Reducing Mommy Guilt with a Trifecta of Balance – Work, Family and Life

By Lori Martin, Vice President

Mommy Guilt. We all have it. It’s about achieving that work / life balance which I think proves even more difficult during the summer – pool parties and road trips tend to sound really appealing. Recently, I admittedly read a self-help book on being a mom and I’ve decided that it’s not just a work/life balance we should achieve in life, but rather a trifecta of balance moms should try to achieve – work, life and family balance.

I think the work portion is pretty self-explanatory. But what’s the difference between life and family?

I, for one,  think Moms should have a life outside of their family.

*Gasp!*

We should have a hobby other than Barney or helping our parents find quality medical care as they age. But so many of us mom’s don’t because of the G-word – guilt.

I’m not suggesting that we abandon all things family and work, but I am suggesting that you take time this summer to review what YOU like to do and find time to do it, just once. I am a Mom to a three –year-old little boy with a lot of special medical needs; it’s not a pretty picture. However, he lights up my soul, even if we’re in the hospital. So believe me, I know just how hard it is to try and achieve this trifecta – work, life and family – but I believe we owe it to our families and employers to work every so often to achieve this type of balance. It makes use better parents, friends, women, sisters, aunts and employees.

One of the coolest things I get to participate in at Edelman is a work group for the “Modern Family.” And in fact, earlier this year, a survey conducted by Edelman and The Parenting group found that sixty-two Percent of Moms and 54 Percent of Dads Say Parenting Roles will Move Away from “Mom” and “Dad” Roles of the Past.

So Moms, shouldn’t we try to leave the G-word in the past this summer and attempt to achieve a trifecta of balance? I’ve been sitting here for a good five minutes trying to decide what my goals are for this summer and I’ve come up with a jillion things for work and family – but not much on life. Here’s what I was able to come up with

• Work – Do exceptionally good work for my clients and get to know our awesome summer interns
• Family – Get a family pass to the Museum of Natural Science and take our son to see the butterflies and an IMAX4D movie (so cheap and kids go free on Tuesday’s!)
• Life – One night girl’s getaway where I got see a movie that’s at least PG 13 and have someone else to cook, clean and paint my toe nails a festive summer color. The catch is can I do this without feeling guilty?

How will you achieve a trifecta of balance this summer?