Freedom for Working Moms

This past Sunday was Mother’s Day. It’s a lovely holiday designed to let moms relax for one day of the year while being appreciated and pampered. It’s a day that features flowers, favorite foods, gifts, and maybe even a macaroni necklace designed by a 3-year-old. Can AI ever replace those? (Please don’t answer that!)

What about the other 364 days? Most moms are working moms, not stay-at-home moms, who were the norm when Mother’s Day came into being. Working moms have two careers – their job and their child or children – and neither one can be back-burnered.

So, if one person has two careers, neither of which can be neglected, what lands at the bottom of the to-do list?

• Self-care.
• Hobbies.
• Passion projects.

The very things that feed the soul of the working mom get neglected due to lack of time and energy. During the pandemic shutdown, many or maybe most working moms found a way to better balance their various responsibilities, and some were even able to work in the things that fed their souls. Once companies decided to call their workforce back in to the office, many women found that they resented the time that dressing up and driving to and from work took away from their time with family. The tenuous work/life balance they’d found suddenly evaporated.

Four years after the start of the pandemic, the women who can are leaving careers that require too much time away from their families. This trend is even more surprising when you consider the drastic job losses suffered by women during the pandemic. While job losses overall were high, losses among women workers were so severe that the term “she-cession” was coined.

There are a lot of people who look at the data around job loss and job abandonment by women and are appalled. I’m not one of them – I celebrate the women who prioritize their own mental wellbeing. My work is in helping people gain a balanced perspective as well as a more balanced life, one that takes their needs into consideration along with the needs of their family and their finances. I know this for sure – there’s so much opportunity for women to work from home in this connected life we lead that I feel sure the women leaving corporate life aren’t taking a 100% pay cut. They’re finding ways to generate income and wealth for themselves, and in many cases, for other work-at-home moms. Want some inspiration to create more balance in your own life? Here are three episodes of the world’s second-shortest podcast with ideas for creating that balance:

Someone you know in need of a little fun? Here’s a Tiny Bite for that!

Children's needs pulling on you? Here’s a Tiny Bite for that!

Who are you really saying “no” to? Here’s a Tiny Bite for that!

This week is Work At Home Moms week. If you’re a mom who’s heart screams for more balance, pay attention to the things you want to do and feel that you don’t have time for. This week, find a way to make time for one of them at least one day. Just like your child learned to walk by taking baby steps, you can regain your balance with baby steps, too.

Wags,
Sandy Weaver
Program Director, Center for Workplace Happiness

PS...want to live life on a higher vibe? Come and play in the Wagalicious Life Online Community!