Motherhood In America Is Broken

we must fight back against decades of cultural messaging to women

Hey Mama,

Yesterday I wrote a piece for Fast Company about why we need to dismantle the productivity lie that demands we do it all. As I type this, I am in Lagos, Nigeria with my family of six nursing a newborn who is less than 3 months old. We are here through the holidays and it feels like heaven. I have help, I have plenty of help. My husband does a fair share of the house chores, we have two nannies and a housekeeper, and my mother, in-laws and other family members are constantly making their rounds bringing us meals, cooking, and indulging us in freshly baked goods. I have been able to throw myself into deep and meaningful work while spending quality time with my children. It’s a stark contrast to motherhood in America where help always seems so far away. I remember having my second and third child and thinking to myself that “this is hell".” Without diving into all that I shared in this article from the exorbitant cost of childcare, to the lack of a federal paid leave for parents, give it a read and let me know what you think.

COMMUNITY

Other things that I have been excited about is community. And I will share more in my next newsletter on what we are doing to bring our community together like never before, providing tools that allows you to navigate your life with the right support, information, and resources. I am super excited for this and more! If you were part of our initial community earlier this year, you will receive an email on how to join the beta version of this brand new and exciting community before we roll it out GLOBALLY.

More news for the Homefront:

This is the true cost of the childcare crisis

The U.S. is finally paying more attention to parents’ childcare struggles. On this episode of The New Way We Work, expert guests discuss what’s broken and how it can be fixed. “Women with children under age six made up 10% of the workforce before the pandemic, but accounted for 22% of the jobs during the crisis,” he explained. “The ability to find quality childcare is likely to be a determining factor for employment. We know that the lack of childcare is holding the economy back, and a lot of that’s happening because the childcare industry itself is in crisis.” This is why we need to keep conversations around paid leave and #Buildbackbetter bill ongoing, so that working mothers don’t have to quit the workforce.

How Women Can Combat Time Bias And Create Space For Creativity

Time is something we all have equal amounts of: 24 hours in a day, 168 hours in a week, and about 8,760 hours in a year. Yet there are many factors that influence how we spend our finite amount of time, including work and home responsibilities, personal interests and societal expectations. Eve Rodsky, author of the best-selling book Fair Play and the upcoming book Find Your Unicorn Space, told me in a previous Forbes interview that time bias may be a big factor for women being pushed out of the workforce during the pandemic due to increased caregiving responsibilities.

More news on the WorkFront:

Remote Work Is Critical For Parents and Parents-To-Be

When asked how their workplace could better support them on their fertility and family-forming journey, 33% of employees said through a better parent-friendly workplace culture.  Remote working is great for parents but does anyone consider how critical it is for parents-to-be as well?

Women see a boost in job promotions, after a tough 2020

Women’s careers took a severe, pandemic-fueled hit in 2020. But this year, we are seeing signs of recovery.  So far this year, female internal promotion rates have increased by 11.4%, while male promotion rates increased by only 4.5%, according to an analysis of LinkedIn data. Back in 2020, the internal promotion rate for women in the U.S. dropped 8.2%, compared to 6.5% for men.

I need your help

We have been quite busy thinking about our business model and where we can offer value. We are looking for moms who want an extra income to offer some part-time copywriting, marketing, social media, and community services to Mother Honestly. If that sounds like you, please email me directly at blessing@motherhonestly.com and I will be thrilled to bring you on board as we expand.

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YOU GOT THIS!

This newsletter was written by Blessing Adesiyan, Founder & CEO of Mother Honestly. Thank you for reading, and I am so excited to be play a small part in supporting you in motherhood, work, and life.