Searching for Balance, with Sarah Im The Productive Woman

Like so many of us, Sarah Im is searching for a workable balance between work and family. This week she and I talk about that search, and about raising children in a thoughtful and intentional way.







Searching for balance and building a productive life



Sarah Im is a mom of two young kids under five, a wife, and a Realtor serving Philadelphia and its surrounding suburbs. She grew up in Chicago, Seattle, and Seoul, South Korea. After graduating from college in Korea, she moved to Tokyo, Japan for a year, after which she spent a year in Florence, Italy, and another year in New York City. She now lives in Glenside, PA with her family, but is planning a move to Souderton next year where her family is building a new house.



Currently, Sarah's main interests in life are her Christian faith, living well with ADHD, how to be an awesome Realtor, minimizing her possessions, Montessori education, making children’s clothing, and searching for the elusive balance between work and personal life. She says she tends to have a wandering soul, and she has aspirations to world-school her children, and would really like to order her family’s life to make that happen.



When it comes to her realtor work, Sarah says the Covid-19 pandemic has not negatively impacted the housing market. On the contrary, there has been a boom and a huge demand for homes for sale. Sarah says this a great time to sell and buy because the interest rates have never been lower. She also says that it is a good time to be a Realtor, but she is presented with the challenge of trying to balance her very busy job with also spending time with her husband and children.



A typical day



Since the pandemic started, Sarah's typical day has changed a lot. In the past, she would wake between 7:00 or 8:00, but now she is waking up earlier--between 4:00 and 5:00--when the house is quiet.



During those early morning hours, Sarah likes to sit down with a glass of water and listen to her favorite devotional, Solid Joy. by Pastor John Piper. She also subscribes to a service called Sendoutcards.com, which allows her to make a custom card to send to a friend or loved one. Sarah tries to send out one card a day.



Next, Sarah likes to plan her day. If she has appointments or meetings that day, she will get out her planner and review all that needs to get done. If she has no plans on that particular day, she will make a list of things she would like to do. If she is feeling a bit anxious or restless, she will take out her Morning Pages notebook and gets her thoughts out on paper, which helps her to feel less overwhelmed.



Around 7:00 a.m., Sarah's family starts to get up and around so she will make them breakfast. On the days they go to daycare, she will get them ready and have them dropped off by 9:00. On the days the kids are home, Sarah will do a bit of homeschooling with them using Montessori materials she purchased at the beginning of the pandemic. They also like to get outside and play in the park.



In the afternoon the kids nap for a while, which gives Sarah some time to work.



By about 5:30, if the kids are in school, she will pick them up and head home to have dinner. Sarah and her husband Sam then spend time with the kids, playing games, or listening to music and dancing.



Then it's time for baths and bed. Sarah and her husband have a system in place where they take turns getting the kids ready for bed. When it's Sarah's night to get the kids to bed, she will go to sleep when they do at 8:30 (this makes it easi...