Taking full responsibility of the well-being of another human being is no easy task but that is basically motherhood in a nutshell. Being able to find that work-life balance can be the hardest and most stressful thing to do. At times, working moms might feel like quitting but we are here to remind you that whether you are currently a working mom or you will be in the future; there are other women who are going through the exact same journey as you are.
So who better to give advice for working moms than working mothers themselves? Here are five pieces of life advice from working mothers about finding the right work-life balance.
“I think there is no clean cut advice I can give to working mothers for a perfect balance. I believe that each person is different and each mom shall find/create her own balance. There is no perfect equation; instead, you should tailor the scenario that perfectly fits your life priorities. Each one of us –not only moms- have a set of priorities, whether it includes your career and your professional achievements first or it caters your mom-focused goals, you choose your best life equation.
Other than defining your life goals and priorities, creating the optimum support system is crucial, and here I always apply my professional 80/20 rule, where you achieve 80% of your outcomes using 20% of your input if managed well. Meaning, if you face problems in driving or if you find that you can better finish work while commuting, you can always hire a driver or use ride-hailing services.
Being a mother of three is challenging, so I trained myself to apply a very simple yet effective rule, which is constantly telling myself that “it’s okay to be imperfect sometimes.” Moreover, my key advice is to not let the feeling of guilt ruin your life. It’s always okay to miss a class, or order delivery at home, just try as much as possible to always balance and prioritize your daily tasks. I’m very blessed to have the best support system and I’m also very blessed to have a perfect partner who supports my professional steps and believe in my capabilities, more than I do.” –Yasmine El Shafei, Deputy Manager
“A piece of advice I would give to working moms is to connect with people who have similar goals and aspiration as you, for me I like to connect with other working moms. So, for example, every Thursday at 11:00 am, many of my friends who stay at home with their kids have this ‘mommy outing’ that I would love to go to but usually miss out on because I’m at work and it can be really tough sometimes. But one thing that has helped me is the support I receive from my co-workers, who also happen to be working mothers.
I work closely with two other moms and just talking to them about things like grading papers during nap time has been tremendously therapeutic. I connect with these women because in some way, they understand the emotions and challenges that come from balancing work and parenting. We share funny stories about our kids, cute videos, sympathetic hugs, coffee and it really makes a huge difference in my life. They have become my support system when no one else was supporting me.” –Salma Eissa, High School Teacher
Via Naukri Nama
“Learning how to multi-task is the only way you can survive this. If you lack the skill of multi-tasking and you’re planning to be a working mom, then you better start learning it now. Let’s face it, being a working mom is extremely exhausting. Every second of your day seems crammed full, from work e-mails to your children calling you on the phone; it just doesn’t end. But I have discovered a whole new level of multi-tasking that might not work for everyone out there but it has definitely worked out for me. For example, I started replying to my work emails whilst waiting in line at the supermarket cashier. When I make it to the gym (on rare occasions), I take a book or my Kindle with me, so that I can do two of my favorite things at once. At times when I drop my daughters off at school, I FaceTime my eldest son (who studies abroad), this is the only time I can find time to connect with him. Sometimes, I take my lunch to the children’s practice and finish my work as I wait. In order to maintain my sanity, I try to not touch my emails and postpone any work-related calls for the weekends, so I could have some time for myself and the kids.” –Marwa Badran, Head of Marketing
“Balancing three children and a full-time job is one of the most challenging things in the world. Actually, challenging is an understatement, it’s more than that! But there are things I learned throughout this journey that I think women should know if they are trying to find that perfect balance. The first thing is, there is no such thing as the ‘perfect’ balance; it simply doesn’t exist. Also, get your partner to do stuff, raising kids with no support is not easy. A lot of times, I see women doing everything whilst the husband gets a free pass. I honestly don’t think that this is fair. You should always remember that dads are co-parents, not babysitters. The responsibilities of your house and kids fall on both of you. Moreover, if you ever feel overwhelmed with everything, then my advice is to request a more flexible schedule at work. The nine to five, Sunday to Thursday grind may not work for everybody and that’s okay. Talk to your boss about a flexible schedule that works for you and the company.” –Dalia Shaaban, Accountant
“If you are a new working mom like I was seven years ago, then I would tell you to have patience because it does get better with time. Trust me. I find it much easier now that my kids are older than when they were infants. During those early months, you’re in the throes of breastfeeding, pumping or washing bottles. You might prepare homemade baby food whereas an older child can eat pretty much what you would eat. And you’re less likely to be sleep-deprived when your kids are seven years old rather than seven months old. Also, working moms have to realize that a burnout means that you have to stop and reconsider. If your job is the major factor that’s off in your work-life balance then it may be time to reconsider your job. I hesitate when I say this tip because I don’t want to make it seem like it’s an easy thing to do, it’s not. But the thing is, you can do all the time hacks in the world, but if your job is causing significant stress then it might be time to find another option. ” –Asmaa Ashraf, Gym Trainer
