In the last couple of years, we’ve seen a disturbing trend emerge – the shaming of the working mother. Although it’s hard to believe, people have been taking to social media to criticize those mothers who juggle both parenthood and a successful career.
This can be devastating for working mothers who are already dealing with ‘working mom guilt and is seen by most as no more than schoolyard bullying. I’ve written before about How to Avoid Working Mom Guilt.
Thank you to Ultimate Banners for this article contribution.
As we approach 2020, it’s time to ditch ‘working mom guilt’ once and for all – for some very good reasons:
Show me the money
One thing I’ve learned from co-founding ultimatebanners – Kids need – and want – stuff. This is a simple fact of life. Despite all of the memes on Facebook telling us that love is enough, this doesn’t help when a child has to go without the material things that make up his or her culture. Toys, tech and holidays all need to be paid for – and we should be celebrating those mothers who are going out there in order to provide these things. Whether that’s a regular job or a new business, at Ultimate Banners, we’re always championing the accomplishments of working mothers.
RELATED: Working Moms Guide to Guilt-Free Spending
A social kid is a happy kid
Children who spend time in an after-school club or in a daycare group have a major advantage when it comes to confidence. By their very nature, these groups involve socializing and interacting with different adults and children – which means that young children become accustomed to being around new people and suffer less ‘abandonment issues’.
RELATED: 6 Best After-School Activities for Your Child
Happy mother = happy child
Many mothers work simply because they need the cash. Others, on the other hand, work because they desire a dimension to their lives other than parenthood and, this is where much of the guilt comes from. Many moms feel that they’ve failed due to the fact that, for them, being a mom isn’t enough. This couldn’t be further from the truth. In reality, we all need more than one thing to make our lives complete, whether its a job, a hobby or a social life. Rather than harming a child, this has very much the opposite effect. A mother who leads a well rounded and fulfilling life tends to be a happy mother – and this is passed onto her children. Children have an uncanny knack of sensing when a parent is discontented and, this is much more harmful than anything else as children take their cues from adults.
RELATED: Working Moms Guide to Guilt-Free Spending
Mom-spiration
“What does your mom do?” “Oh, nothing.” As frustrating as it may be, children rarely see parenting and house-keeping as accomplishments – at least until they leave for college and discover that there is no cleaning fairy. On the other hand, children love to brag about their parents’ occupations – whether mom or dad is a rocket scientist or a teacher, children understand that a career is something to be proud of and, will often take a parents’ occupation as something to aspire to.
RELATED: Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day
The quality time myth
Just because a mother works, this doesn’t mean that she isn’t spending quality time with her children – quite the opposite. When a mother is away from her child during the week, she will usually put in a huge amount of effort to make sure that time together counts – rather than spending weekends at home staring at the TV.
RELATED: Why playing with your child is more important than you think
It’s incredibly dismaying to think that women are criticizing other women because of their life and parenting choices and, it’s time that we recognized that great parenting time means quality, not quantity.
Thank you to Ultimate Banners for this article contribution. Visit their website here https://ultimatebanners.co/roll-up-banners/
