The One Hack That Can Help Working Moms Tackle Those Little Tasks

Family life comes with a million little tasks (at least that’s what it feels like) we have to keep up with. Some tasks are done weekly and others might be done monthly or even annually.

But I’ve got one word for working moms that will make tackling those little tasks easier: automation.

When you hear the word “automation” what comes to mind? I think of robots making cars in an assembly line.

But tasks like laundry and car maintenance can also be filed under automation.

When you put a little effort into automating routine activities, you can save time, money, and (most importantly) sanity in the process.

How To Automate Those Little Tasks

Automation is not quite the same as scheduling, but it is related. Anything that happens in your life with some sort of frequency like yearly, bi-yearly, quarterly, monthly, or weekly can be automated.

Here is what I did to automate routine tasks…

The first thing I did was create a spreadsheet with each item that repeats itself. Not daily since that would be classified as a habit.

I created general categories, the activity associated with that category, and frequency. Then I noted what day of the week, or the time of month or year when something needs to happen. After that, I loaded up my schedule with these things and got started.

For example, we need a furnace inspection every year. If I schedule this as a task to make the appointment, I can get it out of my mind and it just happens. I learned the hard way last year when I did not schedule an inspection and our furnace broke on the coldest day of the year.

Appointments

Regular appointments are fairly easy to schedule. For example, our family dental appointments always happen in the spring and fall, so they get slotted into the spreadsheet as bi-annual.

But what about car maintenance I mentioned earlier? Can this task be automated?

It sure can!

Decide how often you need to schedule oil changes, tire maintenance, or mileage-based maintenance. Add these to your spreadsheet and you’re all set.

Getting in front of these mundane tasks can remove your stress since you can schedule them when it works for you.

So does it work?

For me, automation does work, but not always perfectly.

From my experience, this sort of life automation helps me remember all the millions of little tasks on my plate. Even if I don’t get to those thank you cards exactly when planned, if this item is on my schedule, I am still more likely to do them.

It’s a relief to automate things that tend to pile up and are often shoved to the back burner. However, I have to keep my end of the bargain and actually do the activities I’ve set out for myself. Or delegate them, if possible.

Even a partial effort can clear some clutter in your head. And that is worth the upfront effort of figuring out your automations. Besides, once you do them, it’s really a matter of keeping them up from year to year.

Wrapping Up

When you use planning skills instead of a to-do list whenever possible, it helps relieve the brain. I learned through some research that your brain is just two percent of your body weight, yet it consumes a full 20 percent of your calories.

This is why we are more likely to yell at our children, send a scathing email, or eat chocolate at the end of our day. By evening time, our brains are cognitively spent. And when that happens, our caveman’s brain takes over (“Me angry!”).

I hope you found these tips for automating tasks. If you have any tips to share, add your comment below. Happy automating!