Working After Baby

After time at home with baby, it can take some adjusting to go from diapers and play-dates to spreadsheets and board meetings. Anticipate the challenges of being a working mom.

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Work-Life Imbalance

Posted: 05/02/2008 03:20 PM EST

Imagine being a Wall Street CEO, making $30 million a year. Imagine that you are the co-president of one of the biggest firms in downtown Manhattan. The world is yours, and you can do whatever you want.

So you get up and make cupcakes for your child’s school at 4:00 a.m. Sound insane? That was the life of Zoe Cruz—before she was fired from her job, anyway. There’s been a lot of chatter about how Cruz was dismissed because someone had to take the fall in a shaky market, and even more about how frustrating it is that it had to be a woman.

More frustrating, however, is the fact that Cruz says she often downplayed her status as a parent, working during labor and going back to work mere weeks after delivery. We wonder if she thinks it was worth it, now that she’s left without a job.

What do you think? Should women have to live two separate lives? Will there ever be such a thing as work-life balance for women? [WSJ]

Comments

It's sad that Zoe had to downplay her staus as a parent -- but it's also a harsh reality. I was a working mother at two points in my career and both times I, like Zoe and so many other mothers, didn't have to, but realized it was best to, keep my parenting responsibilities to myself. Ironically, the two worst experiences I had as a working mother was when I worked directly for WORKING MOTHERS!
There will never be one answer to this conundrum, that will persist despite the glass ceiling being raised. Not until there is a real acceptance in the workplace that balance - not just for women - is so very important, mother's (and fathers too) are going to have to live dual lives.
I'm happy to say I now work in a company run by women and flex time is working for us. We put in long days - but we also make it a priority to pick up our kids and make it to serve hot lunch. It's not always perfect, but it might be as good as it gets.
I'm afraid we are the exception though...not the rule.