Chapter 10: So You Think Staying At Home Isn’t A Full-Time Job?
Red had never thought about all the things she did as a mom as anything more than, well, being a mom. Juggling a million and one things, all of which seemed to be a priority (if not to her, then to others). Putting out daily fires, trying to anticipate the next problem before it happened, and keeping life running as smoothly as possible were all part of what she signed up for. And since she had always wanted to be a mom, she never gave any of it a second thought — until the day Black got her thinking about her life in a whole new way.
P.S. - Initially, Red found it hard to believe that what she called “Mom skills” were highly valuable workplace skills. What Black refers to as “soft skills” (don’t get her started on all the other names for them!). Over the years, as we detoured into the education world and the workplace, Red was fascinated by the full impact of what Black had told her in those first months of her crisis. (We even created curricula related to soft skills as they’re demonstrated throughout our book.) But what Red finds most powerful is that soft skills are totally transferable — from the workplace to your personal life, and vice versa.
What I didn’t realize was that I’d never work harder in my life than once I added the responsibilities of being a full-time mom to those of being a wife and a daughter. And now, as I have taken on the management of the family’s finances and the work associated with moving to a new house, my workload has gotten even bigger.
| Just checking in. What’s going on? It sounds like World War III. |
| Let me call you back. |
| Sorry it took me so long to call you back. We were in the middle of labeling Ziploc bags when the girls decided to start fighting over the markers. Then, as I was trying to stop them from arguing, Nick told me that he had promised to paint with the girls, but we were out of watercolors. That’s when you called. |
| Did you get it all resolved? |
| Oh, yes. I told the girls if they didn’t stop fighting, no one was going to get to use the markers, and we wouldn’t go through any more of the scrapbook stuff, which they were really enjoying. They settled down immediately. I told Nick I’d add watercolors to my shopping list, but told him that I’d check to see if I had some extra paint in my secret gift stash. There was, so that emergency was handled and now things are back to being calm. For the moment. |
| Told you so. |
| Told me what? |
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Red assets.rebelmouse.io | Your job is every bit as demanding as a corporate position and, in fact, you use many of the same skill sets. |
| Dealing with markers and paint? You need to get out more. |
| Me? I think it is you that needs to get out more. First, you motivated the girls to help you with the scrapbooks by making it a game. When they started to fight, you demonstrated negotiating skills. And then you dealt with Nick’s emergency. So you can add “quick decision-making in an ever-changing environment” to your resume, along with your financial and time-management skills. |
| You do know that the way you look at things is NOT normal, don’t you? Not that there’s anything wrong with it since it always gives me something to think about, but it’s certainly different. |
| And now you are demonstrating your communication skills. Questioning my thought process, but buffering it with a compliment. |
| Now you’re being a smart-ass. |
| True, but I bet you praised the girls for helping you with the scrapbook project. In all seriousness, you would make a good office manager. |
| I’m not trying to be an office manager. All those things are just part of being a mom. And they happen all the time. That’s my life. |
| A life full of business skills you are taking for granted. |
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Don’t Expect A Compliment From A Sarcastic Sister — But Have A Comeback