55 Life

Hacks for

Working

Daughters

www.work ingdaughter .com

Too ls and T ips to

S imp l i f y Every Par t o f

Your L i fe

C O N T E N T S

Introduction

1 Hack Your Morning

2 Hack Your Outfi t

3 Hack Your Beauty Routine

4 Hack Your Commute

5 Hack Driving

6 Hack Your iPhone

7 Hack Your Career

8 Hack Trips to the Doctor

9 Hack Your Errands

10 Hack Your Household

11 Hack Meal Planning

If you’re a working daughter, a woman trying to balance caring

for a sick or aging parent with your career, and possibly raising

your own family too, time is one of your most precious resources.

And most likely you feel like you just don’t have enough of it.

How many times have you said, “If only I could have another

hour in the day”?

As we all know, there are only 24 hours each day. And here’s how

working daughters spend them. On average, a woman who cares

for an aging relative and has children spends 2.3 hours per day on

eldercare; a caregiver without children spends 3.4 hours(1). She

spends approximately an hour eating, 2.2 hours on household

activities, and 2 hours caring for kids. She gets an average of 8

hours of sleep per night, takes roughly 1 hour to shower and dress,

works an average of 8.9 hours, and spends approximately 1 hour a

week commuting to work(2). Guess what? That adds up to more

than 24 hours! See? You do need more time in the day.

But adding hours to your day isn’t an option - the Egyptians and

their sundials pretty much set the schedule many years ago and it

won’t be changing any time soon. So instead, I’m bringing you 55

life hacks to simplify and streamline every part of your life. I’ve

got shortcuts and tricks that will maximize your morning

commute, your daily beauty routine, your career planning, and of

course, your caregiving responsibilities. I can’t stretch the day for

you, but I can help you find the headspace necessary to think, let

go, and relax a little. These hacks will clear your mind of some of

the mundane, but necessary life tasks that zap our energy and our

concentration. And if you do find those extra minutes and hours,

may I suggest you spend them doing something just for you?

1American Time Use Survey

2 Population Reference Bureau

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I N T R O D U C T I O N

I hate getting out of bed in the morning, but I think I would hate

not getting out of bed more. Mornings are hectic when you are

tired, pressed for time, and trying to get yourself, and maybe an

entire family, out the door. But mornings are the foundation of

your day. A good morning can set the stage for a good day – and

it just might be the only part of your day you control. Set yourself

up for success.

1. Buy a programmable coffee maker so that your coffee is ready

and hot when you get up in the morning. And make sure the

coffee maker has an automatic shutoff so you don’t have to think

about whether or not you unplugged it.

2. Keep your bathrobe on over your work clothes after you get

dressed in the morning and before you head out for the day – and

definitely until after you brush your teeth! Whether you are

eating breakfast, packing a lunch, or feeding someone else, you

won’t worry about spilling milk, oatmeal, or toothpaste on your

power outfit.

3. Keep your car keys, purse, commuter pass, an umbrella, and

sunglasses in the same spot. Everything you need to walk out the

door should stay together in one spot. Hang them on a hook,

place them in a closet or drawer, or buy a basket to toss them in –

just don’t separate them and don’t put them anywhere else – ever.

And by the way, that goes for kids’ backpacks and lunch bags too.

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4. Buy a pill organizer for your vitamins and prescriptions. No

more fumbling around, opening pill bottles. Pill organizers work

for your aging parents and they can work for you. Sort your

vitamins and prescriptions once a week, for the week.

5. Practice gratitude. Attitude is everything and gratitude shapes

your attitude. As a working daughter, you know anything could

happen as you go through your day. So start out with a positive

and grateful mind by taking one minute every morning to

remember what’s good. Set your smartphone timer for 60

seconds and list all of the things you’re thankful for that you can

think of in that time. You can call on those positive thoughts later

in the day if things get hairy.

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Truth is, clothes do make an impression. And sometimes, as a

working daughter, we need to overcome negative stereotypes at

work. Show the world you are up for the job by pulling a polished

look together everyday. Fact: yoga pants and Vera Bradley bags

will not get you a raise.

6. Wear a uniform. If it works for President Obama and Mark

Zuckerberg, it can work for you. Streamline your closet and your

look. Try only sweaters, jeans, and boots. Or maybe you prefer

dresses – so put on a dress every day. By cutting down your

options and dressing according to a formula, you eliminate

precious time and thinking very morning. It’s like Garanimals for

adults. And don’t worry, uniforms don’t have to be dull – you can

spice them up with accessories.

7. Plan your outfits a week at a time. Every Sunday night, look at

your calendar for the week and plan your outfits. Then hang each

outfit on its own hook. Every morning, just grab your clothes,

accessories, and shoes off the hook, then dress, and go.

8. Store your jewelry in a clear, hanging shoe bag. Buy a clear

shoe bag with lots of compartments and put your jewelry in it so

you can see each piece. No more fumbling around in drawers or

boxes to find your favorite statement necklace or that other gold

hoop.

9. Buy multiples of your favorite items. If you find a pump with

the perfect heel – it’s dressy enough for skirts but comfortable

enough for commuting - buy more than one. That way, when you

finally wear it out, you will already have the replacement. Don’t

worry that the trends might change for next season – comfort

never goes out of style.

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10. Subscribe to a fashion service. Subscription fashion services

like Stitchfix, Gwynnie Bee and Rocksbox do your shopping, and

styling, for you. Rent the Runway Unlimited sends you three

designer items at a time to borrow. Get your clothes and

accessories handpicked and delivered to you every month. Never

look for parking at the mall again. And never subject yourself to

bad dressing room lighting either.

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When you look good, you feel better. Take it from me, the

woman who walked around during a major care crisis with a wet,

gray ponytail, and a chipped, front tooth. Those were dire times.

Usually, despite my caregiving responsibilities, I can maintain at

least a minimal beauty and hygiene routine with a few simple

hacks.

11. Keep a can of dry shampoo on hand. The thing I dislike about

blow-drying my hair is I haven’t found a way to multitask while I

do it. And ten minutes in the morning can sometimes be the

difference between a good day and a disaster. So if I can skip a

wash and dry, I will. Dry shampoo lets you skip a day or two (or

three if your desperate) of washing, and therefore, drying, your

hair without sporting an oily scalp. Ponytails do that too of course,

but sometimes, like when you have a big meeting at work, the wet

pull back doesn’t cut it.

12. Wash and dry your bangs only. For working daughters

sporting a fringe, another way to simplify your beauty routine

and still look pulled together is to wash and dry your bangs only.

Only the person standing behind you on the subway will notice

the back of your head. Styled bangs will make you look styled all

over. Of course you’ll want to do full shampoo at least once a

week (I hope.)

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13. Keep a bottle of Mademoiselle by Essie nail polish in your purse.

People notice your hands, and uneven, chipped nails can be a

detriment in a professional setting. So whether you DIY or invest the

time and money in a salon manicure, make it last by choosing a light

polish like Mademoiselle. It has enough color that your nails will

look polished but it’s light enough that chips won’t show. I keep my

bottle in purse so I can touch up my own hands and not have to

worry if a salon has it available.

14. Buy some facial wipes so if you’re too tired to wash your face at

night (and what caregiver isn’t?) you can easily remove the day’s

grime. Trust me, there is going to come a time when your skin won’t

care that you are exhausted and it will revolt. It’s called menopause

and it appears in the form of teenage acne on your weary middle-

aged face.

15. Cover those roots with spray on hair color. Speaking of mid-life,

you may start to notice your roots are coming in gray. Or maybe

you’re an overachiever like me and you started graying in your late

20s. No matter when it happens, who can find the time, or money,

for touch ups every three weeks? Instead, keep a can of spray on hair

color handy and spray the gray away before you walk out the door in

the morning.  

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The average American spends 26 minutes traveling to work. That adds

up to 4.5 hours a week. Take the stress and grind out of your daily trek

and think of this time as your daily break.

16. Listen to podcasts. Use your commuting time wisely. Subscribe to

your favorite podcast and listen on the train or in the car. There are

several excellent podcasts just for caregivers full of great tips and

advice. Just search for “Caregiving” in the iTunes podcast section.

17. Use mobile, automatic ticketing for your monthly commuter pass.

Most major commuter systems now offer the ability to purchase tickets

on your mobile device, and, to auto-renew each month. Never wait in

line for a bus or train pass again. Never worry that it’s the 30th and you

haven’t renewed. Just keep your ticket on your phone.

18. Keep your office key and identification card in the same place. If

you have a key for your office or need an ID to enter your building,

put them in the same spot every day. Do not throw them in the bottom

of your bag or stuff them in a coat pocket, promising yourself you will

dig them out later. You won’t remember until you are half way to work

the next day. Find a place in your wallet, or a special pocket in your

computer bag and put them there. Every day. Every time you use

them.

19. Call your mother. Or your father. This is a hack for people who

drive to the office – if you take the train or bus, please respect your

fellow passengers and keep the personal calls to a minimum, especially

with someone who is hard of hearing. But if sitting in traffic is

inevitable, and checking in on your parents is critical, why not call

them while you are driving to and from work? It will free up time at

the end of the day to spend time with your partner, your kids, or to run

more errands.

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20. Do a crossword puzzle. Or play Suduko. Brain health matters so make

the most of your time (on the bus and train only!) by doing a puzzle.

Consider it cognitive training. It just may delay future memory decline.

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My mother’s hospice nurse used to tell me that driving was the most

dangerous thing I would do as a caregiver. She knew I was stressed and

preoccupied and that my to-do list ran on a loop in my brain. “Liz, I need

you to concentrate while you’re driving,” she said to me every day. It was

great advice.

21. Use Waze. Seriously, if you’re not using this app already, you must start.

Waze finds the best route for you and then tells you exactly where to turn,

merge, and even slow down. It warns you of accidents, potholes, and cars

pulled over on the side of the road. It even sends your ETA to your friends if

you want it to.

22. Then use a parking app. The only thing Waze won’t do is park your car.

But other apps will. Luxe parks your car and then delivers it to you when

you are ready to drive home. SpotHero tells you where the open parking

spots are and even reserves them for you. Don’t be distracted thinking about

where you will leave your car. With the right app there’s no need.

23. Park in the same spot every day. If you park your own car (perhaps you

have a monthly pass for the office parking garage) park in the same spot

every day. Don’t worry about recording where you parked, or if you are on

level Minutemen or Marathon (Boston Logan airport, fyi). Just plant your car

on the roof, or against the outer wall, every day and you’ll never wander

around the garage hitting your car alarm button again.

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24. Drop a pin. If you park on the street, drop a pin on your phone map before

you walk away so you’ll know where your car is when it’s time to leave.

25. Use voice to text. Download a voice to text app and “write” memos, emails,

and reports while you’re driving by talking into your smartphone. The

technology isn’t perfect but you can get a good draft started while you’re on

the road, and then do a quick proof and spell check when you get to your

desk.

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We tell our kids they should put down their phones, but we know we can’t live

without ours. As caregivers, we are always on call. So never search for a

charger again. Never watch your battery drain. Be able to be reached by who

needs to reach you and be able to reach whomever you want.

26. Keep a cord for charging your phone in 3 places. Make sure you have a

phone charger at home (in the same place!), at work, and in your car. Don’t

rely on just one charger – you will inevitably lose it.

27. Use a charger case. Some phone cases double as chargers. I charge my

phone and my case every night. Then when my phone inevitably drains

during the day, I hit a button and my fully charged case recharges it for me.

No more missed calls for me –unless I want to miss them.

28. Carry a charger purse. If you don’t like the extra bulk a charger case adds

to your phone, you can carry a charger purse instead. These bags have mini

charging stations hidden in an inside pocket. So when you drop your phone in

your bag, it automatically gets a boost.

29. Use Mobile Day. Mobile Day is an app that syncs with your smartphone,

notifies you of upcoming conference calls, finds the number, and dials it for

you - even the passcode. This is a great way to take calls on the run without

missing them or driving distracted.

30. Use your phone as a hotspot. Never be without an Internet connection.

Busy caregivers need to be productive when and where we can. Waiting at the

hospital? Doctor running late? Fire up the laptop and get some work done.

You’ll find the option under Settings. Make sure you have Wi-Fi and

Bluetooth enabled.

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Caregiving can impact your career. After all, it’s hard to be in two places at

once – mentally and physically. Use these tips to present your best self and get

ahead at the office, even when you feel behind in your life.

31. Network before you need to. Caregiving requires flexibility and not all

companies are open to that. So caregivers who need to earn a living (and who

doesn’t?) need to have a network so they can explore job options if they want,

or need to. And the time to network is BEFORE you need it. Too busy to meet

for coffee before work or for a drink at the end of the day? Use social media to

maintain connections. Or keep an eye out for articles that are of interest to

people you know and send them via email along with a quick note.

32. Bucket your work. Productivity experts swear by the bucket method of

getting things done. They say that by doing all of their writing or financial

projections on one day, and meetings on another, they are better able to focus.

And focus, is a caregiver’s friend.

33. Set a timer. So you decided to bucket your work but you just don’t have

the energy to get started? Set a timer for 1 hour, 30 minutes, or even 10 if that’s

all you think you can muster, and commit to working for that period of time.

When the timer ends, you can check email or better yet, get up and stretch

your legs.

34. Sort your emails by sender and subject. Is your inbox out of control? Sort

your emails first by subject and delete all but the most recent message in a

thread. Then sort again by sender. Read all of the emails from your boss and

from your customers. Everything else is optional. Are you inundated with

newsletters? Download the app Unrollme. It will show you all of your

subscription emails and let you unsubscribe with one click.

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35. Keep a review file with all of your successes and file them as they happen.

That way when you go to your annual performance review and your boss

only remembers all those meetings you missed when you took your mother

to the doctor, you can remind her of all those new clients you won too.

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As a caregiver, you probably spend a lot of time going to doctor’s

appointments – none of them your own. Up the efficiency factor (yes it’s

possible) with these tips.

36. Keep track of questions and concerns as you think of them on your

smartphone so you can access them when you are at the doctor. This hack

may seem obvious but so many caregivers think, “I’ll definitely remember to

ask that.” And then they forget. Likewise, keep notes from the visit on your

smartphone. Read them back to the doctor before the visit ends to make sure

you captured everything you needed to.

37. Call the doctor’s office between 10-11 for same day appointments. Need to

be seen that day? Call too early and there won’t be any openings. Call too late

and the day will be booked. By 10 a.m. the office will be aware of cancellations

and can slot you in.

38. Keep these forms with you at all times: Healthcare Proxy, Do Not

Resuscitate aka DNR (if appropriate, Power of Attorney (if appropriate), your

parent’s insurance cards, and their list of medications. You don’t want to be

looking for these as you head out to an appointment and you need them with

you in case of an emergency trip to the hospital.

39. Have the doctor’s office email you forms in advance of your appointment.

In addition to the above forms, some medical offices will want you to fill out

additional paperwork. Have them email them in advance so you can fill them

out before you go because your chances of arriving early for an appointment

with your elderly parent are worse than your chances of winning Powerball.

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D O C T O R

40. Scan lab results or take a picture with your smartphone. Apparently,

despite all the medical advances we’ve witnessed in recent years, doctor’s

offices are still using snail mail, fax machines, and dot matrix printers. So you

cannot assume that the gerontologist will be able to access the test from the lab

or that the primary care doctor will have received the scans from the specialist.

A simple iPhone photo of a lab result can be the difference between a

productive visit and a total waste of time.

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D O C T O R

Nothing makes me crankier than having to spend even an hour of my

precious 48-hour weekend running errands. So I don’t. Some of these hacks

will cut your to-do list way down, and some will help you manage those

errands that you just can’t outsource.

41. Bring a cooler with ice to the grocery store. No, not for wine. If you’re

shopping for your parents and need to pick up a gallon of milk or a pint of

Häagen-Dazs for yourself, you’ll be able to keep your perishables cold while

you deliver your parents’ food and maybe even stay for a visit.

42. Use Task Rabbit or a similar service to outsource errands you don’t need

to do yourself. The gig economy has made it affordable for so many of us to

hire help on demand. If you have the means, take advantage of services that

run errands, do chores, and even drive your elderly parent to appointments

that you don’t need to attend.

43. Use respite care. Respite care exists for a reason: to keep you from losing

your job, your marriage, your mind. It comes in the form of someone sitting

with your elderly relative a few hours a week or a senior living facility that

takes your parent for two weeks to thirty days so you can get a break. Use it to

get things done: from running errands to taking a nap.

44. Buy gifts and greeting cards in bulk. Keep birthday cards, sympathy cards,

and blank greeting cards on hand and in bulk, along with a book of stamps. Do

the same with small hostess gifts and birthday presents. Pick up candles, small

jewelry items, and unique gifts when you see them on sale. You do not need to

be running to the mall after a long day of caring and working because you just

remembered it was your sister-in-law’s birthday.

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45. Use Amazon Prime, and better yet, use Amazon Dash. For $99 a year,

Amazon Prime gives you free shipping: one-day in some zip codes, two days

in others. Why go to the store at all when you can get toothpaste, hair color,

designer shoes – all of your essentials delivered? Amazon Dash is a Wi-Fi

enabled device that reorders your favorite product with the press of a button.

You can get a Dash Button for laundry detergent, groceries, beauty supplies,

and other items you repeat buy. Never run out of what you need? Now that’s

peace of mind.

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I live by the motto: The laundry can wait, life will not. I believe life is too short

to spend it cleaning. That’s why I need a week’s notice if you’re planning to

stop by. But I also know that clean surroundings can make us feel calmer and

more in control. And since there are few things a caregiver can control, here

are some hacks to control the mess at home.

46. Pick a chore for each day of the week. If you just can’t lower your

standards organize your housework by days of the week. Just like bundling

our work tasks makes us more efficient, bundling chores has the same effect.

Why not make Monday clean the clutter day, Tuesday laundry day,

Wednesday vacuum and dust day, Thursday clean the bathroom day, Friday

focus on the kitchen day, and Saturday yard work day?

47. Cover fridge shelves in cling film. Do you hate cleaning the fridge? Cover

the shelves in cling wrap and next time something leaks or spills, all you have

to do is remove and replace the cling wrap. Brilliant, right?

48. Store sheet sets in pillowcases. This hack does two things: it eliminates the

need to fold round sheets (can I get an amen?) and it means you can find a

complete and matching set easily.

49. Likewise, store your kitchen trash bags at the bottom of your kitchen

trashcan. This way, when you empty the trash you will have another bag

handy to line the trashcan. And, none of your family members can “not

notice” there was no bag before they threw away peanut shells or dirty tissues

– because there will be.

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50. Create a messy area. If you want to live clutter-free but your schedule

doesn’t permit you to keep house like June Cleaver and your budget doesn’t

allow you to hire an Alice, designate a messy area and at least contain your

clutter to one counter, or room, or the entire upstairs.

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Okay, so this area isn’t my strong suit, but my husband swears by these hacks

to make meal planning and prep easier.

51. Download the MyFridgeFood app. This app lets you enter the contents of

your kitchen and then serves up a list of recipes you can make with what you

already have on hand. Most of the recipes take between 5 and 15 minutes to

prepare.

52. Have your groceries delivered. Why set foot in a grocery store ever again

when services like Instacart will ship deliveries right to your kitchen? You can

schedule deliveries at times convenient to you – like midnight.

53. Sign up for a meal subscription service. Nothing simplifies meal prep like

having someone else do it. Services like Blue Apron, deliver fresh ingredients

right to your front door based on menus you preselect. So when you get

home from caring and working and everything else you do, all you have to do

is cook and eat.

54. Buy a set of microplanes. Originally a woodworking tool, the microplane

was reimagined for the kitchen and it grates and zests like nobody’s business.

It’s dishwasher safe, and, you can order it via Amazon Prime.

55. Make Sunday salad day. As caregivers we know we should make our own

health a priority, but eating well can be such a challenge. It’s so much easier to

grab a handful of Twizzlers and a Diet Coke on the run than to prepare a salad

in between appointments. So, why not prepare a week’s worth of salads every

Sunday? You can keep the ingredients fresh by packing them, undressed, in

mason jars.

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F O R M O R E A D V I C E O N B A L A N C I N GC A R E G I V I N G , C A R E E R A N D L I F E , V I S I T :

W W W . W O R K I N G D A U G H T E R . C O M

Copyright Liz O'Donnell 2016