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Almost every working mom I know who works full-time has told me that she would love to do her job but on a part-time basis. And according to a survey that came out last year, nearly 80% of women want to work part-time. Part-time work seems to be an ideal, most coveted arrangement for working moms — one that would allow us enough time to pursue our career ambitions and spend time with our kids and families.
But according to new Australian study (thanks Elizabeth for this heads up!) the reality of part-time work is far from what we might idealize it to be. Read the rest of this entry »
This weekend we went to visit our friends in New York. (I will spare you from any whining in this post about how much I miss New York. I promise. But I do, a lot.) Invariably we got into a conversation about work and how we all work too much, are sleep-deprived, don’t see our kids enough, don’t go on enough vacations, and so on. You know, the usual working families discussion fare. And then the mom said something I think so many of us can relate to: ” I like to work, I like what I do, but I just want to be able to do less of it — to work less than full-time.”
I certainly fee this way. I’ve always worked full-time and in my previous career in investing, full-time meant more than 8 hours a day. I’m pretty open on this blog about the fact that running Work It, Mom! involves working around the clock and usually putting in 10-12 hour days. I rarely complain because I LOVE what I do and I feel lucky to have the opportunity do create something that I think benefits other women. But I am exhausted and sleep deprived (which is starting to affect my health), I don’t see my daughter, my husband, or my family and friends as much as I’d like and I’d love to work less.
The thing is, I can’t. Read the rest of this entry »
Yesterday I heard a show on NPR about recession-proofing your job. The expert they had on the air was asked for tips to hold on to your job if the economy continues to be rocky or gets worse and here were a few that he mentioned:
- Be as visible as possible at work. Make sure your boss sees you working and working hard.
- Come in earlier and leave later — put in some face time.
- If you telecommute, make it a point to be on more conference calls with your boss and even consider coming into the office more frequently.
- Stay busy — or appear to be busy all the time. Perceived slackers will be the first to go.
- Have a great attitude. Firing decisions are often subjective and no one wants to work with someone who is difficult or is always a downer.
I think keeping in mind the current and likely-to-get-worse economic situation, this advice is not misplaced. But what struck me is how unfriendly some of it is to working moms who value flexibility. More face time, less telecommuting, coming in earlier and leaving later — it’s the opposite of what most of us want to see at our workplaces. Read the rest of this entry »
I recently came to a realization that for the first two or so years of my daughter’s life I basically denied that my life had changed in any significant way.
Yes, I loved her tremendously and yes, I got a lot less sleep and was a lot more tired, but after my three-month long maternity leave was over I went back to work and continued to live pretty much my old life. I went off to my job at the office, worked until 5:30, and then rushed home to see my daughter for an hour before she went to bed. (Leaving at 5:30 is an unheard-of situation in the industry where I worked but I was the only senior woman at the office and while I got dirty looks, I made it clear that that was the deal. Period.) I worked from home at night to get things done, but I’d done that before as well.
We had a wonderful nanny and my daughter was really happy and well taken care of by her. The nanny also cooked and I’d often come home to a fully-cooked meal plus some. I juggled, it was harder than before we were parents, but I was out of the house and away from my daughter a lot more than I was there and the juggle was concentrated to the few hours at night and on weekends.
Around the time my daughter turned two I had a moment that I’d never expected myself to have — I realized that I could not continue to be away from her for most of the day during the week, to have someone else know her teachers, her friends, her words and funny habits better than me. I’d never thought of myself as a typical maternal type but there they were, my maternal instincts, kicking in and STRONG. And so, as I’ve written about here, I decided to quit my fast-paced, secure, and too-highly paid job and change careers so I could have more flexibility. A year later we’d moved to a different city, I’d started Work It, Mom! from my home office, and my daughter went to daycare. No nanny, no full-time office job, no dinner help, no someone else to stay home with her when she is sick.
I’m now six months into this new phase of my life and I’ve learned something: Read the rest of this entry »
I changed my life in many ways when I quit my job to launch Work It, Mom!. But two of the most profound changes were that I am now my own boss and I can create my own flexible work schedule. Today was the first time I took my flexible schedule out for a real spin — I volunteered to be a chaperone for my daughter’s preschool field trip to an apple farm.
When we got the note about the trip I immediately decided to go. I’ve never had the opportunity before and I thought it would be fun to spend the day with my daughter. But to be honest, another reason I went was because I felt that I should go because I can create my own schedule.
The trip was a success and my daughter had a great time. She loved that I was there and was proud that her mom was one of the few parents who came. This, of course, made me feel all warm and fuzzy. It was great to get to know the other kids better as well as the teachers. I liked being “that mom” who is involved in her daughter’s class, knows all the kids, and to whom the teachers can turn if they need something. Most of the time that we were picking apples and feeding sheep I kept reminding myself about how lucky I am to be able to do this.