Great career success need not come at the cost of a fulfilling family life. People who balance it right, both men and women, come out at the end of their working life much happier for it.

Get organised

It is virtually impossible to juggle a multitude of roles at work and home if you don’t have your affairs in order. At work this will mean proper scheduling, tracking your projects, and ensuring everyone you work with adheres strictly to timelines.

If you are on the top of things it will help you work more efficiently and set an example for those around you to follow suit. With a more organised work life, you will find you are able to free up more time for family.

Plan your home life

You may also need to have a similar plan for things at home. Plan family holidays well ahead. You may consider sitting down with the whole family at the start of each year and planning all your getaways together, even down to the weekend trips. Knowing you have these breaks to look forward to, it will also keep you motivated at work and get you through the stressful times.

Have backup plans

Having good backup plans for those times when you may need to take a sick day or personal leave to look after your child. Nothing should come in the way of the good health of you and your family.

Ensure you have one or more people at work who shadow you or are in the loop on what you handle so that you can take a day off when you need it, without work slipping. The same goes for help at home.

Have a reliable babysitter, nanny, or family member who can take care of keeping the home front running if you and your spouse both need to be away on work at the same time.

Schedule in some weekly ‘me’ time

While your office work and running the home will be a top priority, don’t ignore a very important part of this equation – yourself. Whether it is spa time, a walk in the park, reading or listening to music, be sure you plan a little time every day or on the weekend to do what you love.The more revived and refreshed you start the week, the more you will be able to give of yourself.

Have a sound financial plan

Be sure to plan for your family’s future and for emergencies so that they are never strapped for cash. Get a good term insurance plan to secure their futures, even in your absence. Make a plan to meet all the family financial goals. It could be your child’s dream of starting their own business, where you may want to be their angel investor.

It could be their uni education. It might be a big international family holiday you all wish to take a few years down the line. It could even be a huge destination vow renewal you and your spouse want to treat everyone to in a far off exotic location. Ensure you sit down with a financial planning expert and your family, to plan ahead.

Make the most of flexi work

If your company allows you to telecommute or take a few days to work from home each week, do make sure you exercise your right to this. Just knowing you are around can mean the world to your kids and help you stay connected with both worlds. Even if you do not have this luxury, be firm about your working hours.

Don’t allow meetings to spill over into personal time. If you are particular about this and make sure everything runs on schedule, you will end up with much better balance between your worlds.

So get out there and build it all. Belinda