am every day. This gives me time to get dressed, read my bible then read a book for about 15 – 20 minutes. I then go and prepare breakfast while everyone else gets ready. During the school holidays, however, I tend to sleep in and get up at about 6:30 am. The first person gets up at about 9:00 am. This gives me ample time to put in some work. It is only after someone is awake that I start breakfast. The only exception here is if my husband lets me know he will be leaving early the next morning. This switch in my routine has enabled me to get results on my big goal for the day.

#2. Ensure The Kids Have A Goal to Work On Each Day

We are teaching the kids about goal setting and how to always do things in time and not wait until the last minute. At the beginning of the school holiday, I set for them a target of how many books they each have to read. They responded that those were too many books. To help them achieve their goal, I shared with them how to develop reading habits. 

Every night at dinner time, I ask each of them to share their big goal for the next day. During the day after they have had breakfast, we break up to work on our goals. Their goals range from reading 2 – 3 chapters of a book, write a story (Ephraim is working on a book of 400 pages) or do a craft (Esther-Joy likes crafting).

I tell you this has been effective not only to give me quiet time to work but the kids have achieved results too. In two weeks they have completed some books each. Esther-Joy has made several crafts and Ephraim is making progress with his book.

#3. Remain Productive By Setting One Big Goal For Yourself Each Day

To be honest this has been a very overwhelming season for me. We are relocating and I have to pack our things for a fourteen-year marriage into suitcases. To not say this is not a daunting task would be to tell a lie. I have turned to my own advice on how to deal with overwhelm and this has brought me results. In order to remain productive during the school holidays, you need to remember that you have to slow down a little.

In view of this, every day I set for myself ONE big goal. I focus on this and sometimes turn to my time blocking sheet to allocate my time in the day. I ensure I focus on this one goal before getting into other things like packing. If other things come into my mind I stop and write them down. Once I am through with my big goal I may tackle the new things if not they become the big goal for the next day. This leads me to the next tip.

#4. Begin Each Day With A Plan In Order To Remain Productive 

I usually begin the week by creating a weekly plan using my weekly planning sheet. However, during school holidays I plan one day at a time. I always end my work time by setting a big goal for the next day. Planning this way has ensured I remain productive during the school holiday and also make time to enjoy other activities with the kids. Sometimes, someone will call in the morning for an afternoon play date. Since I would have put in work hours in the early morning I jump on the opportunity. Remember it is holiday season and the kids need to remember they enjoyed their holiday.

#5. Make Time For Self Care

It is very easy to forget to take care of yourself during the school holidays after all everyone is looking to you for help. However, I always remind myself that in order to be an effective wife and mother I have to first be the best me. I turn to some of my best ways of ensuring I incorporate self-care into my life. As I have navigated this season of overwhelm, I have discovered that listening to some good worship music from either Chris Tomlin or Hillsong brings me joy and calms my spirit.

Finally,

You need to remember that although your goal is to remain productive during the school holiday, the holidays are there for you to also rest and rejuvenate. In view of this allow yourself to enjoy and rest. It may seem to be counter-intuitive but doing this will bring you success in your business or work.  

I hope you will find that some of these tips will help you remain productive during the school holidays. I wish you a restful and productive holiday.