Kicking Goals: Juggling Parenthood and a Career
#KINSHIPWorkLifeBalance
Complete High school: Check
Complete University: Check
Secure full-time job and career: Check
Get married: Check
Have children: Check
On paper my life seems set out and easy but in fact after goal #2 life got a whole lot busier and complicated and the juggle became real. How does one maintain a career, still be the loving partner and be a present parent?
I’m sure most parent’s will agree with me when I say, a parent’s guilt is never ending and a constant dialogue in the back of your mind:
“I want to be a full-time parent but feel guilty that we won’t be able to afford the mortgage or holidays”
“I want to work full-time and continue my career but feel guilty that I will never get this time back with my kid(s)”
“I want to work part-time so I can still be there for the kid(s) while they’re young but don’t know how I’m going to juggle it all”
Sound familiar?? There is no right or wrong scenario, and, in the end, you need to do what’s right for you and your family. They say, “It takes a village to raise a child” and I can say with hand on heart that’s 100% true. For me, I wanted to maintain my career while still being with the kids. I had no idea how I was going to make it work or if I could have it all. It turns out, I can have it all, but I can’t do it on my own. I need my village and my village right now is my family, my children’s Day Care, my friends and my place of work, KINSHIP.
It’s all about transparency
KINSHIP allow me the opportunity to work a short week to allow me time with my kids. The days I do work are a mix between in the office, client meetings and working remotely from home. While KINSHIP is being supportive in every way they can, I need to ensure I pay it back. It must be a give-take relationship. So, when I’m working, I make sure that I’m:
Present
Available
100% committed to the business
This means ensuring the kids are being cared for either at Day Care or with family, if I’m working from home I’m set up in a quiet workable space with no disruptions and I’m available for meetings.
Mixing it up
Working at KINSHIP is like working with my extended family. They encourage ‘Mums and Bubs Catchups’ at the local café and park, and ‘Bring Your Kids to Work Days’. These days allow my children to see where mummy disappears to when they’re at Day Care. That I’m not at home playing with their toys without them. They can see mummy wears multiple hats and that’s ok.
On the rare occasion I need to have a meeting on my scheduled day off, the KINSHIP team are the first to raise their hand to offer their babysitting services for the hour. Even though I warn them that the office might not look the same after 1 hour with my toddler, this does not deter them.
By KINSHIP allowing me to find my ideal work-life-balance I get excited to come into work or do the occasional meeting on my day off. I feel so blessed to be able to say my team is my extended family, my tribe.
What about me??
OK so work and kids sorted. Now, what about me and doing something that’s for me and only me? As well as showing my kids its ok to have a career while being a parent, I also want to show them that it’s just as important to have self-care. For me, my self-care is Pilates. I attend Pilates once a week and this is for me and only me. It’s my stress relief and my exercise all in one. I couldn’t do this without one of the important members of my tribe who has yet to get a mention, my husband. He understands that mummy needs her time for self-care to be the better parent, the better employee and of course the better wife. It’s a juggle but we’ve found our groove and it’s all thanks to my tribe!
