Honour the incredible women who have shaped your life – share their stories this Mother’s Day! Let’s pass on the #legacyofstrength!
You want to give gifts to mothers and glorify them further? Wait, here are 5 things we want to give back to you as we don't want them!
Mother’s day. Aah and wow! A day when women the world over wake up to a shocking number of kisses, hugs, hallmark cards, breakfasts in bed, discordant musical performances and promises and ‘by god’ swears to be the best children, husbands and sometimes in-laws as well.
Of course, these offers and this exemplary behaviour, like most marketing campaigns, has a statute of limitations and doesn’t apply to walking dogs, instructing the house help on food and chores, or the mountain of other home and work-related burdens (what did you expect, woman!? A reality check please.) Which is fine. Give me a day of feeling like a queen (albeit of a tiny kingdom) and I’ll take it. But only if they promise to take back some extremely annoying monikers, expectations and stereotypes we have historically been ladled with without our permission, the kind that makes us see red and out blood boil. Neither can bode well. So listen up.
She is the perfect woman. Sarva Gun sampanna!
This is impossible. Even for Dettol that claims to kill only 99% of all germs. How can we be a 100%? What is this fascination with one person knowing it all and doing it all? It’s like expecting a vegan super bowl to taste like mutton rogan josh and kadhi chaval. This expectation derails women mentally because it is impossible to attain this pinnacle of perfection and we turn our hair grey just trying so others are pleased and appeased.
She is a multitasker. She can do anything. Maa ho to aisi!
Another one that feels like nails being dragged on a blackboard. You try balancing a toddler on your hip while screaming at a hungry 2nd grader, cooking eggs, admonishing the delivery man at the door for not carrying change, following up on the phone about a cake that was never delivered, all while checking for an important email that might determine whether you get promoted over that insufferable, underserving airhead you sit next to at work. Oh and of course you are expected to look your best, smell decent and even entertain.
News flash. Most women don’t want to be multitaskers. They would much rather lie in the sun on a beach like a ghariyal and sip a margahrita. We do it because no one else will do it. So, stop the gaslighting.
Motherhood is the highest salaried job because the payment is pure love
Utter bullshit. I say keep some of the love and bring in the moolah. This is so wrong on many levels. I know many capable, intelligent and qualified women being fed this stale recipe after marriage and conceiving, repeatedly, till they start believing that mothering children and people around the house is what they are best at, ambitions, careers and flying business while on business be damned. Yes, we love the family and the homestead but we are so much more than that and this silly deification robs us of the ability to stand on our feet which eventually depletes our sense of self. Not nice.
God can’t be everywhere so he created a mother
Oh puhleeze. This is a stand in statement for the real thing that nobody wants to say. Namely- You need to do everything for us while we behave like we are in diapers. God created everyone with hands, legs and a capacity to use their brains. Then why the reliance on the poor woman who has enough on her hands already? Grow up. Everyone. Like pronto.
I look for my mother in you
Carl Jung and Freud possibly have several theories on the subject. Kyon bhai? Why do you look for you mumma in your wife? They already have a lot of anatomical similarities and that’s where the overlap should end.
Looking for mummies in wives usually maketh a dull and lazy man. This kind of thinking raises hackles and makes women compete when there is nothing to compete for, and propagates sad and stale stereotypes like mom in law vs daughter in law. The ‘The End’ for this movie is a long time coming.
These gifts just keep giving but I should spare you for now. Do you know what’s a heavily searched topic on search engines? How to deal with an annoying mother. Let me give you a clue. Cut out the unfair expectations, let her breathe and stop saying annoying things to her. Chances are she will let you be and have better things to do with her time. Here’s to creating a new low, of expectations, performance standards and idolizing mothers. That’ll make it a truly happy Mother’s day!
Richa is a Ted X speaker, an award-winning writer, columnist, ex-journalist and advertising professional. She has authored four books of which three are being adapted for screen. She is a blogger and travel read more...
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We need to stop stereotyping women's bodies, and also be more sensitive towards our children who are growing up with terrible self-confidence leading to loneliness and depression.
When Kate Winslet said, “Young women should enjoy their life instead of worrying about how they look,” it stuck a cord with me. I am one of those women who struggle with body image issues in a society heavily influenced by unrealistic beauty standards and societal expectations, and Kate’s statement was empowering.
I grew up listening to unsolicited advice about wearing clothes a size bigger than what I wear; everyone took a free ride to comment about my bra and how big it was. I have spent most of my life loathing how I look—my size, weight, clothes, appearance, skin tone, and hair. This isn’t because I’m not too fond of how I appear, but rather because I’ve been told repeatedly by most trusted people around me that I have one or more flaws.
It is imperative that, as a society, we shed our stereotypical thought not just to support women but also our children who are growing up with terrible self-confidence leading to loneliness and depression. We can significantly impact our mental health and well-being by fostering a culture of compassion, understanding, and empowerment.
Here are some online tools for startups to use for their tech needs for organising work, mind mapping, ideation, etc.
Most startups are bootstrapped, the budget is low, there is no funding, startups need some support and excellent tools to run the show. The team may be working at one place or the team is spread across the globe, but the team needs to brainstorm. Brainstorming can be fun. Listing few resources which a startup or entrepreneurs can use for brainstorming.
Bubbl.us is an interesting tool which is useful to take notes, brainstorm and organize new ideas, collaborate, and capture thoughts. It allows you to avoid distraction by focusing on task, to collaborate and share with friends, families, team and social media. Essentially no hassle of downloading any app, works on mobile and desktop. You can use the basic plan to explore and later subscribe for at $4.91/month, $59 billed annually.
Miro offers the quickest, easiest way for teams to capture, organize and visualize thoughts, solutions, ideas across the team. Other than brainstorming, it can be used for project planning, creating organizational charts and sales strategies. It runs on all devices: mobile, tablet, desktop or interactive display.
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