Juggling work and family is one of the toughest balancing acts out there. Take it from our comedy jugglers.
With one pin in the air representing family life and another representing work and school obligations, there are plenty of airborne responsibilities to keep your eyes on. But there are a few tips we can learn from comedy jugglers who grace the office with their acts.
And no, we don’t necessarily mean that they’ll literally teach you tips on how to juggle. We’re talking about the tips that corporate entertainers can offer us when juggling work and family life.
See Related: What Is A Corporate Magician And How Can They Enhance Your Event?
#1. Planning your course of action can help you focus
A juggling team doesn’t just wing it. They walk into the room with a plan of action.
Working parents ought to be doing the same. With very little time during the week, it’s important to plan out your daily routine ahead of time.
That way, when other parenting responsibilities feel overwhelming, you can always fall back on the plan you made over the weekend.
Use it as a guiding force for your juggling act.
#2. But every schedule requires flexibility and a sense of play
Of course, the world could do with more flexibility. In fact, spontaneity is part of what makes a juggling act so spectacular in the end.
As you juggle childcare, office responsibilities, friends, and more, remember to invest in your inherent sense of play.
This can seem like silly advice.
But when you open up your morning routine to orange juice-stained smiles and impromptu dinner surprises, you’ll realize that flexibility is actually key to enjoying the juggling act in the first place.
#3. Every balancing act requires time to relax
You only see a magician speaker during their act. Not when they’re eating lunch or packing up the van to get to the next corporate event.
What you don’t see behind the magic is the time necessary to relax before the act starts all over again. Even if only for an hour, moms, dads, and parents should all support their physical health and mental well-being away from children and outside of the office.
Parents with kids, you take that date night and you take it proudly!
There’s nothing to feel guilty about if you spend your night recuperating to get ready for the next day.
#4. Even the most perfect routine isn’t perfect
A juggling act like The Passing Zone seems like a well-oiled machine. But it wasn’t always like that.
You may look at a person and think they know how to juggle work and family seamlessly. But just because some families look perfect on the outside doesn’t mean they feel perfect on the inside.
Maintain your career, parenting duties, school functions, and other responsibilities the best way you know how.
There’s not a single family or person that has everything together.
So why should you have to hold yourself to such an impossible standard too? Do what works for you.
Bonus: How To Encourage Innovation In The Workplace With Corporate Entertainment
#5. Leaning on a partner isn’t weak, it’s strategic
Parenting is one of the toughest jobs out there, if not the toughest. With any juggling act as tenuous, it’s important to lean on support not only when you need it but whenever it presents itself.
A corporate juggler can only achieve so much on their own. But when their partner shows up, the juggling act becomes a work of art.
Whether it’s through childcare, family members, parent to parent, or friend to friend, lean on your support system. It’s there for a reason.
#6. Being present keeps us from dropping the ball
It’s easy to spend all your waking hours planning the next couple of hours ahead of time. But by then, you’ve missed the morning hugs and kisses before sending your kids off to school.
Instead, try to stay as present as you possibly can.
As a parent, you have to think 5 steps ahead of your children and family.
But just like a comedy juggler, when you zone out into the future, you get lost in the act and risk dropping the ball. So use the time you have to be as present as possible with your baby, child, kids, and families. It will make the responsibilities of parenting all the more rewarding.
#7. Focus on one job at a time
If multiple things are happening on site, it’s important to direct your attention to one thing at a time. That is to say, if you’re working and parenting at home, create a dedicated work area and a dedicated kids area.
Research has shown that parenting can feel less stressful when there are specific areas designed for specific tasks.
So dinner should only be on the mind in the kitchen and time for your children should be kept outside of your work-from-home office.
#8. Reach out for support when you need it
Children may think their parents are superheroes. But even superheroes require a little help here and there.
Like comedy jugglers, parents must know their limitations.
After all, they wouldn’t be doing their children any good if they burnt themselves out, would they?
So in the midst of your juggling work and family, know that you can always reach out for support. Whether it’s help from another mom or giving your child some household responsibilities, there are plenty of creative ways to help you juggle the many aspects of your life.
#9. Don’t forget that a healthy dose of laughter goes a long way
There’s no question that laughter can help us cope with even the most difficult of situations.
In fact, there’s empirical scientific evidence to suggest that laughing can actually reduce stress hormones.
So of all these juggling tips, we’ve saved the best for last: make time for laughter. Not only with your children, your spouse, your friends, and your family.
But with yourself. Sometimes, laughing at ourselves is the best way to ground us in the present moment. It sure does the trick for us at Clean Comedians.
Keep Reading: 7 Trust-Building Benefits That Corporate Magic Can Offer Your Workplace
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Adam Christing is a professional comedy magician, virtual MC, and the founder of CleanComedians.com. He is a member of the world-famous Magic Castle in Hollywood and a popular corporate entertainer, magician, and virtual speaker.
