Support the Working Mom in Your Family

The stay-at-home mom is becoming increasingly rare. According to the US Department of Labor, over 60% of women with children under three hold down a job. This is compared to just over 30% in 1976!

As traditional gender roles disappear, mothers may find it difficult to balance the mom they want to be with the career they’ve earned.

Continuum Advisory Group President Gretchen Gagel recently wrote a book about that very struggle, 8 Steps to Being a Great Working Mom.

But what about men? How can we help the women in our life find their balance? If you’re a woman’s ally, here are some of the steps most applicable to you.

Step Three: Fix Your Job (And Your Partner’s, Too)

A core part of this step is making fair demands of your work schedule. You should feel like you can ask your boss for adjustments to your hours, about saying no when you usually say yes. This can be even harder for women due to social pressures. Women are told to do a lot, but be quiet and polite about it.

If you’re a man, you’ve had to practice assertiveness because of those same expectations. You’re expected to be tough and stand your ground. If your partner is having problems with that, encourage her! Give her advice, or a share a similar encounter you won. It will embolden her and ultimately give your family more time together.

Step Four: Building a Child-Rearing Relationship: The “Uber” Team

Women and men often approach problems very differently. With obvious exceptions, women are usually more intuitive and men more analytical. Naturally, If your partner needs some assistance they may not communicate in the analytical style we men are used to.

So take some initiative. Because of those gender roles mentioned above, she may not tell you she needs help. Ask her if she needs something. Ask her what you can do to help. She’ll appreciate you being proactive.

Step Seven: Becoming Organized: A Key Ingredient of Sanity

Here, Gagel correctly correlates organization with efficiency. Keeping track of home obligations – practice, chores – can positively affect your work life, too. People have different strengths in relationships. If your wife or girlfriend is the organized one, trust her. If you are, reach out to her. Help her accomplish this the same way you did.

But remember, you too are a cog in the family machine. Your role is just as important, and if she is organized, you should be too. Take charge of your own obligations and hold yourself to the same standard.

You can read about all eight steps on Gretchen’s web site, and purchase her book on Amazon.