211: Back to School TIME-SAVING Hacks and Tricks for Your Sanity

Camille: 0:00

Don't hesitate to delegate tasks to your partner, family members, or even higher help if possible. If you've been around here for even more than one episode, you know that this is my number one tip of life is to ask for help, delegate, automate, eliminate. So you want to make an impact. You're thinking about starting a business, sharing your voice. How do women do it that handle motherhood, family and still chase after those dreams? We'll listen each week as we dive into the stories of women who know this is Call Me CEO. Is Call Me CEO. Welcome back, everyone to Call Me CEO. This is Camille Walker. I am your host and I hope that you are here to be inspired Now.

Camille: 0:53

I know that if you clicked on this, you're probably feeling the way I am, that back to school time is a crazy time for all of us and we're all looking for some extra tips, especially for those of us who are juggling work and kids, and it's just a busy time. I do not profess to be an expert. However, I am doing something a little interesting today. I asked chat GPT to write back to school tips and I'm going to tell you whether or not I have agreed. I agree with them, I have done them, or if I've done something different and found it to be better. Now. I love using chat, gpt to help me write show notes, blog posts, um outlines different things like that, but it never replaces true experience.

Camille: 1:40

So if you're listening to this and you agree or you disagree, that's okay. All of us have different experiences. I personally am a mother of four and this year I have four different kids at four different schools and this is going to be a different experience for me. But every single year is a different season, I think, in many ways. When I was dealing with kids who had nap times and also school times, that felt so overwhelming to me, and now that I have kids who are teenagers and multiple activities and young school age kids, that feels overwhelming too. So if you're listening to this, and whether you have adult children, tiny children, babies, whatever it is, take it with a grain of salt, for the season that you're in, each of us is doing something different. Each of us is on our own journey and path, so take these as what they are and take them with a grain of salt, but let's dive in.

Camille: 2:32

So number one is to plan ahead. Now, I agree with this one. It says to create a family calendar and sync your work schedule with school events, extracurricular activities and appointments. This helps prevent conflict. Now, this is something where I have used Calendly to help me to schedule my work meetings with Zoom, and it links with my personal calendar so that it doesn't override or overlap each other. It has been a game changer for me.

Camille: 3:01

Another thing that I do is I will share a calendar with my family. We have a shared calendar for a cabin that we share with my extended family. We have a calendar where I will send events just to my kids but, to be honest, where my kids are not really using email a whole lot yet and my younger kids don't even have phones. My favorite and best way to share a calendar right now is by using a printed calendar that I put on the wall that everyone can see. Now I've done the dry erase board thing. I've done a month at a glance, but what I've really enjoyed recently is just creating a printed calendar that's 24 by 36 and doing our own markers, color coding, markers of the kid and the activity, so at a glance they can look at it and know what's coming up. I did this for the summer and it was a one, basically a one sheet of the whole summer June, july, august of what we were doing as a family, and my older kids actually took a photo of that and kept it as a favorite so that they could go back to it instead of saying, oh mom, what day did I have such and such camp or this activity? She would pull up her picture of the calendar and she preferred that over having digital invitation. Now, whatever works for you works for you, but this has seemed to work well for my older kids and my younger kids. And then I can just start over. I have made a free printable available for you that is 24 by 36 printable. It's a very basic, but you can make it your own. August is by itself, depending on whether or not you had a summer calendar you were already using, and then September October is a shared 24 by 36. And then November December is shared 24 by 36. So it's a little bit bigger than my summer calendar was, so that it's life's a little busier and I felt like I needed more room for each of those calendar months, because school I just have so many more kids doing so many different things at the same time. So that is in the show notes below. That is a freebie for you. Please take advantage of that.

Camille: 5:09

Now another tip here is to meal prep. This is what chat TVT says Prepare meals and snacks in advance to save time during the week. Consider batch cooking on weekends and using a meal planner. Now, some things that have worked well for me. I love beehive meals. I have a discount code for you in the description. Those are freezer meals you can throw in the crock pot on days that you are just crazy busy. Another thing that I love to do is to have snack bins available for my kids that they can have easy to go to snacks or meals if we are in a big rush. Meal prepping in advance I love doing that when I have the time. I'm not always great at that, if I'm honest, but one thing that has been really helpful for us is we will meal prep just the meat. I find that if I have meat that's been browned ahead of time and then frozen or smoked and then packaged away, that has saved us so much time, because usually, for me, meat is what takes the longest. So even if it's just the meat that you can meal prep, do that All right.

Camille: 6:11

Next we're going into establish routines. Chat TPT says set a consistent morning schedule to reduce stress, lay out clothes, pack lunches and organize school bags the night before. I have done a little bit of this. When my kids were younger, we would set out outfits in advance and even have like a bin that would hang in the closet Monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday and they would have their outfit already set and ready to go with the socks and the underwear. Now that my kids are a little bit older, it's more important that the clothes are simply clean and they can do it themselves. I have found and I don't know if this is from laziness or brilliance, but my kids have done a fantastic job of getting themselves up and ready. I do not pack their lunches, I do not get them dressed once they're you know six, even five. Um, they can do it themselves and I don't worry too much about the outfit being just perfect. I have mostly boys, so I haven't had to do a lot of hair. Now that my daughter is in junior high, she's really getting into how her hair looks and I'm getting a little more involved in that. But I told her that my mom was working and I had to learn how to do my own hair. That included French braiding, that included curling, that, and sometimes that means figuring it out the night before. I love heatless curls and that you put in and wrap. I don't really do much of that unless it's a special occasion because my mom was working. It made it, so I had to learn, and I think that it's okay for your kids to not have the perfect hair or the perfect outfit, and they'll figure it out, and if it's important to them, they will wake up and get it done themselves.

Camille: 7:58

I of course don't say send your kids to school without a lunch. My kids have just figured out how to do that. But we keep our grab and go lunch items very simple, and I ask each of my kids ahead of time what do you want me to order from the grocery store? Cause we do grocery delivery. What do you want to order? So that it's food that you want to pack and eat at lunch? Cause that's important to me that they're packing and they're eating. That's the most important thing. And so we do talk about a protein source. So we have our favorite protein bars that they love, or if they want to make a sandwich or make some soup or whatever it is. And then we talk about what's your fruit, what's your vegetable and is there a snack you need for your walk home. But it's very simple. I don't get too bent out of shape if it's not a perfect, balanced meal every single day, but we do talk about elements of nutrition. Do you have a protein? Do you have a fruit and vegetable? What do you want to drink? That's it. That's it Like. I just keep it pretty simple.

Camille: 8:55

Now, after school routine GPT says designate time for homework, play, family activities. A structured routine helps kids transition from school to home more smoothly, and I agree with this. For us, I have found and this is where it gets a little tricky, especially for kids that are a little bit older or for children that are on ADHD medication, because it does wear off I have found that if you can get your kids to do their homework as soon as possible after school, the better. That doesn't mean, however, that right when they get home, they can't have a little bit of a break. So typically what we'll do is we'll have them empty the backpack, get the lunch and the homework out, take 20 at the most 30 minutes to take a break, to do something that helps them to feel revived, have a little snack and then we get the homework done, because if you let it go too long, it's hard to get back onto that wagon. But listen, every kid is different. Sometimes there's activities right after school. Sometimes it's best to just sit down and get the homework done right away. Depending on your kid, that may or may not be a fight, and this is where you have discretion. Their personality, if their medication, is an element that you need to talk about, if they need to be in a specific place that they're not as distracted. So that is one that I think that after school routine, whatever it is, make it so that it works for you and your family, just like anything else Okay.

Camille: 10:26

Number three is to delegate and share responsibilities. Chat GPT says involve your kids, teach your children to take responsibility for their tasks, like packing their bags and helping with simple chores. I agree with this 100%. The next tip is to ask for help. Don't hesitate to delegate tasks to your partner, family members, or even higher help if possible, if you've been around here for even more than one episode. You know that this is my number one tip of life is to ask for help, delegate, automate, eliminate. Hey there, parents, teachers and coaches, welcome to 5-Minute Meditations for Kids, the podcast that helps your little ones find their calm, boost their confidence and tackle whatever life throws their way.

Speaker 2: 11:13

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Camille: 11:28

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Speaker 2: 11:36

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Camille: 12:20

So that means that you go through the must-dos, the must-haves, and you let go of the rest, or you give it to someone that can do it better or to help carry the load. I think it's really important, especially for working parents, that they let their children know that it's a team effort towards any success, and I think that that is something that helps them to feel more involved, but also to have the discussion as to why. Why is it important that we help each other and that we work as a team, and that is a beautiful way to work hard and play hard together. I think that it's really important that you communicate your needs, because the breakdown and burnout of most women that I coach and I talk to is when they are trying to take on too much themselves because they can do it quicker, faster or better. Now, this also applies to your work, so if you are in a situation where you could benefit from a virtual assistant, that is actually something that I help people do. I help people hire virtual assistants from women that go through my course 60 days to VA to help other women learn how to be virtual assistants build their own businesses, and then I help busy moms who are business owners hire virtual assistants so that they can offload the craziness. Okay, so if you're on either side of that coin, I am here to help you. That is literally what I do is to help women find more balance in their lives. Whether you need a VA, or if you're listening to this and you're thinking, ooh, maybe I could be a virtual assistant, let me help you. You can reach out to me at camillewalkerco on Instagram or my website is camillewalkerco. You can reach out to me either way. You can also email me at callmeceopodcast at gmailcom, all right.

Camille: 14:03

Number four is to prioritize self-care. Now, chat GPT says schedule me time. This is something we're hearing about all the time. Carve out time for yourself, whether it's morning walk, coffee break or reading a book. Self-care is essential for maintaining balance. I am so happy with chat GPT right now because again, this is another thing that I talk about all the time I have a 30 minute fitness challenge that I've been doing now for over 200 days. I have not missed one day of getting in at least 30 minutes of intentional movement. That has been on days that I've been sick. That has been on days that it's raining. That has been on days that I've been sick. That has been on days that it's raining. That has been on days that it is a blizzard outside. I find a way to fit in 30 minutes for my movement, which in turn is 30 minutes for my mental health. It really makes a difference for me. I have a free accountability group on Instagram. If you want to be a part of that, dm me. But something that feels like self care to you may look different than that. Maybe it's not 30 minutes of movement, maybe it is a coffee break, or maybe it is a phone call with your best friend, or maybe it is reading a book.

Camille: 15:16

One of my favorite mental health breaks right now you guys are going to laugh is playing Stardew Valley and listening to a book. I don't know what it is about. My kids love to game with me and I love my Nintendo Switch. I'm actually a partner with Nintendo. I talk about new upcoming games that they have all the time, but I love the Stardew Valley. It's basically like one of those games where you build a farm and you mine products.

Camille: 15:45

But I can't just sit and play a game. I feel like I'm wasting time. So instead I will listen to my book and play the game and then I feel like I'm nourishing my mind. But I'm also like brain I guess some people call it a brain fart where you're just kind of like relaxing, and I think that's okay. I think it's okay to have those moments. Sometimes we get stuck in brain I guess some people call it a brain fart where you're just kind of like relaxing, and I think that's okay. I think it's okay to have those moments. Sometimes we get stuck in a doom scroll where it can be helpful but it can also be hurt, hurtful. So pay attention to that If you're like yeah, I spend time on my phone scrolling and it's so fun for me, is it? Or do you need to set a timer for 30 minutes and figure out if it's draining you rather than nourishing you? So for me, if I'm on my Nintendo switch, I'm off of my phone. I don't have to be like worried too much about an email notification or some other social media notification distracting me and taking me down a different way. So that's just one for me. It's kind of silly, but it's fun.

Camille: 16:44

Mindful morning Start your day with a few minutes of mindfulness or journaling to set a positive tone for the day. I love this new routine that I've started with having a mindful stretch and mindfulness for at least five minutes in the morning. I am not perfect at making my bed I'm working on that. That's like my next goal but one thing I have started doing more consistently is doing a five minute mindfulness, and one resource that I really love for this is in Apple fitness. There is five minute meditations five, 10, 15, 20, 30, and you can easily pop it in and listen. I also love the Calm app. It is free and there are free mini meditations on there too. I think it's really wonderful to sit in your thoughts before you allow outside influences to come in, so consider what that could look like for you.

Camille: 17:34

Number five is to stay flexible and adaptable. Chat GPT says plan B be ready to adjust your plans when unexpected events arise. Flexibility can reduce stress and help you navigate the school year more smoothly. We are having to do a plan B right now. One of my children got the one teacher at the school that I said. If this a child gets this teacher, I will never do that again, and unfortunately we can't switch. So we're having to stay flexible and adaptable and do our best with keeping a positive attitude, and that can be difficult because there are a lot of times that things are out of our control. But I think the more that you learn with life, if you get too hung up in the small things, you will be miserable. You will be miserable. You have to let things go so that you can relax and just let life take you where it needs to go, and that really leaves mental capacity for creativity when you're not living in a space of stress or control and wanting to make everything look a certain way.

Camille: 18:40

Virtual tools Use apps and online tools to stay organized, manage tasks and communicate with teachers and other parents. This is something that's becoming more and more popular, things like Class Dojo or WhatsApp or GroupMe, which I think is really cool. It's nice to be able to do that. One thing I really like to do is to keep them all in one place and a note of who goes where with which app, because it can get confusing. I'm online a lot and even for me, who I'm quite familiar with apps, it can be overwhelming.

Camille: 19:13

Number six is to set realistic expectations. Avoid over committing. It's okay to say no to extra responsibilities or activities that add to your stress. Focus on what truly matters. This is something that I think if there was one theme of women that I talked to, it is about overcommitment, or to feel guilty or feel shame for saying no to anything for anyone, and it's that's not okay. That is not something that I think needs to be a part of our culture, because we have limits and rest is oftentimes a lot more productive than doing that next thing or pushing that next agenda, whatever it might be. I mentioned on my last solo episode that my husband and I recently went to Paris and to Colmar, france, and to Switzerland, and one of the number one things that stuck out to me was the prioritization of rest.

Camille: 20:08

Midday lunchtime, kids, teenagers, adults everyone goes and rests. They take a two hour lunch, they'll lay on the grass, they'll talk with their friends, they'll take a little nap, and it is such a different speed and my husband and I are working on that. We came home and said, okay, what can we do? Sorry, eugene, edit that. We said what can we do to live our lives a little bit more like this, where we take a time, take time to rest or to even enjoy outside the grass and lay around and just be present. So we're working on that.

Camille: 20:52

One tip here is to have quality over quantity, to spend time with your kids, even if it's just a few minutes a day, to create connection. That matters. A resource that I have for this is a journal that I wrote called Time for Us. It is a journal for parents and children to do together. It's for kids ages 2 to 12 generally, but it's really creative, intriguing questions to talk about their day and also to connect with each other. It's available on Amazon. I will link to that below as well. But really think about even five minutes of time that you could spend with a kid, just focusing on what it is that they need, want or want to express to you.

Camille: 21:29

One thing that I've really gotten into, especially now that my kids are a little bit older, it's easier more easier than ever is to have one-on-one dates with them. So, as I'm recording, this, school hasn't quite started yet, but this last week, two weeks, I've been having each kid pick a one-on-one date for us to do together and something that would really mean a lot to them with what we do. And it's funny what my kids came up with. One child wanted to go to Ikea and to walk around and to buy the chocolate. Another kid wanted to go to a movie and another one wanted to just go out to eat and go thrifting. And then my youngest really wanted to go to the shops and go school shopping and get some new school shoes. So it doesn't have to be big, but just to show that you are asking them and you have effort.

Camille: 22:19

Oh, and this is number seven, to stay connected with your kids Check-ins regularly, ask your kids about their day, feelings and any challenges they face. Open communication builds trust and helps you stay in tune with their needs and family meetings hold weekly family meetings to discuss the upcoming week schedule, address any concerns and celebrate achievements. This is actually something my husband and I do. We're better at doing this during the school year, where we have a little bit more of a structure to our day and our weeks, but we get together on Sundays and my husband and I will sit in the office or sometimes the kitchen, and we have one kid come in at a time and we we call it family meetings. That's exactly what we call it, and we talk about something that they've done well that week, something that they may need help with or a behavioral thing that they're working on that we want to talk about, and also activities that they have coming up that they're excited about or that they're worried about, and it's one-on-one time just with the two of us and with them. This is also a time that we will give them rewards if we've been doing some kind of family short chart system or allowance which, again, depending on the season, that's come and gone, depending on what's going on with our lives. But I've found that the times that we are consistent with these family meetings not only for my husband and I to talk about our budget, our week, our schedule, the kids, and then not taking the kids in one at a time our family operates so much more smoothly. This is also a time that I'll talk to my kids about food that they want to eat that week and helping me to prepare that. Sometimes they'll take turns and help me prepare their favorite meal.

Camille: 23:50

Number eight is to leverage your network Carpooling, coordinating with other parents for carpooling to reduce your workload and give you more time. This is something that has been so helpful, especially when my kids were younger and I had napping children at home and I really couldn't get going everywhere all the time is to work with other parents, figure out carpooling, take turns, and now that I have a child that is 16, yay, it's not great for the insurance, but it is sure nice to have help with driving the kids around. You better believe I am asking him for his help. And last is, have support groups. Join local or online groups for working moms where you can share the experience, get advice and offer support.

Camille: 24:29

Now this is perfect timing and segue for my big announcement I am offering group coaching. That is starting in October and it is going to be amazing because I'm actually bringing your beloved past interviewees from this podcast together to create a group coaching for women in business. This is a higher level women coaching in business that you can learn and help teach each other in fields that you need help with. Think about distribution, social media presence, authenticity, branding, storytelling, connecting, networking. It's all about helping you create an elevation of all of you together through networking and helping to teach each other through this incredible journey of entrepreneurship. So if you are interested, please check out the links below. It is soon to be coming and I am putting together the final nuts and bolts, but it is going to be amazing twice a month, zoom weekly meetings and possibly a one I don't know I'm toying with an in-person event, but I think, with all of us how busy we are. It could be potentially one at the end of the year that I bring everyone together, but it's more about supporting and networking virtually because I think that, honestly, that's something that we can all do. So I'm so excited.

Camille: 25:54

This has been a long time coming and it's bringing together a lot of resources, about building your business and helping each other as you do it. So thank you so much for listening to these tips. I hope you found them helpful and my best wishes to you as you would tackle the new school year. I know as a mother that sometimes, if not all the time, it is more emotional and, in many ways, higher highs and lower lows than when you were in school, watching your children grow and develop and go through hard things, and I want you to know that you are capable and you have everything that you need to make your parenting a success and to get things done. Just don't be worried about asking for help. Look for ways to increase your network and to expand your ability so that you are not spreading yourself too thin.

Camille: 26:44

Thank you so much for listening today. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a five-star rating and review, as well as share it with a friend. I appreciate you and I'll see you next time. Hey CEOs, thank you so much for spending your time with me. If you found this episode inspiring or helpful, please let me know in a comment and a five-star review. You could have the chance of being a featured review on an upcoming episode. Continue the conversation on Instagram at callmeCEOPodcast, and remember you are the boss.