A Secret to Working Mom Success: Give Yourself Grace

Me at the White House The other evening I had to attend a board meeting followed by a reception. I participated in the board meeting on the phone. However, I arrived for the reception in person. I was starving. So, I was glad to see that there was quite a spread laid out for our enjoyment. I wound up being the first person in the line to get food.

One Secret to Working Mom Success: Be Resilient

Remembering that the road can take me anywhere I'd like to go.

Greetings from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania! Things have been busy. I am still a working mom of three, working full time who is trying to make a difference. I do a lot of things and try to be present so that I can learn from them. I share them on this blog so that we can learn together. Below are some thoughts, hacks, and/or lessons that I have learned from navigating my world.

This Spring was challenging.

The Spring was a bit of a dumpster fire. There were the regular life things like the end of the school year, the change of seasons, and trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. And, there were more complicated, intense, personal things that were unexpected, unwanted and completely disruptive. Managing it all while raising my kids, working full time and maintaining my sanity was challenging.

But to my credit, while I may have stumbled, I did not fall down.

That said, the beginning of July has always represented the real beginning of summer for me. (I know the summer solstice is the real beginning, I am just sharing my truth! :-)) And so, this blog post is intended to share what all of the chaos has taught me.

Relying on the "F.A.C.T.S." will help you overcome anything. 

Friends, the true ones,  reveal themselves in times of crisis.
Allowing yourself time to recover from crisis is essential, even though it may be hard to find.
Critics may appear in early days of crisis, ignore them and seek those who give compliments. 
The truth will set you free but it may not be well known. You should move forward anyway.
Saying, "I'm sorry." is not true atonement. Apologies + accountability are powerful but not always bestowed upon you. You have to heal anyway. 

You see the truth is, even in this time of personal empowerment and self-actualization, there are things that we cannot control. That realization is a bitter pill to swallow. Just like a ship on the ocean, we may experience storms that rock us and almost cause us to capsize. That said, Will Smith performed a song at the BET Music Awards entitled, "You Can Make It". One line really resonated with me. He said, "Every storm runs out of rain, hold on." 

While we might not be able to control what happens to us, we can control our response. So, at the beginning of this July, I am holding on. I am holding an umbrella dancing through the rain drops and waiting for the trickling to stop. When it does, I'll be basking in the sunshine.

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