{"id":1924,"date":"2012-07-01T06:46:40","date_gmt":"2012-07-01T10:46:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kerryhannon.com\/?p=1924"},"modified":"2012-07-01T06:55:01","modified_gmt":"2012-07-01T10:55:01","slug":"nextavenue-org-does-being-a-mom-help-or-hurt-your-career","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kerryhannon.com\/?p=1924","title":{"rendered":"NextAvenue.org: Does Being a Mom Help or Hurt Your Career?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"\"<\/a>
Comstock | Thinkstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I got to thinking about whether being a parent helps or hurts you at work. Since I blog each week about women and money, I decided to look at this question from the mom\u2019s point of view.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

I don\u2019t have kids, so I\u2019m always in awe of my female friends who have raised children while being star performers at their jobs. I\u2019ve often thought that handling parental duties must have made it hard for them to get promoted or land big assignments, especially if the boss thought they had too many \u201cat home\u201d responsibilities. And lots of working women take\u00a0time out\u00a0<\/a>to stay home with their kids, which can lead to being passed over for promotions and raises.<\/p>\n

(MORE:<\/strong>\u00a05 Ways Women Can Increase Their Pay<\/a>)<\/p>\n

But a new\u00a0survey<\/a>\u00a0from The Korn\/Ferry Institute, a management think tank, found that motherhood doesn\u2019t necessarily limit your career \u2014 it can actually help you get promoted and make you better at your job.<\/p>\n

The Payoff From Motherhood<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nearly half (48 percent) of the more than 100 female executives surveyed said having children had not limited their career advancement. Just 8 percent believed job opportunities were adversely affected by the decision to have kids. A sizeable 44 percent of respondents said motherhood “somewhat” restricted their career path.<\/p>\n

However, a whopping 94 percent said raising children had provided them with unique skills that transfer well to the workplace \u2014 such skills as empathy, confidence and the ability to motivate and inspire others.<\/p>\n

After reading the survey, I decided to conduct my own unscientific research. This past weekend, I asked a few members of my female horseback riding network in Virginia how being a mom has helped them at work.<\/p>\n

(MORE:<\/strong>\u00a0Why Women Should Join Networking Groups<\/a>)<\/p>\n

These women, all in their 40s and 50s, have top corporate management positions or run a small business. They repeatedly told me that being a parent made them better at managing their time as well as multitasking, delegating, mentoring, dealing with stubborn employees and prioritizing their to-do lists at work. Not one of them said motherhood had held back their careers.<\/p>\n

4 Career Lessons From Moms<\/strong><\/p>\n

My friends said being a mom had taught them these four lessons for the workplace. Maybe they\u2019ll be useful to you, whether you’re a mother or not.<\/p>\n

1. Look for novel ways to cope with work\/life frustrations.<\/strong>\u00a0When job duties interfere with life at home, come up with creative ways to deal with the tradeoff. Torie Clarke, 53, a senior adviser for communications and government affairs at Comcast, previously worked as the assistant secretary of defense for public affairs under President George W. Bush. She recalls spending her son Colin\u2019s seventh birthday in Afghanistan with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. To compensate for not being home, she says, \u201cI made sure the secretary called Colin to wish him a happy birthday.\u201d<\/p>\n

2. Prioritize, just the way you manage the household and juggle kid needs.<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s all about triage,\u201d Clarke says. \u201cIt\u2019s knowing there are three things that have to get done and being able to say to someone who reports to me, ‘This one needs to get done\u00a0now<\/em>.’\u201d Sometimes, you need to determine which work task\u00a0you<\/em>\u00a0need to tackle now.<\/p>\n

3. Allow the people who work for you to become stars.\u00a0<\/strong>Rachel Shreve Hammes of Fairfax, Va., is the mother of 14-year-old Leah and the director of financial planning and analysis at MITRE, a not-for-profit that manages federally financed research and development centers. She says motherhood has made her less controlling at work.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs I\u2019ve encouraged Leah, my own self-doubt has quieted down, which has manifested itself in the workplace,\u201d Hammes says. \u201cI seek out the best and the brightest for my team; I\u2019m no longer insecure that they will outshine me.\u201d<\/p>\n

4. Be patient, even when it seems nearly impossible.<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cDealing with my kids has taught me to be calmer and somewhat less demanding,\u201d says my riding instructor, Jonelle Mullen Stern, who runs a successful horse training business in Warrenton, Va.<\/p>\n

She says her patience as a mom has, in turn, allowed her to ramp up the company\u2019s client rosters. By explaining riding techniques slowly, Mullen Stern says, she has become a better teacher. \u201cMy students appreciate it when I break things down into baby steps,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

I know I do.<\/p>\n

posted by\u00a0Kerry Hannon<\/a>, June 13, 2012\u00a0More by this author<\/a><\/h3>\n
\"\"Kerry Hannon has spent more than 25 years covering personal finance for Forbes, Money, U.S. News & World Report, and USA Today. Her website iskerryhannon.com<\/a>. Follow her on Twitter\u00a0@kerryhannon<\/a>.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\"Share<\/a>