8 Distractions For Stay At Home Moms Should Avoid To Stay Productive!

We are only given 24 hours a day and during that time period, there are certain expectations of what we must get done. Whoever said that stay-at-home mom’s do nothing have never spent a day in our shoes. We have a chore list a mile long of things to do such as cleaning, laundry, feeding the kids, bathing the kids, playing with the kids, grocery shopping, bill paying, making and preparing meals for our family, transporting children, and the list goes on and on.

However, there are some mothers that find themselves overwhelmed at the end of the day the house is a disaster with dishes everywhere, laundry sitting in baskets waiting to be folded, papers to be filed, and a bathroom that needs to be cleaned.

Life seems chaotic.

You are stressed to the max.

You scratch your head and wonder where the day went and why you did not get anything done.

You see other mom’s that seem to have their act together and wonder why that cannot be you.

Well, let me fill you in a little secret. You can be just like those moms. You can stop the stress and have a productive day. Do you want to know how?

You must learn how to avoid the top eight distractions that stay-at-home mom’s face.

1. Not Saying No Enough

If you find it too difficult to say no to others, you may find that you actually have little time for what is truly important.

Do you say no enough in these following areas?

  • Volunteering: at church, your child’s school, PTA groups, sporting events, and so on.
  • Girls night out or weekend away: Do you have friends that are constantly planning something and you feel as if you cannot say no because they are your “best” friends?
  • Eating out: Do you feel pressured daily at work to go out to eat at lunch or after work with your co-workers?
  • Sleepovers: What about those pesky weekend sleepovers that all you feel you must compete with?
  • Bible studies: Is there another Bible study or small group at your church that you feel you must be involved in?

There can be too much of a good thing when it comes to volunteering your time, how you spend your time, and where you spend your time. Even if something is inherently good or seems like a good place to spend your time, in the long run, it may be soaking up all of your time that could be spent elsewhere.

Learning how to say no to others that want your time, can actually become a very liberating feeling. Once you say no the first time, it gets easier each time you do it. You must be able to use discretion and have self-discipline when it comes who you spend your time with.

2. Phones, Social Media, Television, Books

Cell phones are everywhere these days. It seems that everybody has one. Some may even argue that it is a necessity and impossible to live without. As a woman who is home during the day, how much time are you spending on your phone? It is easy to find reasons that seem legit, but in all reality completely unnecessary.

It is easy to use the phone to surf the internet, text a friend, send photos, check your banking, share a recipe, and play a game. The relative ease and compactness of the phone allow you to use it anywhere. The phone is a major time waster and distraction for too many homemakers.

Having the phone in close proximity allows you to check your social media accounts, email, or latest text from a friend.

Ladies, it is time to put the phone down.

Social media can be a major distraction from your daily duties. Sitting down and checking facebook for just a few minutes can lead to hours of time wasted, and before you know it you’re stalking your husband’s cousins aunts next door neighbor on facebook, but your laundry is not done and your husband will be home from work in ten minutes.

Just as social media and cell phone usage can be a time waster, so can becoming absorbed in novels or television programs. Binge-watching an entire Netflix series within an afternoon while your children play alone has become all too common for young and older mothers alike.

Timothy 5:13:

“At the same time, they also learn to be idle,

as they go around from house to house; and not merely idle,

but also gossips and busybodies,

talking about things not proper to mention.”

3. Gossip

Christian women should not be spending their days gossiping, stirring up drama, or going from house to house wasting time. Our time is to be spent managing the affairs of our home and raising our children. It is all too easy to find ourselves answering the phone and before you know it you have spent a wasted hour on the phone.

Or it may be the opposite and you’re the one to pick up the phone to make a call. Usually, phone calls are made when one is bored. When one is bored, it is easier to gossip, especially without a real purpose for the call.

Be very careful of what you talk about and with whom you talk to. It is a slippery slope once you start talking about somebody.

It is easy to gossip. It often makes you feel better about yourself gossiping. Time flies when you’re having a good conversation in good company, right?

2 Thessalonians 3:11

For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life,

doing no work at all,

but acting like busybodies.

4. Self-Care

Everything from magazines to blog articles touts the benefits of self-care. Self-care can fall into categories such as exercise, sleeping, beauty regimens, yoga classes, and shopping therapy are just a few ways to practice “self-care” as a woman.

Putting ourselves first may seem extremely important, but does it come at the expense of ignoring the basic needs of your family?

As a keeper of the home, we are to be self-disciplined enough to maintain proper priorities. Our priorities in order should be God, our husband, our children, and then ourselves. We were designed to be helpmeets to our husbands.

Adam was created first by the Lord, but he was lonely. “The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” Genesis 2:18. And according to 1 Corinthians 11:9
“Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man.”

Did you get that? We were created for man, in our own personal cases, that is our husband.

This is not to say that a woman cannot take the time to take care of herself. It is imperative that we do take care of ourselves so that we can be healthy wives and mothers.

However, there must be a balance that we strike when it comes to spending too much time on ourselves.

Titus 2:4, Exhorts older women to train younger women how to “love their husbands,

to love their children, to be discreet, chaste,

homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands,

that the word of God may not be blasphemed.”

5. Disorganization and Stuffitis

Too many belongings and no place to put them, can wreak havoc on your household and become a huge waste of your time. If you do not take the time to put belongings back where they go, when you actually need to find it, you will find yourself wasting time looking for it.

If you have too many belongings aka Stuffitis, you find yourself with no room to put things. This creates a cluttered effect in your home. Precious time is wasted when you are disorganized or if you suffer from Stuffitis.

As a mom and wife, it is important that you maintain an organized home and cut down on the clutter. Just being aware of the fact that you may be disorganized or the fact that you have too much stuff, is a good starting point for most women in becoming aware of how time is wasted.

6. Not Following a Routine or Procrastination

If you do not stick to a routine, you will find yourself all over the place when it comes to accomplishing your daily tasks. Routine provides you with a sense of structure and familiarity. The structure allows you to organize the needs and priorities of your household. It gives you order and organization to your family. Your family will thrive under a consistent predictable routine.

You will already know what you are doing each and every day. Once you are finished with a task, you already know what is next on your schedule. This structure provides stability for your husband and children.

If you do not follow a routine, you spend hours of wasted time struggling to be productive. You will be lost and at the end of the day, you or your husband may wonder what has gotten accomplished.

All that wasted time causes you to be an inefficient homemaker. However, if you routinely spend 15 minutes a day cleaning the main areas of your house, you will find that you don’t have to spend two hours on Saturday cleaning.

7. Not Thinking Ahead or Being Prepared

Only living for today and not thinking ahead for tomorrow can be a time waster because you end up causing more work for yourself, and ultimately your time. Instead of preparing seven hot dinners each night, for your family, you could save time by making enough to eat for a few dinners throughout the week.

In the mornings when your children or husband are getting ready for the day, scampering about looking for their clothes, and finding their needed items; it can be super crazy. However, if time was taken the night before to prepare, you would save precious time in the morning. Take the time to lay out the clothes, pack the lunches, set out the backpacks, and think what will be eaten for breakfast.

Lack of preparation can be a huge distraction, but learning how to multitask and think ahead about the individual needs of your family can be a great asset to your family.

8. Not Spending Time at the Feet of Jesus

Most importantly, if we are not spending time reading our Bibles, praying, and meditating on His truths our overall efficiency and purpose is dulled. We are not effective. We cannot minister to the needs of our family if we are not consistently at the feet of Jesus.

As a Christian wife and mother, in order for your spirit to thrive and be healthy; you need to feed on the Word. It is important to make sure that you maintain your relationship with the Creator.

If you are not spiritually well, you will suffer. Your household will suffer. Your husband will not be at his best. Your children will suffer. Precious time will be wasted as you attempt to swim in a sea of overwhelming despair.

” She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.” (-Proverbs 31:27).

Blessed Homemaker

It is an honor and blessing to be a wife and mother. Being the keepers of the home provide us with the time to tend to the needs of our children and husband. Be careful of how you spend your time and what you spend your time on throughout the day.

If you are struggling, pray for discernment and ask the Lord to show you where you are wasting time. Pray for wisdom and patience in changing those habits. Turn to the Bible and seek out His guidance for your life.

How to Avoid Distractions and Become a More Productive Homemaker


 

 

Stephanie Malcolm is a mother of seven, wife, author, blogger, and friend of Jesus. She writes over at Training Keepers of the Home and is very passionate about her ministry educating, equipping, and encouraging women in Biblical Womanhood and Christian Homemaking.
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