Is it possible to balance a family and demanding career?

Question

Note: this is non-gender specific.
And how do you go about?

Let's say it's a family with 3 or 4 kids.

Answer 1

Yes. You have to be very organized , no time wasting and your family has to help out all the time. All chores have to be clearly outlined and assigned. Plans made and followed through. Care for children distributed between all the adults, their schedule taken in account. In short: family works as a well oiled engine. The keyword is a teamwork.

Answer 2

I'll do this from the point of view of my coworker. She has a demanding career - law enforcement - and she has three children. Was she able to balance it? Yes. And, she's a widow at 50.

Most jobs to offer some leniency if you have parent/teacher conferences or doctor's appointments for the kids or even need to get to kid's activities like sports, art or music. While they do offer these, don't take them for granted because those who don't have families that would like these privileges (such as those of us who cannot have children) can feel you abuse them.

In her case, she married young and has been working for the county for 33 years (she's 52). She has said that the best thing she has ever done was time management. In the kitchen, you make one batch of meals to last you for a few days on a Sunday and do it again midweek. You spend time with your family around the dinnertable so you're not up at 10 wondering why your kids aren't back yet. You also schedule things ahead of time and have calendars. So, yes, I think for a woman it is possible to balance a family and career.

As I'm a lady, I can't say it from a male's POV.

Answer 3

Yes, for a couple it requires communication and a little help, if you both work days find some reasonable affordable help either day care , baby sitter or nanny for younger kids 5th grade and below. Manage activites figure out who is covering which activity and do not commit to too many activities, 2 activities is reasonable to manage but watch out the days so that they do not overlap or have a break between. Look at locations between activities so you are not traveling everywhere. Know when is too much and leave lots of flex time that you can do what you want when you want. If you do not manage your work schedule, travel schedule, meeting schedules day and night against your family schedule you will not be able to do it, but if you do you will be tired but you give your kids more experience with more activities.

Answer 4

Yes, you need to be organized is all Plus a great sense of humor goes along way, the humor lightens the load.
Every night have all the kid's clothes laid out. their lunches made (if needed) set the clock at least an hour and a half before you wake them up, so that you can do last minute things, such as making supper, which you will put in a slow cooker, if you have a microwave that's good too, the kitchen cleaned up etc, Get the kid's breakfast things all laid out, go and wake them up, now some will need more than one call, work with it. after the kids have eaten clean up the breakfast things, get them ready and that should be it. At least the gist of it.

Answer 5

I believe any family with young children is going to have a hard time so personally I believe it would be best that the parents either A) had one parent that could stay home full time or B) the parent was to have a flexible non-demanding career so that time could be spent with the children.

Answer 6

Well, I was thinking maybe one or two children.
Being that I'm a writer, it is easier for me to balance career and children, I work from home most of the time, except when traveling, working on a production or teaching dance, neither of which I do on a regular basis, so my time is quite flexible to take care of my family whilst working.

Answer 7

lol swift lol


anyway yes it is possible though it depends on how demanding the career is and how big a family is ?

and what type of family it is

if both parents are working or only one/ single parent / extended family

all kinds of factors are brought into play

also individually the person needs to be able to handle stress quite efficiently

because if they cant do well in their job then they cant provide for their family can they?

and if they spend too much time working then their family no- longer knows them.
but if that time is required to keep your family fed/housed etc etc
i personally would happily wither away at work knowing at least their basic needs are met

Answer 8

Yes, it is. As long as you know how to schedule everything correctly, it can be done with great skill.

Here's how it works in my family. My parents cook large quantities of meat every Sunday so we'll have dinner for the week. I know how to prepare meals, so if they ever need to stay late, my brother and I are covered. If we didn't know how to do it ourselves, our grandmother would come over and help us.

My mom isn't in a particularly demanding field — teaching — but it's a field nonetheless.

Answer 9

The traditional family is always the best model. The husband is the breadwinner and the wife is the homemaker and nurturer.

When we get away from this ideal, family and society will begin to suffer in a myriad of ways.

Answer 10

Of course, and this is coming from someone who's been in the situation [as a child]. It wasn't three or four kids, only two.. But both of my parents are doctors, and I didn't turn out too miserable, did I? :-p