What about your partner?

Do you sometimes feel like YOU are the one who is juggling it all? Organizing everything around the kids, grocery shopping, cooking, washing, tidying up etc.

Probably you are.

Because, although male contribution to the household has increased in recent years, women still do 20% more. And lockdown has made it worse for many women.

What are we doing wrong here?
Well, in many cases couples still prioritise the man’s career.

How is that in your situation?
Do you share the household and childcare tasks fairly with your partner, so you have enough time for your aspirations as well?

If not (or not anymore) keep reading.

Because when couples share household responsibilities fairly, both partners are happier and relationships are stronger.

Besides that, if parents work together as a team in raising their kids, setting limits, and talking through issues, the children do better emotionally, socially and academically. 

The opportunity to make a change 

We all experience that the Covid-19 pandemic has a huge impact in our lives.
Personally, I think that one of the big eye openers has been the remote working.
There are so many advantages of working from home a couple of days a week, instead of commuting each day: being able to have dinner with the family, better concentration, more time for exercising etc.

And the flexibility of working from home is the opportunity to make a change around the household responsibilities.

So here is my assignment for you 😉 

As a team

Discuss the work-life situation with your partner and make decisions as a team with equal responsibilities:

1. Talk through each other’s career goals and planning.

2. Talk about which childcare suits this situation best.
   (And yes, probably a lot of one salary will be eaten up by childcare. But don’t forget to see it as an investment, because over time your earnings are likely to increase and the need for childcare decreases. Did you know that if women spend 3 or more years out of the workplace they lose a staggering of 37% of their earning power).

3. Make an inventory of the daily and weekly chores and split it fairly. Could a third party (like a grocery delivery service) help you with that?

4. Review and plan the family calendar together. There are some great apps for that.

5. Identify possible pitfalls to the old routine and discuss how you can support each other.
   

Make it fun

And don’t get me wrong, I totally understand that this is not the easiest topic to discuss.

So, make it fun and go on a date!
No inspiration? Don’t worry here are 10 date ideas:

• Try a new restaurant
• Go on a hike
• Roast marshmallows
• Order the best sushi in town
• Have a summer night picnic
• Plan a beach day
• Do a wine tasting tour
• Take a daytrip to a new town
• Have a fondue night
• Go on a kayak tour

All my best,
Eefke

PS: Would you like more tips to improve your work-life balance? Download my 15 tips & challenges here.