How to Balance a Career with Motherhood

Motherhood is an evolving process that changes with the ages and number of children you have. Most careers are not so flexible, which means you will need some help when you are needed in two places at a time. Time management is important since the mother will find herself having to go from "Plan A" down to "Plan G," so staying ahead of tasks will keep you in control and give you more time so you can work your way down the list of solutions. Here are 5 services and organization tips for working mothers with children of various ages.

Children Under School Age (Infants and Toddlers)
Most employers do not allow you to take your kids to work with you, so you will need a daycare provider to watch them while you are at work. Daycare is not cheap, but it is well worth its price considering everything that daycare offers, such as feeding, changing, providing stimulating activities and supervision of the children.

School Age Children (Preschool to High School)
At this age the children are easier to take care of, but this is where their schedules get out of whack. Since school schedules are out of sync with the average work day, you will need help with picking the kids up from school and an after school program or daycare to keep them busy and fill in the gap.

Scheduling Meetings and Events
Use a daily planner to note any unusual events coming up, such as parent/teacher conferences, doctor appointments and company meetings so you can stay on top of everything. You can't ask the entire company to wait on you, but teachers and doctor's offices will work with you and your schedule.

Cooking
Planning dinners for the week prepares you for what's coming, so you will know what meat to pull out in the morning to defrost. If you are not big on cooking, use a crock pot or slow cooker. Throw the food in and let it cook all day. Add a little bit of water as well to keep the food moist while cooking.

Dressing and Appearance
Dress the part to achieve your career goals. You should dress according to where you want to be in your career so that management can visualize you in a higher position more easily. The hectic life of a mother can make it difficult to balance home life with a career, but you must make sure to stay on top of laundry so you have clean and presentable clothes. Select your work outfit before going to bed the night before. This ensures that you wear something clean and nice in the morning instead of scrounging for something to wear at the last second only to discover you don't have any clean clothes.

Following these five simple tips will help you thrive in your career while not having to sacrifice being a mother to your children.

Sources:

Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D,"When Job-Hunting: Dress for Success," QuintCareers.

"Dress for Success," NDSU.