It's Time to Retire the Phrase 'Working Mom'
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I am absolutely fed up with the term “working mom.” In fact, the next time someone asks me if I identify as one, I am going to answer that the very term “working mom” is redundant. Yes, I founded my own business and I’m a professional writer. Yes, I work from home. But even if I didn’t do these career-oriented things, I am and will always be a working mom.
When we use the term “working mom,” we are implying that mothers who are homemakers do not work. Being a homemaker and a mom are the two hardest, most physically and emotionally exhausting jobs I can think of … and I’ve had some pretty demanding jobs in my lifetime.
The other day, I was chatting with my friend and her 10-year-old son when he casually mentioned that his mother’s job was much easier than his father’s.
Hmm. Now I don’t want to belittle his dad’s work, because it is demanding and requires long hours and travel, but he also gets a lot of perks with his job. He has time to exercise regularly, go surfing, attend fancy business lunches and dinners, and hours spent on airplanes with no one to be accountable to but himself.
His mom, on the other hand, is the chief homemaker, or the CLO (Chief Life Officer) as I like to call it. She is on call 24/7, with no down time and very few moments to herself.
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Our job as the CLO, homemaker and mom includes:
Concierge / Valet
Tech Support
Housekeeper
Chef
Dry Cleaning and Laundry Facilitator
Scheduler
Travel Agent
Mediator
Personal Shopper
Dog Walker/Pet Care Specialist
We run errands, make sure refrigerators and pantries are stocked, plan and cook meals, do the laundry, clean the house, order supplies, pay the bills, and handle all household upkeep. We manage the family schedule, including carpool and after-school activities for our kids, which if you have multiple kids, is an art form in itself. We book social engagements, make travel arrangements, pack for trips, pack for school, pack for activities, pack lunches, pack snacks. We are the household media specialists, filing books, taking photos, scheduling annual family photo shoots, organizing digital photo albums, printing pictures and making sure there’s a back-up of all digital files. We spearhead holiday planning, coordinating travel dates and plans, decorate the home, buy and deliver gifts, and send out holiday greeting cards.
In addition to all of the above, most of us CLO’s also volunteer at school and on charity committees, often serving as the committee head, president, or VP of the PTA. We can be found planning fundraising events, dedicating time at our kids schools in the classroom, and implementing parent-run school programs.
Now you tell me … does all that qualify as “work?”
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I’d say it does. So why is it only when we use our traditional “work” titles that society acknowledges you as a “working mom?”
No more! We need to come up with a better phrase to describe mothers who work outside the home, a phrase that does not belittle the accomplishments of other homemaking mothers.
Let’s shout it from the rooftops: “Hey everyone. Since you asked, all moms work!”
From now on when asked that question that makes my blood boil, I’m going to reply: “Yes, I’m a working mom. I run my household and raise my kids. I am also a digital media producer. Thank you for asking.”
By Laura Gerson, for Babble.com
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