The ATA Chronicle - March/April 2021 - 20

Your business and
family need the best
version of you-as
relaxed as possible,
motivated, taken care
of, and physically and
mentally strong.

Challenge #2: From a
Freelancing Parent to a
Jack-of-All-Trades
The most surprising shift
for nearly all parents came
with the pandemic. Apart
from being forced to work
from home, both freelancers
and in-office employees
had to suddenly take on the
roles of teacher, supervisor,
non-stop entertainer, and
professional multitasker.
Due to the challenges created
by the COVID-19 crisis,
most self-employed parents
experienced an income drop
and had to reduce their
working hours up to 30% to
live up to the requirements
of the new reality.2 How do
you focus on work when you
need to constantly check on
your children? How do you
avoid the burnout and keep
clear boundaries between
home and work when you're
constantly " on " ? To regain
your sanity, start with the
following steps.
Prioritize Your Self-Care:
Your business and family

need the best version

you need a plan. Create a

of you-as relaxed as

schedule for work and home-

possible, motivated, taken

schooling activities, discuss

care of, and physically and

it with your family members,

mentally strong. It's not

and then stick to it. Once you

easy, especially if your

divide your day into fixed

responsibilities seem to

chunks of work, household

multiply and your to-do list

chores, and home-schooling

never ends. No matter where

responsibilities, everyone

you are on your adventure

will be more likely to get

as a freelancing parent, you

their jobs done.3

can't be resourceful if you
keep neglecting yourself.
When you take time to look

up routines and systems

wonderful things happen.

for simple tasks such as

For example, you're able

preparing healthy snacks or

to find answers to many

organizing study materials

questions such as: Why am

to limit the number of times

I doing this today? Why do
I want to continue running
my business? Why is this
task so important? Why do I
feel I need more alone time?
Prioritizing your well-being
will help you show up for
others, realign with your
goals, and get ready to serve
and help-whether it's your
clients, your family, or the
people around you.
Self-care doesn't have
to be expensive or time
sleep, having a healthy diet,
and surrounding yourself
with positive people are
very simple and powerful
activities that will help you
find energy and motivation
for your business and
family. And if you can
complement these simple
steps with physical exercise
or meditation, you'll reap
even more benefits. After
all, you can't pour from an
empty cup, so make sure
your self-care cup is always
full to share your resources

The ATA Chronicle | March/April 2021

independent by setting

after yourself on all levels,

consuming. Getting enough

20

Remember to encourage
your children to be more

family members call for your
help. Freelancing gives you
some degree of freedom and
flexibility in this regard, so
try to adapt your work time
to your children's homeschooling schedule. If you
have a partner, communicate
clearly with them to share
the home-schooling and
household responsibilities.
You can't cope with
everything alone, so don't
be afraid to delegate or ask
for help. If possible, arrange
for paid or unpaid support: a
family member, neighbor, or
babysitter who could spend
some time with your children
and give you an opportunity
to work in silence without
interruptions. Maybe there
are other freelancing parents
around you who also struggle
with our new reality. What
about organizing playdates
or negotiating homeschooling swaps to create
some kid-free time at least
once a week? Little tweaks

with others.

here and there may help you

Care about Your Plan:

marathon and let you stay in

To navigate through so

control when you feel you're

many different challenges,

losing it.

survive even the toughest

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The ATA Chronicle - March/April 2021

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