Who Says Motherhood and Career Don’t Mix?
Some Tips from a Working Mom
By Stella J. Garcia

The alarm clock rings at 5:45 AM: the start of another day! I rise to see that the boys are up. I have two of them, you know, and they take turns, alternating days, as to who wakes up first to take a shower. Of course, they’d like to stay longer in bed! It wasn’t this easy before, not until we decided how to address this perennial question of who should wake up first to get ready for school.

Tip No.1 — Arrange a schedule for the kids. Allow for them to make rules. It was their idea that Kuya should take Tuesdays and Thursdays while my younger son would take Mondays and Wednesdays. For Fridays, the 1st and 3rd are for the little one while the 2nd and 4th are for my eldest. When there is a fifth Friday in the month, then they toss a coin or decide over a jak en poy game the night before. I learned in a child psychology class that children look for structure, and rules help them find this structure.

Tip No.2 — Share resources! You don’t need to do everything yourself. We all get dressed and then rush off for breakfast. “Beep! Beep! Beep!” My children join a car pool with the neighbors. I used to feel so trapped and harassed by the routine of having to bring and pick up the kids to and from school. Networking with my neighbors gained me a few hours back into my life and allowed my children to enjoy the companionship of other kids their age.

Tip No.3 — The early bird catches the worm—and avoids traffic!I drive myself to work and get to the office a little after 7:00 AM. Not much traffic yet at this time. If I left home a few minutes later, then it would have taken me an hour to get to work.

I manage to get more things done at the office when no one is around yet to interrupt my concentration. I clear my email and review documents on my table. I feel some psychological advantage in being their first. I like being ahead of everyone else, seeing them come in one at a time. My colleagues begin to trickle in until the room is full of activity. You hear the phone ringing, tapping on the keyboards, people abuzz with their work, small huddles discussing client issues.

“Stella, do you have some time to go over our report?”

Tip No.4 — Deliver what you promise and promise what you can deliver.Some clients can be very demanding and it is always a challenge to balance resources. I have found that if you are open and provide a good picture of where you are coming from, most people will understand the situation and give you leeway. The day progresses with meetings, calls and reports to write. The time passes so quickly.

Tip No.5 — Be prepared. The drive home is always longer than in the morning, especially if the day is long with meetings and you are not able to leave Makati by 5:00. What waits when you get to the door are children holding up their notebooks for help with their homework. “Ma, I need an illustration board tomorrow!” By this time, the bookstore has already closed.

Fortunately, I always keep a stock of often-used school supplies like bond paper, art paper, illustration boards, and so on.

Tip No.6 — Differentiate between what is urgent and what is important. Put the important ones first! Take control of your life by focusing your energies on the important things.We have dinner then finish off homework. On days when I am unable to be hone for dinner and homework, my husband takes over. We take turns. My son reminds me that I need to be in school tomorrow to watch his soccer tournament finals. Not to worry, I have blocked off the time in my calendar.

By 9:00 PM, we have quiet time; we spend a few minutes chatting about what happened during the day and getting ready to sleep. The day winds down, and tomorrow is another day.

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Stella is Director and Office Practice Leader of the Human Capital Group of Watson Wyatt Philippines, Inc., a global human resource consulting firm focused on the development of human capital and financial management. She came back to human resource consulting in 2006, after a 10-year stint in line HR in the high-tech industry. She has extensive experience in various disciplines of Human Resource Management gained over 20 years. Her expertise includes Compensation & Benefits, Training and Development, Employee Relations and Recruitment both in a consulting and line-management capacity.