Top 10 tips for busy mums

6. Be present
You might find that your mind is often two places at once. You might be watching TV and planning tomorrow's evening meal. Start focusing on what you are doing right now, rather than diluting your thoughts into past or future. Start taking notice of your present moment, because you'll never have it again. Now that's really important when you have kids. Shift your focus into the here and now - this is where bliss is found. What needs to change so you can enjoy life more right now?

7. Find your own time management
There are so many time management techniques, and the message here is that there is no magic 'one size fits all' formula. Ask your friends, do some research. What has worked well for you in the past? Perhaps an element of it worked well - take that element and adapt it to suit you and your family. One that works for me most of the time is allocating things to do in my diary rather than on a 'to do' list. That way I have to allocate the time and I can see if I'm being unrealistic in the amount of things I plan to do in the time available.

8. Get organised
What systems can you put in place to make running a household a bit easier? For example, if you get stressed about not having a meal planned and you find yourself rushing to the shops for last-minute ready meals for your family, sit down and do a rotating weekly meal planner - and shop with it. If you rush around first thing in the morning looking for something to wear, lay your clothes out the night before. And get the kids to do the same. All tried and tested tips that you already know, but sometimes a nudge to the obvious helps! Join the iVillage Get Organised Challenge

9. Take a ride in a glass-bottomed helicopter
This is all about seeing things from a different perspective. When we're in the heat of the moment and things aren't going our way, we can't 'see the wood for the trees'. Take yourself away from the conflict, take some deep breaths, go for a walk or do whatever it takes to calm down. Now ask yourself 'What's going on for my husband/son/daughter?' 'Where is he/she coming from here?' The idea of the glass-bottomed helicopter is that you mentally fly above your situation and look at the bigger picture.

10. Change your habits
We all have habits, and often dissatisfaction within our lives is of our own making; it's so easy to fall into habits that deplete, rather than nurture. Try this exercise - write down all the bad habits in your life, both as an individual and within your family. Be brave and honest and think of the habits that bring you grief. Now choose one of these to change into a positive habit that nurtures you. You can choose the easiest or quickest one, but whichever you choose, take a small step towards that change now. It takes about 30 times to make a behaviour into a habit. So do yourself a 'habit chart', and tick each time that you 'do' that habit, knowing that once you've got 30 ticks, you've cracked it.

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Is your definition of balance just a balancing act? Are you juggling lots of balls and dropping them frequently? Perhaps being a working mum isn?t quite working? Coaching Mums specialises in helping mums like you. We will help you to find your version of balance and achieve fulfilment and success. We work with bright, sassy mums who are mums amongst other things in life. We believe that coaching should create tangible results in every aspect of your life, and we offer results-oriented programmes to suit any budget. Take your first step, visit www.coachingmums.com and sign up for our free monthly ezine, Inspire, packed with positive and do-able tips to make your life better.