When I was younger, I would watch my mum, every single day, working hard at home after a long, tiresome day in the office. She would ride the bus to work at 8 am and again back home at 6 pm. There was no ‘relaxation time’ before the housewife in her took over.

For many of you, this might be something you look back on when you’re on your career break.

The times you would be up and about at 5 am and be ready to take on the corporate world, and still have oodles of energy left when you come back home to EVERYTHING necessary to keep your routine in order.

Truth is, as women, we have a limitless capacity to do it ALL!

And that’s probably why I have NEVER seen my mum complain.

Not once. 

I wasn’t old enough to ask her about her day at work and sit down to have a chat about all things beautiful, but I wasn’t that young either not to realize that she did A LOT!

Raring to regain your professional space? SIGN UP here.

Of course, there were ups and downs…we’re all human beings, and we all have our emotional moments, but hers would always turn out to be things like, ‘What are we going to do for tomorrow when we have so many guests come over?’, or, ‘It’s time to pay up the school fees’, or, ‘The maid isn’t going to turn up tomorrow.’

It was never about the office, ‘Oh my boss is driving me crazy,’ or, ‘I need to be early in the office tomorrow to meet a deadline,’ or, ‘My colleagues are so annoying.’

It was always home, family. No compromises whatsoever. 

Home is Where the Heart Is

And after all these years, I finally realize that there is a housewife inside every one of us working women. There is one part of us that always craves to be home, make delicious food for our family, make every minute count with our kids and most of all, be the emotional landing pad for our husbands, children, parents, in-laws, sisters, brothers, and friends!

We might be tough, corporate professionals for 10 hours in a day, but once all that madness ends, we want every minute of every hour to last a lifetime so we can connect with our loved ones. 

Here are 10 life lessons you learn from your toddler.

Is this where you Belong?

A few friends of mine have even told me that they sometimes wander off into the ‘home world’ thinking about what to cook for the evening, even when the manager is losing his cool over company statistics and delayed shareholder meetings.

I’m sure many of you, at some point, have wished that you could spend equal if not more time with your family while being an independent woman who is striving to achieve her own goals and ambitions. But now that you've taken a step back from your career to BE with your family, don't forget that you WILL get back to work one day; you will get back to being a corporate bad-ass AND a caring wife and mother. Use this career break to re-learn a few lessons:

Practice 'mindfulness', not, 'mind-fullness'

- Be dedicated to anything you do. 

- Devote your time to doing the things you love. This means fewer complaints, more gratitude.

- Focus on the path ahead.

I have had my share of exasperating moments in the professional world, and every time I lose my cool, I think about my mum.

No compromises, remember?

Sometimes, that’s all we need to do. Backtrack. Introspect. Learn. Grow. 

SIGN UP for some creative and cognitive reskilling courses, and make that first step back into the workforce confident and steady!