Why Getting Outside with Your Baby Is Good for Both of You
By Priyanka Sahni (Estimated reading time: 3 minutes)
For working parents, having children is often framed by society as a deficit to our careers. But what if we reframed this mindset to celebrate the ways that parenting can make us better leaders and assets to our teams and organizations?
I was recently at a dinner with five other ambitious working moms. Even amongst this group, who could all relate to the motherhood penalty and all the ways workplaces can do better to support working parents, I noticed that there was still an underlying, almost unspoken, truism that our kids are holding us back from achieving our full potential as leaders in the corporate world.
Did you know that PEPS offers groups specifically for working moms? Learn more about our Working Moms Affinity Program.
Let me clarify what I mean here – I have a two-year-old, and I firmly believe that raising her is the greatest privilege of my life. In many ways, the act of raising her has had such a profound impact on my personal growth that one could say it is, indeed, she who is raising me! Having said this, I will acknowledge that every now and then, I am envious of my co-workers who don’t have to worry about doctors’ appointments or childcare disruptions, allowing them to prioritize their work over other obligations.
The dinner conversation prompted me to reframe the belief that being a parent prevents us from reaching our full career potential and instead think about the ways parenting and raising kids contribute to the development of skills for effective leadership outside the home. In other words, what are the transferable skills of parenting?
Art of prioritization
The hardest lesson for any first-time parent is the realization of how finite our time and attention are. Somewhere in between those dirty diapers and nightly feedings, I learned to focus on what truly matters and when to say no in order to make space for the yeses. Brunch with family, swimming lessons at the community center, hanging out at the neighborhood playground, and running errands to make sure there’s food for the coming week are all great ways to spend a Sunday, but a very real example of tradeoffs that parents make day in and day out to ensure the household runs smoothly. Any leader would tell you that in this world of distraction and competing priorities, understanding where to focus our energy can make the difference between good and extraordinary leadership. No matter whether you’re a nurse, a teacher, or a tech executive, learning to make efficient use of time and resources is a valuable skill in the workplace.
Emotional self-regulation
One of the key skills parents have the opportunity to practice multiple times a day is the ability to manage their own emotions when faced with their distressed infant or toddler and respond in a calm way to facilitate regulation in their child. This combo skill of emotional awareness and the ability to respond instead of just react in highly charged situations leads to not just higher self-efficacy and empathy for others but improved resilience and motivation in those around us, kids and coworkers alike.
Focus on long-term goals
Parenting pushes one to focus on the big picture rather than the day-to-day wins and losses. I am not interested in tactics to get my daughter to eat broccoli for one dinner one day or share her toys this one time. Instead, I’m focused on sustainable ways to bring long-term behavior change. Likewise, no matter whether you’re running a small business or running a publicly traded company, success is built by implementing long term strategies for sustainable growth as opposed to optimizing for profits this quarter.
Final thoughts
Covid has empowered many working parents to share more openly about the challenges and burden of caring for young kids. My wish is that as we make room for acknowledging the hard stuff, we do not overlook the positives that we accrue in all areas of our life as part of being a parent. Together we can develop a shared vocabulary to empower others in reframing their parenting experience and leaning into the skills gained through parenting should they wish to pursue careers outside the home.
About the Author
Priyanka is a product manager at a leading technology company and a proud mother to a lively toddler. She participated in a PEPS Newborn Group and a Working Moms Affinity Group and now serves as a PEPS Advisor for the Working Moms Affinity Program. As an Indian immigrant to the United States, Priyanka has a unique cultural perspective on raising kids as a working parent. Priyanka passionately believes in the importance of accessible support networks for all women, enabling them to build their own supportive communities. Priyanka enjoys weekends spent exploring local parks and children’s museums with her family, delving into non-fiction reads spanning history, technology, and sports, and expressing her creativity both in the kitchen and through painting.
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