Can I do it all as a Mother?

Today is dedicated to moms and to-be moms 🫶

Genre of questions that come to me in 1:1s: I am trying hard to do it all or will I be able to do it all ? Motherhood looks very demanding!

I see my mom in a new light and I have a new found reverence towards everything she does. I don’t know if I have it in me to be a dotted mother, what do you advice 😉

I wish someone answered it for me when I was a young mother. Today I will connect the dots from my lived experience of motherhood which I could not do while I was going through it.

Looking backwards, I am glad I had the courage to jump into motherhood. It taught me valuable lessons that I could not learn anywhere else. It made me a better person overall and it certainly made my career better. Let’s dig in.

First things first: I didn’t do it all. But I am grateful to the support structure around me that helped me do most of it (have a meaningful life, have an exemplary career, have multiple interests/hobbies etc) Without them I am not here. My load was shared and balanced.

Motherhood made me an amazing administrator and operations manager. I could handle multiple tasks at a time as my responsibility demanded it out of me. I don’t forget a thing in my priority list till date. It became a habit. Eg: I made slots in my calendar to pump my breast milk during work hours and freeze them without fail every single day for 12 months. That consistency was hard on me, but hey without it my children will not have the right nutrition.

Responsibility >> Grind

Motherhood helps me take big good decisions and excel in strategic thinking. Eg: I moved continents so that my kids can go to a Waldorf school. That one decision saved a decade of my parenthood. A joyful childhood for my children (and joyful parenthood). It is not easy to let go of a high flying career in Singapore to move to Hyderabad. But my motherhood gave that courage to trust my instincts.

Foundation >> Career

Motherhood sculpted me as a better person. I embraced qualities like patience, handling extreme stress well, acceptance, perseverance, boundaries, grit and loving kindness. It is easy to be curt with someone you don’t like much but it super hard to have boundaries with someone whom you love. I learned how to say hard things by being caring, compassionate and authentic.

Motherhood helps me be a better manager. Every child is different. Between your children, it is hard to have favourites. you start seeing strengths in each and start helping them excel in their areas. I do something similar at work too. The secret identity I take is be a mother to my team and not a manager.

Mothering >> Managing

The list is endless. Motherhood gives you an opportunity to practice betterment every minute. The responsibility is so high that we can’t afford to mess up. That makes us thrive as better human beings.

Happy Mother’s Day 🫶