Navigating the Race to Leadership: conquering Motherhood and Professional Growth
Visualize the race to the top for women in leadership. In this picture, there are three men and three women wanting to attain a leadership position. Picture a track with six lanes that are occupied by various leaders. Three of those leaders are women and the other three are men. I will add another layer – all three women have children at home of various ages. Now, let’s start the race!
The women are in the first three lanes, but they have various obstacles that don’t allow them to start with the exceedingly fast pace as the men in lanes four through six. This may cause a delay in finishing the race to leadership. To show this illustration, I would like for us to think of a typical scenario and the possible implications.
One of the obstacles that women encounter in attaining leadership roles in organization is being a parent. I have written about the five dilemmas of being a career mom so please review to refresh your memory. One such dilemma involves managing work-family barriers, exemplified by the constant juggling act between professional commitments and parenting responsibilities.
Consider a scenario: the clash between a crucial 4:00 pm meeting and picking up little Johnny from his after-school practice. You think “let me find someone else to help take Johnny to practice.” But…Oh no, they are not available. The conflict arises, prompting a series of decisions and compromises—a struggle familiar to many balancing career and family obligations.
Can anyone relate to the above scenario? We have, at one time or another, had to make a quick deviation from plan because of children, family, or home. I am not certain of your circumstances, but I want you to reflect on your career and think of a moment you had to make a crucial decision between personal and professional life.
Research, such as that by Schedlitzki and Edwards (2022) stated, “…female senior leaders continue to face a glass ceiling in their career; often related to their child-bearing and -rearing duties as well as dominant societal and cultural structures across many organizations and countries” (p. 249)
Please do not lose hope in yourself. It is difficult to choose between personal and professional growth because we feel a constant tug-of-war between the two. These obstacles that we feel are natural, and there are ways to navigate them.
A tool that I would like to introduce for this blog is the fishbone diagram. That’s right, a fish. This visual tool helps us to identify solutions to a primary problem that may be occurring in our lives. The diagram is a brainstorming tool that helps to identify the causes of a problem that may not come to mind immediately. It is a visual representation.
The Fishbone diagram often helps me to identify solutions in my career. For example, while raising my son, I had the problem of working long hours and not spending enough time with my son. Let’s practice below to see how this can work for you in the future (added an example at the end).
Step 1: Identify the Problem Example problem statement: I am required to work long hours in my current career.
Step 2: Identify the categories that are causing the problem
Step 3: Brainstorm causes that relate to the problem in each of the categories. Ask “why is this happening?”
Step 4: Continue to ask why until everything is out of your mind!
Once I completed my Fishbone, I realized that I needed more support from management and needed to effectively communicate my wants, needs, and desires. This helped for some time after I identified my problems and solutions. But the problem occurred again, at this point, I did realize that the organization was not aligned with my values as a single mother.
My own journey as a working mother led to profound realizations. While progressing in a corporate environment, I discovered that my true aspirations lay in a setting that aligned with my cultural, personal, and professional needs.
For more insights, explore our previous blogs and stay updated on upcoming events at BRI! Keep an eye out for our upcoming retreat—details to be announced soon. Let’s navigate this journey together towards holistic growth and fulfillment. 😊!