Motherhood and Career – How to Juggle Between the Two

I have been a mother for the last 8 years. I gave up my career to be a full-time mother to my children. Motherhood has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience with its share of vicissitudes. Yes, there were times when my sons threw tantrums when I wanted to escape and run away. There were times when I wanted to sleep but had to stay up putting a cranky baby to bed. There were also times when just a full-throated laughter, a smile, or the smell of my baby’s skin could melt my heart and lift my spirits. A roller coaster of emotions, I guess, is part of normal motherhood.

Keeping up the daily routine of being a mother, the one question which was always at the back of my mind, “what about my career?” A well-educated MBA, it always tugged at my heart’s strings that years, which could be spent in building my career, were flying by looking after kids. It did hurt me to see batch mates and colleagues climb corporate ladders while I was being a mother.

The pragmatist in me knows how important it was for me to be at home, for one parent to be always around and available for the kids. However, that little thought gnawed at the back of my mind that I was wasting my education. The successful career that I had pursued earlier seemed like a distant dream now. But that niggling thought never went away.

So, what was the way out? What did I do? I worked around the circumstances. I have always had a flair for writing. So, I began writing a blog as a hobby. And, slowly built it into a career of freelance writing. It was not easy; it still is not. And, it will never be easy to juggle career and motherhood. But, I am getting there. I am happy that it is satisfying; and I am doing my own thing.

That point about wasting my education – I realized that education is never wasted. Education has made me the logical, analytical person having the skills that I have today.

So, all the mothers out there who have taken time off their regular work to raise kids — kudos to you! Remember, there can only be one mother to your children — you! You have made the right choice. There is a career option waiting for you to pursue in your spare time, or from home. All you have to do is find it, when you feel you are ready for it.

Meanwhile, enjoy the motherhood; career can wait!