I’m so thankful for this project. When starting this project, I didn’t give a lot of thought to what I was asking moms to share. I work part-time and manage my family and so I know it takes patience, multi-tasking and constant course-correction to keep the ship afloat! But in order to survey how it works for more than 110 families, I need the nitty gritty details about their lives. Without exception, the moms I talked to so far have been so open and willing to share how they manage part-time work and a family, including the struggles they deal with every day, the compromises they make with their partners, and the intimate feelings they have about being working parents.
Many of us feel guilty for not being 100% moms. Some of us feel that because we’ve taken a pay cut to be in a part-time role, we need to work extra hard to take on additional burdens around the house. Many of us feel like we’re not contributing enough to the bottom line of our families. Or conversely, that we’re not contributing enough at work to be a “top performer.” Hearing these similar themes goes a long way toward developing hypotheses about how families make their situations work. And sharing these thoughts and themes is so helpful.
But at the end of every call, I’m reminded of just how lucky I am that so many moms are willing to be so completely honest during the interviews. It’s not always easy (or fun) to examine deep feelings of self-worth and compromise and guilt and even envy – but I’m so thankful that there have been so many moms who are willing to share their stories. And I feel very privileged to be let into their worlds and their lives.
So on this week of Thanksgiving, I’m sending a big, heartfelt thank you to all of the moms who have helped with this book so far. This wouldn’t happen without you! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
