I feel like there's a big focus on spending less, but not as much on earning more. BA"H I have four kids ages six to ten months, and two part time jobs. I'm paid hourly for each job and I'm finding it really hard to work more than the minimum that we need to survive - or even that much, honestly. I was salaried at one of the jobs - 30 hours per week - but I developed major panic attacks, probably due to job related stress / lack of sleep, and had to cut back. Now that I'm hourly I'm finding it difficult to prioritize working over other things such as taking a nap.

I have four kids ages six to ten months

Thats a lot of kids to have in just 4 months

Pretty sure we all got what she meant - no need to split hairs

Thats a lot of kids to have in just 4 months

my own father could not have said that better

Guess what? We all find it difficult to prioritize work... That's why we're getting paid to do it 😀

Lots to unpack here! For starters, there are lots of good sayings out there around how you're not going to save yourself into wealth. Savings are limited, earning isn't

I’m struggling with this myself. In addition to just simply doing work, some careers require studying after hours. I don’t have an answers or advice. You’re definitely not the only one.

More than one job, on top of responsibilities of a mother and wife

good point - one job pays much more hourly, so I don't want to drop it

(You haven't asked for this but just going to say, if you have concerns about physical or emotional energy, speak to your healthcare provider. They may downplay it because of course you're tired, you have a few young kids at home, but it's worth confirming it's not anything else.)

I find multivitamins help with that a bit. It may be a placebo effect, but I’ll take it.

Idk how your youngest is sleeping but my babies did NOT sleep, and BH I had a salaried job back then because if I was making my own hours I for sure would be napping! I was forced to work lol

Small nap hack - drink some coffee before, then nap for 15-20 minutes.

I pretty much have made a personal rule not to judge myself or evaluate life choices when I'm not sleeping enough. For me, having a 10 month old would qualify

she's sleeping pretty well actually only wakes up once about 12 or 1 but yeah she doesn't always go back to sleep right away

It is hard to juggle a young growing family and work! Here are some tips to help you get in more hours that worked for me: Set specific goals and work to achieve it - so it's not just 'get in more hours' but it's 'reach my goal for the day/week'. Give yourself micro-rewards to get in more hours. Challenge yourself to just go that bit further - whenever you want to stop, push yourself another 10 minutes or so on the clock, or to get it to a round number before you stop. Try accountability partners, music, snacks to nibble on, a better home office setup... And when you do take a break - nap, me-time, housework etc - embrace it, clear your head properly, don't spend the time feeling guilty for not working.