How to be fulfilled as a SAHM & how to live a life aligned to your ikigai as a stay at home mom? Let us have this crucial conversation today and uncover the secrets of a happy SAHM life.
We live in an age, where women are de-prioritising their career & material success for providing a holistic & profound upbringing to their children. And if that is the case, a million dollar question that meddles many minds and is an interesting subject to delve in.
How are stay at home moms able to live a happy & fulfilled life along & what are their secrets to thriving as a SAHM? You would find your answers right here.
How to be a Fulfilled SAHM?
Being a fulfilled person means being satisfied or happy because of fully developing one’s abilities or character. For a SAHM, it would still mean being happy & satisfied in her own skin and valuing her contributions to the world. So what does it take to be a fulfilled stay at home mom? Let us explore this in this post.
Before we begin, I would like to point out that feeling fulfilled is a state of one’s mind more than anything else. You feel fulfilled when you are well aligned to your purpose/ikigai and you also feel fulfilled when you feel you are doing things that you like doing. you feel fulfilled when you take pride in what you do and you also feel fulfilled when you are excelling at what you do.
29 Effective Ways to Live a fulfilling SAHM life
| 1. Choose to be Happy Everyday |
| 2. Live in Present |
| 3. Start your Day well |
| 4. Prioritise Health & Fitness |
| 5. Dress to Kill |
| 6. Follow your passion |
| 7. Create value |
| 8. Collaborate for House Chores |
| 9. Go out with friends |
| 10. Spend some quiet time |
| 11. Enjoy your music |
| 12. Learn something new |
| 13. Experiment |
| 14. Join your tribe |
| 15. Manage your time well |
| 16. Work on your personal brand |
| 17. Stay organized |
| 18. Have fun |
| 19. Quality Time with kids |
| 20. Spend your time with spouse |
| 21 Take vacations often |
| 22. Shop |
| 23. Eat out |
| 24 Invest in how you look |
| 25. Read & be updated about happenings around |
| 26. Lead new initiatives |
| 27. Meditate |
| 28. Invest in relationships |
| 29 Support kids in their endeavours |
1. Choose to be Happy Everyday
Being a happy SAHM is a choice that you need to make everyday. And there is no one right way to be happy. Your happiness is your own responsibility & your happiness because you matter. So dig deep inside to find out what makes you happy and choose to do that everyday.
While life is a mix of ups and downs, challenges and wins, this fit should not stop you from living it fully. A determined intent & a small change in your thinking pattern can lead you to look at your biggest troubles as your blessings.
So be the happy mom your kids need and not the perfect mom you are always trying to be.
2. Live in Present to be a Happy SAHM
Living in the present moment is easier said than done. It requires skill to tame your thoughts to be in the present moment & not wander either in the past or run in the future planes. But once you gain the competence over living mindfully and living in the present, it takes you away from the stress of the past baggage & worry of the future that we often fall into. And so it is definitely a great skill to have to thrive as a SAHM
3. Start Your Day Well, Dear SAHM
If you would ask me ideas on how to be a fulfilled SAHM, this would be the one I would suggest you to start with. This is one of the most powerful ways to live a happy life. And all the more so For SAHM, who are most often than not revolving around their small world and don’t take out time for themselves. So having a good morning routine in place is the solution that has innumerable benefits in the life of a SAHM.
It starts with giving your full attention to yourself and spending some Me time right at the start of the day. By doing so, you are prioritising your own self over all the other chores and responsibilities you are shouldering for the world. And with the right start to your day, you are setting yourself up for a fulfilling day, one day at a time.
So get yourself into making your very own perfect Morning Routine and set the ball rolling for a great life.
4. Prioritise Health & Fitness
There is nothing that works on stress or low moods than a quick walk or a run amidst nature. While exercise helps in releasing the happy hormone, being in nature works in magical ways to uplift the mood and connect to the universe.
“It is never too early & never too late to invest in creating the healthiest version of you.” Working on your health & fitness helps you in feeling good about yourself and life in general.
| For me the new year started with prioritising my health & daily walks out in the sun. And here is what is my new tool –my new Apple Watch helping me each my fitness goals daily. Follow my Instagram profile to see how I am progressing on my fitness goals, find the link at the bottom of this page. |
5. Dress to Kill
There is no lack of explanations on how important dressing up well for the day is for SAHM. With focussing on looking your best, you also tell yourself that you are ready for life.
Check out my favourite silver square studs that I am wearing every day these days. These are my latest addition to my collection and I can’t get enough of these. I wear them with a casual everyday outfit or to a more exclusive dinner, it just illuminates my face… 🙂
6. Follow Your Passion to Be a Fulfilled SAHM
It is very easy for SAHM to get engrossed in the endless chores for managing the kids and the house, and loose the fundamental connect with their own selves. Happy SAHMs intentionally make efforts to stay connected to their true selves and follow their passions.
Taking out a little time every day for your own selves and doing things that you enjoy is something that is very fulfilling and meaningful. And hence adds on to your overall happiness quotient.
| I am trying to get back to my reading and more specifically reading comics. I first read Calvin & Hobbes after my husband recommended me and that was when I was 25 years. And I realised how much fun have I missed in life. I am reading it every day and it instantly is a mood changer for me. Get your hands on the entire collection here. |
7. Create Value
Being a SAHM is no ways mean living a low life. Find out ways to create value in the present situation that you are in. Working & managing the house expenses within the budget, organizing your home or indulging In DIY, you can be as creative that you would want to be. This intention of creating value leads to an awesome sense of self-worth & fulfillment.
8. Collaborate for House Chores
Being the primary accountability point for all the house chores, it is important that you involve other members too in the day to day management. Handing over small responsibilities to your kids help in their overall development in various ways.
They not only move closer to being independent but also feel an important part of the family who can be handed over an important responsibility. This boosts their self-esteem and build in essential life skills at the same time.
9. Go Out With Friends for a Fulfilling Life Dear SAHM
No lady can ever deny the fun they have with their girl gang and how essential it is to have one. For SAHM having your girl gang besides you as a rock-solid support system is such a boon. However, it becomes difficult at times to live up to the frequent meets/parties or get-togethers. But it is still recommended to not give up your own friendships due to the lack of time with kids and family.
10. Spend Some Quiet Time
I usually spend this quiet time with myself as a part of my daily morning routine. This is the time I use to listen to what my inner voice is trying to tell me. Just letting my thoughts flow through my mind and accepting all of me. This also helps you in being aligned to your purpose & passions so go ahead and try it & see the change you feel in your day.
11. Enjoy Your Music
Listening to your kind of music in the day helps you cut boredom & monotony. For me, music is energy & rhythm. While I do my everyday chores, I usually have the music on in the background. The choice of music for the day always depends on the mood of the day. And at times it’s the same playlist of favourite 5 songs that play in a loop again and again.
12. Learn Something New to Feel Fulfilled as a SAHM
It is so important to grow as a person in life. And for this growth to happen in a positive way it is important that you keep learning life in your life. And there are a lot of ways in which you can do it. Especially is in this age of information available at the click of a button choose from learning something online or walking into a structured event in your neighbourhood.
| It is not always from structured workshops that will on the most in life. At times a casual interaction with the small child can help us learn life skills that we have just been overlooking in life. To be carefree and live in the present case is something I learned from my three-year-old son. |
So learning something new each day of life helps you in a big way to stay happy and feel fulfilled.
13. Experiment
Variety adds the spice to life & experimenting something new can add that little excitement in the every day mundane life. Be it experimenting with new ingredients in the kitchen or going ahead and experimenting with your personal style& look, there is a lot of room for being creative & exploring new territories as a stay at home mom.
14. Join Your Tribe
Since the life of a SAHM is confined to house kids & chores, it is imperative for them to go out and meet up with like-minded people. Join the community that they align within their thoughts and just participate. Joining your tribe or community of your choice definitely helps you in feeling happier since now you feel more valued, appreciated, and accepted as a human being.
15. Manage Your Time Well
Often undervalued, time is an extremely important resource in the hands of a stay at home mom. Equally so as it is for a working / employed mom. So treat it as a resource and manage it well in order to be able to do things that you enjoy doing.
Multi-tasking is one very important tool that SAHM can use to manage their work & time effectively. I use it every day and all the time. For the tasks in which my hands work instinctively,
I usually multitask with another task-parallel. Like with folding clothes, I am usually doing my everyday call to mom, along with picking up things, I am usually cooking my meals too. It is fun and I love it for the high it gives me to be able to handle things quickly and tick them off my to-do list for the day.
16. Work on Your Personal Brand
Being a stay at home mom comes with its own set of emotions like low feelings of self-worth, financial dependence, losing out on your friends etc . And therefore, it is very important for us SAHM to think and consciously build our personal brand. Think of what are you good at & what do people remember you for? And if you like that image & perception of yours, work on it to make it stronger.
For example, my friends connect with me because I am a good listener and I give them honest & balanced advice. They also look up at me as someone who can give good advice/suggestions to their challenges with kids. So I consciously work on retaining this perception of mine by being available to listen when they need me.
17. Stay Organized
This one is a very important one. Being organized as a SAHM is something that definitely requires a strong intent & consistent everyday efforts. However, once you get into the habit of staying organized, life becomes simply uncomplicated for you and your family too.
It takes years to build these structures & systems of organization in your house since it not only involves designing & implementation of these but also a considerable effort in coaching & training kids and your spouse too.
19. Quality Time with kids
Spending quality time without distractions with kids goes a long way in making you live a guilt-free & happy life. Since you are a stay at home mom, your primary responsibility is to raise your children well. And once you are doing this with all your heart & mindfully filling their buckets with love & care, you are bound to live a fulfilling life.
20. Spend Your Time With Spouse
The best thing you can do for yourself is spending time with someone who loves you. This is the most soul-enriching and nourishing experience that can help a SAHM feel loved, appreciated and valued. So take out the time from the everyday hustle to live these precious moments and make memories.
I don’t care what we do, I just love spending my time with my husband. Around Valentine’s day, as it is love is in air…
21. Take Vacations Often
Going out and taking holidays often is thing that can really help a SAHM keep sane. There is no denying the fact that a SAHM lives through total chaos & hodgepodge all around in their lives. Tuning out every once in a while to get a change and break freeing from the everyday responsibilities & chores is an awesome idea to stay happy and feel fulfilled.
22. Shop
Shopping is therapeutic to women – I have always heard them say. I have always been a need-based shopper earlier, however, for last couple of years I have become more liberal in the way I shop. And I must confess, it is quite a nice feeling after you splurge on yourself or kids.
23. Dine Out
Stepping out of the house well dressed is a privilege For SAHM of babies & toddlers. But with my kids getting a little older and independent, I make it a point to step out with my husband and experience the new pubs, lounges and dine ins in the city. It is quite gratifying to experience the state and art facilities & services at these happening places and definitely makes you feel on top of the world.
24 Invest in How You Look
Being a happy & fulfilled stay at home mom starts with feeling good about ourselves. And hence it is a great idea to invest in updating our wardrobe or getting new hair colour. investing in how we look has a direct impact on how we feel and hence is a worth every penny of the investment.
A more subtle side benefit of it comes in the form of compliments from your husband and an added zing to your personal life and am sure you would love that.
25. Read & Be Updated About Happenings Around
There is nothing more attractive than a smile on your face and an intelligent conversation that you can have. So invest your time in getting yourself updated with what is happening around you. Politics, sports, or fashion, always a good idea to have some good conversation starters in your kitty for those unplanned meetings with friends down the road or at your grocery store.
26. Lead New Initiatives
This one is about taking initiative & leading some things in your house. Be it a weekend party or a play date for your kid or your annual travel, lead the project from start to finish. This boosts your self-confidence and fills you up with the accomplished feelings all through the way.
27. Meditate
This one is my favourite. A way to connect with your own self and nourish your should. indulge in a daily routine to meditate and just be in silence witnessing your thoughts and patterns of mind. It is therapeutic & refreshing.
28. Invest in Relationships
One of the ways to leading a fulfilled life is to have loving relationships in your life. Invest in building your relationships and a support system around you.
29 Support Kids in Their Endeavours
There is no better feeling in the world than seeing your kids doing good & perform in their endeavours. So support them in all ways and see them shine.
So these are my ideas on how to be a fulfilled SAHM, if you have a more innovative one, do share with me in the comments section of this blog. Or reach out to me on the email. I would be happy to include those in my list too.