When business babies meet actual babies: Navigating adland through parenthood
The Remarkables Group’s founder Lorraine Murphy reflects on navigating parenthood whilst running a company, including why blending is the new juggling and why a baby is the most effective productivity hack.
I had my firstborn child on the 16th May 2012. I called it The Remarkables Group.
It was all-consuming. I thought about it all day and many times all night (due to excitement at times or deep, dark worry at others). I eagerly looked forward to its little milestones, and it dominated conversations with friends and family. Through it, I connected with new friends and we would spend hours comparing our business babies, trouble-shooting problems and coaching each other through the shit bits.
So what happens when a real baby comes along?
On the 13th June this year, our little girl Alexis joined us. Getting the business to a place so I could take some time to be with her was a six-month process before her arrival.
Easily said when you run and agency and can make the rules, what about parents that don’t have that privilege/money/freedom?
Hi AA, thanks for the comment. If I didn’t run the agency I wouldn’t be going back to work until April/June next year. I’m not saying one situation is better or worse than the other, however there are definitely pros and cons to being the business owner or the employee.
A blessed life.
Couldn’t agree more. Thank you. 🙂
I don’t like this for three reasons
There’s no insight (if I’m not the boss how can I use this article) so it feels like it’s just a look how great I am article. Which in itself is fine but when writing about children it can start to feel like you’re exploiting them for a few column inches,
and it also has the counter effect of making most of us who do struggle massively balancing both feel even less adequate.
Sorry to be so negative.
Thanks for your comment Sally. The only perspective I can speak from is from my own – there are far smarter and more experienced people who have written about it from their perspectives as either employers or employees. I would also hate to be misleading anyone here – the last few months have been the toughest I have experienced and I’ve spoken about that very openly. Regardless of what we’re doing, each parent is doing the best they can for their family.
Sally, perhaps you’re not the target audience for this article then. There are other working mothers who are bosses, who would take some good tips from it. There’s no need to put others down because you took it personally.
For what it’s worth I’m not a boss, am a mother, and still found value in it. I don’t feel exploited or less adequate because of her experience.
(And no, I don’t know Lorraine at all.)
This was an interesting read.
I find the whole “I’m so much more productive since I came back to work after kids”, is a kinda dangerous area though.
Creativity and productivity don’t always go together (and I’m not talking only about people for whom creativity is their role; we all have to be creative, solve problems, think our way out of stuff).
Sometimes it’s not about ticking something off every single hour, it’s allowing your brain a bit of time to stew. Allow the kitchen chats, side shows that are actually where a lot of great ideas come from.
And it’s dangerous for those of us who are parents and employees rather than business-owners. If ticking things off a list, having tangible things to prove my worth so I don’t feel guilty about leaving ‘early’ to get my kids, becomes more important than really thinking things through, that’s potentially dangerous for business and career alike.
I get that babies do put a whole different skew on time management I just fear that ‘more productive’ chat becoming another stick to beat ourselves with.
Anyway, better go, day care calls…
Articles like this make many others feel worse. Period.
This area needs empathy. Not gloating.
Thanks for your input No. Gloating certainly wasn’t my intention but every piece of writing will be interpreted by the reader.
Hi Lorraine,
This article could not have appeared at a better time for me. I am a business owner and am expecting my first baby. I was thinking I would temporarily scale things back for a few months when the baby is born and pop back into the picture later on without my wider network seemingly noticing – not sure the stress of overheads, staff and client demands is actually what I want to be dealing with alongside a new baby and similarly steep learning curve. I have YET to find a business partner to share the load as you did, but you are so right about the “team”.. work related or not. Thanks for the inspiration – I knew it was possible to juggle a business and a baby, just wasn’t sure how.
Thanks, Jo
So good to hear Jo! Please do reach out if you’d like any tips.
Kat Thomas is nice
She most certainly is.
We could spend our time picking out every point of this article, but as busy working Mums… who has time for that, am I right?
More importantly the underlying shift is well on its way, and this is exciting! The opportunity to blend work into life is absolutely crucial to our society. It’s about time we humanise work to produce better results for business and for families.
Lorraine, a huge congratulations on the success of your business, for trying your best whilst you navigate your new role as a Mum. It’s the toughest gig you’ll undertake. Wishing you all the best!
Love your sentiment Sharni – thank you! I’m excited to be part of this, there’s definitely a bit of a zeitgeist going on here. Thank you for the kind words.
Come on ladies!
Lorraine is offering one perspective here, but with plenty of tasty tidbits you can apply as needed/ where suitable.
Example – my kids aren’t babies – they’re 9 & 11, so taking them to meetings wouldn’t work for me. But, “blending” my time between work, mum and wife, (don’t forget the other half – not just kids need our time) does. I structure my day to either start on emails or MIT’sbthst need urgent attention. Then it’s school drop off. Then meetings, follow ups and sports training drops odds where more I use my time to respond to more emails. Getting really good at working agile helps. Any of us working mums can do this – no nannies required. Just very good time management.
So take from Lorraine’s article what will work for you and applaud her on her growing business – which supports other working mothers. Perpetuate the myth of the working mother and show it to o be fact, not fiction.
But, “blending” my time between work, mum and wife, (don’t forget the other half – not just kids need our time).
^^ Yes!!!
Thanks for this Gabbie.