Get a burst of energy

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.

Did you wake up tired today? That's certainly happened to me. To get a burst of energy grab a cup of coffee, do 10 push-ups, vow to stay off social media until lunch, and make a quick list. These "go to" steps will help you feel more ready to take on the day.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

Get the heart of issues with your employees

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.

Meeting regularly with your employees one-on-one is an easy way to increase productivity and engagement. But when you hold the meetings but don't get to the core of the employee's questions or issues, it's a lose-lose situation. You're spending the time without getting any of the benefit. Thankfully, there's a simple question that opens the door for the employee to share more:

Are we talking about what's most important to you?

You can use it to get to the heart of the questions and issues on your employee's minds. Knowing the problem puts you in a better position to resolve them -- and improve the working environment.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

Declutter for 10 minutes

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.

Clutter can be overwhelming and make problems feel bigger than they are. Take 10 minutes today to declutter something, anything in your house. Set the timer, clear out unneeded stuff, and stop when the time is up. 

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

Build self-awareness by looking back on last year

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.

You're probably thinking about next year right about now. Questions such as "What do I want? Where should I go? What should I do?" are bouncing around in between work and to-do list items.

Our problem isn't the goals themselves. Instead the mistakes we continue to make are the optimistic assumptions about how we're going to be different in working towards these goals. If we don't change anything about ourselves -- how we prioritize, manage time, and say yes or no to distractions -- we shouldn't expect different results. Knowing where we got stuck before can help us get unstuck in the future.

Looking back at last year, ask yourself the following questions.

  • What was harder than I thought it would be this year? Why?
  • What accomplishments did I make that I wasn't expecting?
  • What percent of my time this year was dedicated to day-to-day activities at work and home? How much time can I realistically devote to something new?
  • If I take on something new, what else can I take off my plate?

The answers will help you identify patterns and habits that are holding you back. Address these before diving into this year's goals.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

Don't stay annoyed

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.

Is someone at the office annoying you? You're not alone. 75 percent of us are annoyed with a coworker this very minute. You don't have to stay annoyed. However, effectively confronting someone requires a couple of important steps. First, get clear in your mind about what's bothering you and what you'd like to see changed. Be realistic, and separate behaviors (that are changeable) from personality traits. Request private time with the person and ensure you're out of earshot from your other coworkers. Ask the individual if they'd be open to feedback about their work behavior. If they say yes, proceed with sharing your issue. Stick to what's annoying about the behavior -- not the person. Specifically request the change you want to see and suggest a reasonable action they could take to reduce the annoyance.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

Help your company give back to the community

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.

According to a study by Randstad, 75 percent of employees want their company to participate in philanthropic activities. Corporate philanthropy makes people feel good about their employer and good about themselves for participating.

The first challenge is selecting a charitable organization to donate funds, goods, or time to. Narrowing down the options in a sea of worthwhile causes is tough. 

Then do your homework and ensure that the organization you select is, in fact, as great as it says it is. You can do this through referrals, site visits, or checking with CharityWatch.org from the American Institute of Philanthropy for ratings

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

Flip Negative Self-Talk

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

Too many working moms beat themselves up. Negative self-talk can be so much a part of the running dialog in your head that you don’t even notice it. All of that negativity can ruin your day and hold you back from achieving your goals. Research shows while negative emotions can create short-term motivation, they’re not effective in creating lasting changes in your behavior.

To flip that negative self-talk, start by paying attention and noticing when you do it. Then ask yourself, "If I heard a child say these words, how would I respond?" 

As adults with responsibilities and experiences, we forget to be kind and encouraging to ourselves. We lose touch with the knowledge that pep talks work. While there is a time and place for tough, reality-checking conversations, the day-to-day dialog we have in our own heads needs to be focused on what’s possible—not excuses for what we don’t think we can accomplish.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

Take an incremental approach to goal-setting

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

Instead of setting big goals, set small, more-realistic ones. Then promise yourself to set another and another and another as you achieve them. This incremental approach is more effective because what you want is progress- no “all or nothing.”

How can you tell if a goal is too big? Sometimes we don’t know enough to know when we’ve bitten off too much. Consider asking a trusted friend for their opinion.

Once you’ve set a goal, make achieving that goal part of your daily life by changing your habits. Any goal you work on once a week or once a month is destined to be forgotten or pushed down on your priority list. 

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

 

 

Set achievable goals

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

When you set a big goal, you’re really assigning yourself thousands of small tasks. People give up on their goals because they haven’t planned for the time and work needed. No one wants to talk you out of a big goal. You should definitely pursue what you want most in life. However, you should be realistic about where you are today, where you want to go and what’s reasonable to achieve in the timeframe and with the resources you’ve allocated. If you don’t have the time or know how starting out, it makes sense to set a more achievable goal.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com

Check the weather, plan your meals

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

Check the weather, plan your meals    Creating a weekly meal plan cuts down on last minute decisions and stops at the grocery store. Dinner becomes one less thing to think about which, of course, saves time. I used to struggle with meal planning because I didn't know what I'd be in the mood to eat. What helps me now is a quick check of the 5-day weather forecast. Rain, sunshine, and temperature have a big impact on what I want to eat. For example, a lot of people like soup on chilly, rainy days. The weather will help narrow down your options and ensure you're not planning to grill-out during a downpour.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com
 

Create a home for your recipes

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

Whether online or printed out and kept in a drawer, you need a simple system for keeping recipes. Create a repository of those you and your family loved and those you want to try. Lots of online recipe sites offer options. I use allrecipes.com because of the variety and less complicated dishes. However, for the stuff I make (or bake) most often, I print out a copy for super easy access.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com
 

Set aside 3 times per day to check email

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

Set aside 3 times per day to check email    I often have all of my multiple email inboxes up and running throughout the day. It's distracting and takes time away from my most important tasks. I do this because I want people to know I'm there and think I'm responsive but this comes at a price. Instead of constantly reacting, I'm trying something else. I schedule 3 times a day to check email. Within about 30 minutes of starting my day, after lunch, and one hour before I plan to end for the day. If I can't quickly resolve the question or issue in the message, I'll schedule time for later in the week on my calendar to address it. This requires some self-discipline and a committment to put yourself first which is the hardest part for me. But limiting distractions is the only way to get focused blocks of time.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com
 

Notice when you're busyworking

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

Doing first things first means knowing your priorities and working in that order. We all know this but still don't do it.  Get more aware about when you're going to easy, busy-work kind of tasks on your "to do" list instead of focusing on what's most important. Acknowledge to yourself what you're feeling when you do that. Are you avoiding something? For me, opting for busywork is often one way I avoid the fear and uncertainty associated with my more important goals. For today, the tip is to just be more aware of when you're doing this by asking yourself, "Is this the most important thing for me to be doing right now?" each time you start a new task.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com
 

Get yourself unstuck

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

Get unstuck    We all know the feeling of being stuck and unable to make progress on a big goal or project. When you're stuck, it's the goal telling you that the first step isn't clear. Take another look and find the most obvious, do-able first step you can take to get started and do it. Then repeat this exercise the next day and the next. Achieving any big goal is just the accumulation of hundreds or thousands of small actions done consistently over time.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com
 

Pick yourself up

Hey Mama! This is Robin Camarote with your Working Mom Tip of the Day.    

pick yourself up working mom tip of the day on alexa.png

Pick yourself up and start again. Outright failure is less of an issue for me than my loss of motivation. I start and stop too many projects to count. When this happens, we have to reconnect with what matters and what we're trying to accomplish. This quote from Maya Angelou makes sense to me. “You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.” Let's start again.

Thanks for listening. You got this! For more, head over to my blog at robincamarote.com