Working Mothers: A Perspective

 ‘I am so happy to see my work place all cleaned up, that fresh air, where all the people are actually involved in their own work and place where I am fully responsible for my work, mind it ‘not other’s work’. Here, I am nicely dressed up, hair tied and a cup of coffee in my hand, most importantly I am a responsible adult’. Ah! I love my workplace. Those were my feelings when I joined my job after 6 months of maternity leave. Full of Hopes and doubts, leaving my infant at home for the first time. I had all those jitters which a responsible body part feels while separating from other body part. Still, I was able to bring smile on my face as I don’t want to regret not doing something which I love. I had no long-term plans, but I had a clear mindset of what I wanted and what I didn’t want. I guess, second part ‘what I didn’t want’ is more important.

Being a millennial working woman, constant challenges are being thrown at you. Which I consider is vital as it helps in balancing out the difficulties of having a dual responsibility (personal and professional life). According to some experts, working mother is defined as the capability of a women to exercise career and responsibility of raising a child. Before I go further, I would like to cite some examples of working mothers:

1. Indira Nooyi: The marketing genius, had been a CEO of Pepsi co, who has redefined the position of women in business and having a great leadership skill, is the mother of two daughters.

2. Mary Kom: Known for having an incredible boxing career, is Olympic gold medalist and known for many more achievements in the field of boxing. She has a daughter.

3. Mary gates: His son bill gates, in his interviews has several times mentioned the influence of his mother, Mary gates a prominent Seattle businesswoman having a strong influence on the life of her son which helped him becoming a successful businessman and biggest philanthropist of his era.

4. Ruth Bader Ginsburg: had served as a justice on supreme court was known for her strong opinions. She is the mother of two children, daughter Jane and son James.

and if you search it on google there are many more examples…

Below I would enlist few points which will highlight a need to support a working mother, also essential in terms of holistic child development:

(‘they’ here means both parents as working force)

- They allow ‘Significant’ amount of Independence for a child: Here, I would say that there is difference in what kind of freedom is being imparted by parents. Parents who are aware and educated know what sort of risks are involved in any of activity are more supportive for their child and his interests. Studies have shown that children of working parents are more independent in their thinking and working style as compared to children of families where only one of the parents is working. A child is encouraged to have their own independent opinions which is the whole idea of educating a child.

- They won’t give up just because a child did not excel at something: We are still living in patriarchy society, where a woman to full fil her needs which if does not match with family’s demands is seen as a wrong need. A family where individual needs and dreams are encouraged and woman is being supported, where a child learns the importance of individuality, his own needs. Also learning the importance of failure. Parents who sets positive example and allow a child to develop a growth mindset. Encouraging child to try new things even if he does not excel at those things will allow him to learn new things, even if he is not good at it.

- You are setting a good example for your kids: A working mother who is more exposed to the world, faces constant challenges at work and home, is able to instill more rich experiences and leadership qualities in a child which might help him in facing day to day life challenges.

- The important to being selective and thereby prioritizing: Given the fact that motherhood is a demanding job so balancing both the career and motherhood is an art. A mother need not to give upon her dreams to become a good mother. Managing and prioritizing tasks is an essential skill set.

- Important for child Development: In the past few years number of both parents working are increasing significantly. It is essential for the development of child as he will see both parents willfully participating in child rearing rather than one parent working outside and one parent at home all day. On mental level it creates a positive impact on child. This also eliminates a gender bias in terms who will stay at home and who will be a sole bread winner.

In my opinion, if a mother is given a choice to work or to stay at home, and if it is her choice to stay at home for raising the child or any other reason, her choice should be respected. She should not be forced to stay at home or to work. A happy mother is the core of a happy family.