The last month I've been privileged to attend meetings at Stennis Space Center. Once a week they invite all the female employees in to discuss women's issues. Sometimes there's a speaker. Sometimes it's just Q&A. One of the questions asked of a young intern was this:
"I've had so much happen in my personal life in the last few months, that I'm finding hard to keep it together emotionally at work. How do you separate your work life from your personal life?"
The short answer is: You don't. As a working mother, I'm incredibly blessed to have a flexible schedule most of the time. Sometimes I have childcare, other times Wesley gets to be my assistant. Sometimes it's a bad idea, and other times it's great. One love of my life flows into the other.
Eliza Kate quote about her mom in today's video sums that up perfectly.
"I love my mom so much. I'm very thankful for all she does, because she really doesn't have the time to do it. Like she taught me how to do a backbend on a Sunday night. Which was really hard for her to do."
Prioritizing is key. Work/life balance is a myth. Knowing what's important, whether it be backbends on a Sunday night or not, is the key to happiness and fulfillment. You won't be able to make every swim meet, but you can still be present in other ways. I love when my son gets to go with me to work. He's old enough now that he understands what Mom does and can behave. I think it's good for our kids to see what we do so that perhaps they understand better when we can't be there.
Erin Cowser told me that Eliza Kate knows the ins and out of a Chamber of Commerce Meeting, has met with the Mayor of Hammond, and knows more people in the room than she does. It obviously has had a positive impact on her life. Watch today's video with both of their perspectives. You'll definitely enjoy them both.