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10 Prejudices Mothers Face Based on Their Employment Status
Whether you are a stay-at-home or a working mom, you are never free from judgment.
The question of whether to work or not to work is a nagging question that keeps bothering us since the day we decide to become mothers. The perk of becoming a mother and enjoying motherhood is over-shadowed by this interminable question.
When my daughter was born I did not pay heed to the prejudices that society threw at me. If I am the protagonist in my life’s story then all the decisions, whether right or wrong, will be mine. I refuse to be judged by the prying eyes of the society and be intimidated if they do, because my employment status is my choice and not of others.
But societal prejudices are aplenty and often, if not always, the role is determined by these assumptions. Listed below are 10 prejudicial assumptions mothers face based on their employment status.
The prejudicial societal assumption that unfairly perceives that a working mother neglects her children is like judging a book by its cover. Mothers are naturally blessed with protective instincts. While some decide to be at home with their bundle of joys, others may want to balance career with motherhood. But whatever the choice, it should rest with the mother.
Sometimes, mothers decide to go back to work because of financial burdens, while others go back to work just to be financially independent. Whatever the reason, a mother knows her priorities in her life and society shouldn’t be judgmental of her choices.
A mother will never ignore the needs of her child at the pretext of work commitments. In fact she might ignore or postpone her work commitments for her child; and there is no two way to it.
Although a working mom concentrates on her career because being financially independent is the greatest feeling of empowerment that a woman can feel, blaming her for choosing her career over her child is baseless. Why can’t a woman have both? She can certainly juggle both.
Oh yes she does! Not for the check, but for herself and her children. Every child’s first teachers are the parents and setting examples is the best way to impart knowledge. So whether you work from home, or go to a place built of brick and motor, or decide to stay at home and become full-time mother, the choice is yours and it shouldn’t be conditioned to your husband’s income. Know it and show it! And you will be able to raise smart, confident children.
Having educational qualifications does not always mean quantifying them in monetary terms and calculating the return on investment. It means using the education for shaping lives. And raising a child with the right values is like putting your education to optimum use. The bookish knowledge is what they will get eventually, but the knowledge of experience is what only an educated mother with an independent viewpoint can give.
A stay-at-home mom’s job is a thankless one. The sacrifices that she makes by giving up her career for the sake of her child comes back to plague her and snatch away the bliss called motherhood. She contributes equally to the successful running of her family, not necessarily in monetary terms, but in terms of services. And all she gets in return is contempt and constant judgment.
Skills and knowledge are elements that we gather all our lives. It doesn’t end with our school or college term; neither does it end with the first job we land in. It is an irony that when we go to an establishment every day to do things which might not necessarily bring us happiness but ensures a beep at the end of the month is counted as work experience; and the work of raising a child and shaping a life is considered a waste of time
Being ambitious does not always mean becoming the CEO of a company. Ambitions are set according to a person’s life’s priorities and they are not always driven by money or position. If I want to raise my child and make him a better person then that is being ambitious too. It’s all about dreaming something and working towards it.
At our workplaces everyone aspires to become a multi-tasker; a stay at home mom masters it. She doesn’t have the luxury of time because managing a home is an endless job. It requires efficient management of the activities to ensure smooth running of affairs, meticulous planning for the day and future, keen eye to details, prioritization, delegation etc. And trust me it isn’t easy as a pie; rather it is like baking a cake; even a slight deviation can prove to be catastrophic.
The argument rests here. To each their own! If the choices made by someone doesn’t work for another then it doesn’t deplete the value of the choices that that someone has made. My choices are based on my happiness quotient and not fitting on the need to fit into someone else’s idea of happiness.
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