Balancing your career with your parental duties is one of the most difficult things to achieve; however, this also means that it’s incredibly rewarding. What’s more, in this day and age, almost every mom is required to be a career mom; in a household with two parents, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to live off one income with the current cost of living. Similarly, there are a number of single moms out there who must act as the sole parent and provider for their families. Unfortunately, so many career moms feel like their failing as they don’t recognize the difficulty of such a task. To that end, detailed below are just some of the steps you can implement to help you be the best career mom you can be!
Invest Back into the Home
First up, your home is a sanctuary for your children, meaning it’s your mission to make your home as pleasant an environment as possible. This looks different to each family and home, as every situation is different. For instance, for some families in London, basement tanking might be the next step, whereas a family in San Francisco might just be getting ready to switch out the crib for a bed. There’s no one way to invest in your home, and you can only invest the disposable income that’s available to you. While this investment is important, it’s also vital that you keep some savings under your belt for a rainy day.
Be Open with Your Manager
A good manager will always accommodate your mom duties. Just because you may not be as available as employees who don’t have children, this doesn’t make you a less valuable employee. Despite this, it is likely that being a mom will mean you require more flexibility. For instance, moms often have to pick up their children from school, bring them to and from appointments, and collect them when they’re unwell. A good manager will understand these commitments, meaning it shouldn’t affect your professional standing or their view of you as a capable and trustworthy employee.
Use a Childcare Provider You Trust
As a career mom, it’s likely that you’ll require some form of childcare. It’s vitally important that you trust this childcare for a number of reasons. Most obviously is the fact that your child(ren) will be in the hands of this care provider. As a mom, there’s nothing more important in your life than your children, meaning you need to ensure that they’re in the best hands possible. Less importantly but still a factor is that childcare is expensive, meaning you want to ensure that you’re receiving quality service.
Implement Time-Saving Hacks
For career moms, there seemingly aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. You need to fulfill all your work requirements, yet you have children to look after straight after work. On top of all this, you also need to eat, drink, sleep, and have a little time for yourself, so how are you supposed to keep on top of everything? Time-saving hacks are the answer. They may not sound like much but they certainly add up; get your groceries delivered, use the commute to join conference calls, run errands on your lunch break, and get your clothes ready the night before.
Let Go of the Mom Guilt
Last but not least, let go of the mom guilt! You’re doing your best, and that’s all anyone can ask. So long as your children are happy and healthy, you’re doing a good job. Remind yourself of this rather than feeling down about things that you might not have gotten done.