As a parent, you know the difficulty of juggling all the balls in the air at the same time, everything from soccer practice, to church, to the special events at school all fall on your shoulders. If you are a single mom the pressure is even worse and this is all on top of trying to maintain a job or career. Sadly, for some parents, especially moms the battle for a work/life balance just isn’t a possibility.

In the real world a CareerBuilder.com survey, that encompassed 1,124 women, employed full-time, with children under age 18 who still live at home suggested that forty-four percent of working moms say that they would take a up to a 10 percent of their salary to enable them to better balance their career with their family life. That is nearly one-in-ten of working women who are feeling pulled in too many directions and feel that their family suffers as a result.

Of working moms who are not the sole financial provider, nearly half (49 percent) say they would leave their job if their spouse or significant other made enough money for the family to live comfortably.

Many of these moms (32 percent) miss out on quality time with their kids, spending less than three hours per day with their kids, with twenty-three percent reporting they have missed three or more significant events in their child’s life in the last year.

Career moms should keep in mind that compensation isn’t the only thing that is negotiable in the job market. Flex scheduling is also an option in many fields. As companies are faced with a shrinking labor pool of qualified employees many companies are reshaping their criteria to include mom’s rooms and hours that allow you to handle your family responsibilities. With many companies it is becoming commonplace to see job sharing and onsite daycare to encourage employees to balance work and family life. Thankfully nearly four-in-ten working moms report that their place of employment offers flexible working arrangements.

If you are employed by one of the businesses that has not opened itself up to some of these more family friendly alternatives you many want to approach your boss with a game plan describing your recommendations. The plan needs to be well thought out with a strategy that demonstrates how you’ll be more productive in a flexible work scenario. Make sure your plan is complete and adequately shows a workable solution that can meet the company’s needs.

Another point to keep in mind is that you need to ease into your presentation. Do not come on so strong that you make your boss defensive. You may suggest initiating the plan in stages to make it more acceptable to your employer’s financial fears.

Knowing this make sure that you are prepared and have practiced for your presentation so that your nerves don’t derail you. Anticipate any questions that your boss might present you with and have a plausible answer/solution readily available. Then you must be prepared to negotiate.

To work on the balance from the family side husbands must plan to share in child-rearing as it is no longer possible for moms to be super moms without it taking a toll on their physical and/or emotional health. Currently one-in-four working moms state that they are dissatisfied with their life balance and the fairness in their family responsibilities.

To keep you in key with your mate you should arrange a date night where you can have some quality time with your partner since quantity may be limited. For your kids schedule special activities with each one alone as often as possible. This allows you to start traditions, create special memories, and remind your kids how important they are to you.

Lastly, remember that it is often easier to cancel a special time with your child than with a client so keep a complete calendar of your scheduled activities, that includes obligations to family as well as to your clients, so you won’t find yourself inconveniencing or hurting either type of relationship. In doing this it is essential that if you want your family time to work that you commit vacation days and days off to getting away from the job. Don’t take your cell phone with you unless it is for emergencies that you incur. Don’t use it as an apron string to your business. Spend time focusing on relaxing and enjoying your family and you will find yourself in a much better frame of mind to get back to work and deliver than you would be if you never took a real break. Good luck Moms out there. You can do this.

Tags: schedule, flex hours, working moms, mom’s rooms, on-site childcare, employee options, supermom, job sharing, approach your boss, family balance, employee options