SHUT IN / SHUT OUT
Do you feel like you have to make a choice around career Vs being a parent?
Many parents feel compromised in either their career, family or both as a result of becoming a parent in our society, which favours wealth creation over caring.
"Yes, Because I am a woman"
"The relentless nature of being a working parent is exhausting, especially if you are working in a job you don't like/doesn't fulfil you. You wake up, do the school run, rush to work (central London commute), work all day then rush to the school pick up, and home to make dinner, do bedtime and then you might finally rest at 9pm. So there is not any time for yourself in a typical day."
"You need flex. I used to give so much to my career and then I had nothing left to give my children, let alone myself. So something had to change and I ended up switching career to the kind of work that could flex around my responsibilities as a parent. However, I think if you have adequate support for your family in place, from family members or paid childcare and/or a job that allows the flexibility that you need, then that choice (career vs being a parent) doesn't necessarily have to be made."
"I am constantly making choices to balance career and parenting. I don't feel that I have had a choice to work or not, as a single parent i have to provide for my child. But I have had to make tough choices around the type of work I am doing, for example taking jobs based purely on income rather than career development or self-fulfilment."
"I feel like something needs to give when you become a parent, especially if you don't have family support close by."
"I don’t think it’s possible to do both well to be honest, or if you do do both well it’s because you’re in a comfortable job that you know."
"I took a promotion when I went back to work after my first maternity leave and it was a big mistake - I found it incredibly stressful to be leading a team and having people rely on me at work, then having people rely on me at home as well. The stress levels sometimes were ridiculous, and didn’t put me in a good place mentally for my daughter. My daughter inevitably caught lots of bugs at her nursery and I had to constantly either take sick days - my manager didn’t really understand as she didn’t have children. Looking back on it, I wish I hadnt put my daughter in nursery at 10 months old - I hated doing it at the time and I personally found it too young. I’ve found it a lot easier with my second, as he’s only started aged 14 months."