How can you achieve your career goals and ambitions, whilst working reduced hours? This question is not only relevant to working parents but to anyone who wishes to pursue their professional aspirations and personal goals.

In part one of this three part series, we touched upon some of the things that may be holding you back from pursuing your career once you go part time and attempted to address these by highlighting key factors that commonly appear in success stories of the many clients we have worked with in the past.

However one of the biggest reasons that many individuals shy away from requesting part time or reduced hours is the lack of role models and real life examples that prove that it is possible to advance in your career.

In this article, we will focus on two specific individuals and tell their stories so that you can view their journeys from going part time to achieving great things.

Laura, Hilti

Laura started her career at Hilti ‘on the ground’ in a...

We recently celebrated Mother’s Day here in Geneva, Switzerland. Grateful children and dads took mums out to lunch, bought them flowers, ran them baths, and made them cards to show her how special she is to them and what a great job she does in the home.

But what about the job she does at work? Does she ever receive recognition for her contributions and support for her needs? Does she spend her working hours feeling guilty - for having to leave early and pick up her kids or for leaving them in the first place - when she should be feeling like a supermum for all the things she is able to juggle on a daily basis?

Mothers are a valuable asset to any organisation (note: Fathers are too but we’re focusing on mothers here). After returning to work, most mums have evolved into super efficient multitasking champions. In the transition to motherhood, they have had to learn to be super organised, plan to make plans, make preparations the night before, and always have a backup....

Last year, I was delivering one of our most popular workshops for one of our Swiss corporate clients, and I took the time to review the workshop evaluation feedback on my train journey home.  One attendee shared that she would have liked to have spent time looking at: How to advance your career whilst working part time. It’s a topic we often cover in our workshops but it didn't come up for this particular group of women - at least until they filled out the feedback forms at the end.

For some reason, her question has stayed with me since and I felt inspired to write a blog post about it.

As I started to apply our own experience as well as the wide amount of research that exists on  on this topic, I quickly realised that you can’t answer it from an employee only perspective - ie. How do I advance?

I also felt the need to answer it from an employer and governance perspective. To not only help the individual understand the broader aspects at play but also help...

In our work at Thriving Parents, we see how common it is for a working parent to lose some of their confidence having returned to work after parental leave.

So the first thing to know is that if you feel like you have lost some of that confidence and assurance, it is normal!

The dictionary defines self-confidence as “a feeling of trust in one's abilities, qualities, and judgement.”

Words associated with self-confidence are self-assurance, belief in oneself, positiveness, assertiveness, assurance, self-reliance, self-possession, composure, nerve, poise, presence, aplomb.

In short, it is also a feeling of being comfortable in your own skin.

How confident do you feel today?

On a scale of 0-10, with 10 being extremely confident and 0 being no confidence at all, how would you rate yourself? Consider how often you speak out in meetings, take the initiative and lead on a new idea, challenge others’ ideas, offer new perspectives, trust yourself to make mistakes and...

The lead up to maternity really does feel like a rollercoaster for many women: excited and energised one moment, sick or tired and fearful of the future the next, coupled with a changing body shape and swirling emotions.

It’s no surprise that it is a somewhat confusing period in our lives ….(imagine how it is for partners watching on!).

There are many factors that you will not be able to directly control; so focus on what you can control and influence; starting with a positive perspective and taking ownership. Here are a few pointers:

#1: Talk to others

If you haven’t already, understand the internal HR policies around maternity and talk to others you know, who have already been through this transition.

They may have some ideas and advice that may not be obvious to you – both what to do and what not to do!

#2: Challenge your assumptions

It is very personal as to when you advise your manager of your pregnancy and the relationship you have will...

This is such a personal journey that there is no script to follow. There is no right or wrong way of balancing parenthood and professional life. Each person has their unique way of balancing the two, based on their own value system, needs, motivations and aspirations. The only criteria here is that you find your way, you understand your own value system, needs, motivations and aspirations; so that you design the best balance for yourself; so that you can thrive at home and at work!

Here are some tips to help you best navigate these new waters, where you become the queen of juggling and sharing yourself with many! Depending on how soon you return to work, also be aware that typically it takes 9 months for your body to return to normal, hormonally and physiologically.

As the Professional woman:

• More than likely, your role was performed by one or many people in your absence. You wouldn’t be alone if you felt awkward taking back the controls. Start with speaking to those who...

Accompanying the transition to parenthood requires a change in assumptions, beliefs, behaviour and motivations on the part of the parents concerned.

For a woman, it is probably one of the most challenging and exciting transitions; amplified by a great deal of mental and physical changes and unknowns, with associated fears; especially with the 1st child.

Fathers however, are often overlooked during this transition period; despite their conflicting desires to spend more time with family, whilst upholding professional aspirations. So this blog addresses how Fathers can better balance parenthood and professional work.

I remember when my first daughter was several months old, my Mother commented about my husband:

“John is good. He is often home to do the bath and bedtime routine and is a very hands-on Dad.” 

My Mother’s comments highlighted the changes just between our generation; her perception that John was “good” and our perception that John...

There has been much research and debate around what is the key to advancement for women in business. Much focus is on “fixing” the individual herself - increasing networking skills and visibility at work, finding a mentor, identifying a sponsor, becoming political ‘savvy’; to name a few. There is also great discussion around shifting the culture and tackling negatives biases in the workplace; to provide the best platform to allow for women to advance in their careers.

One common denominator in all these debates is the importance of ‘owning your voice’. 

What does that mean?

Irrelevant of whether you are an extrovert or an introvert, it means expressing yourself at work, having an opinion, vocalising your thoughts, being heard and seen; in your own authentic way.

In our work at Thriving Parents, we know that this is especially relevant when women return to work, following a maternity break. Often we return to work and find ourselves...

Often, as working parents, our focus is exclusively on completing the to-do list in the most efficient way, that our default is to sit down at the desk and work like a Trojan, without stopping or even daring to accept a lunch invitation because you have an absolute deadline – child care pick up at 17:30. It’s not a deadline that can be moved by even an hour or too, not one to be negotiated – you have to meet it.

Our work sees us supporting working parents of young children, often in their thirties and early forties, that the timing is not right to even consider leadership roles or promotion – the common line we hear is “the children are too young and I cannot give the time the organisation needs”.

Such assumptions can be challenged if your organisation is an advocate for having strong leaders who also ‘walk the talk’, effectively making time work and their personal life.

This belief that it’s not possible to have both,...

Is this known as “having it all”? Can you even have a career and family without the burden of guilt, overwhelm and fatigue? There isn’t a text book standard response to this. Why? Because everyone’s definition of “having it all” is unique and it’s based on your own exclusive value system and aspirations.

Step 1: Self-awareness

The first step therefore when considering how to navigate career and family is to have a very good understanding of what is important to you, as a parent and as a professional.

As a parent – if someone asked your child 10 years from now to describe you as a Mum or Dad over the last 10 years, what do you want them to say? Who inspires you as a role model as a parent and why? What do you want to copy from your own parents? What do you not want to copy from your own parents? If you take time to consider these questions over a short period, coming back to them several times, you will soon have a sound awareness of...