8 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Feel Guilty for Being a Working Mom

1. It is a Double Standard

Frankly, no one thinks to write this same post about men. Men are expected to work outside the home without a second thought or any judgement from society. Not so much for women. You shouldn’t feel guilty about working outside the home as a mother because it is a double standard to assume that you should in the first place.

2. Providing Well for Your Family is a Great Thing

Many families must be dual-income families to survive or thrive. You might be the breadwinner. Single parents might be sole providers. Providing for your family by earning a paycheck or going work to be granted health insurance, a retirement account or other benefits that are a necessity or advantage to your family is noble and necessary.

Instead of feeling regretful that you leave your children daily to earn an income, you should feel proud. Taking care of your family by making sure they are fed and have a roof over their heads is the best you can do by your children. Your income might even lend to special family vacations, family dinners out on the weekends or your kid’s ability to participate in extracurricular activities (if you are lucky)!

3. You are Setting an Strong Example

Being a responsible, hardworking, professional is a great example to set for your children. You are representing and showcasing commitment, a sense purpose, accountability, hard work – perhaps even the importance of following your passions in life if you are so blessed.

Stay-at-home-parents work their tails off and show their children a good example every day in their own right. But if you are a parent that goes off to work everyday and feels the guilt of not being home during the day to be a model for your children – don’t! Your work outside the home and commitment to provide for your family by being in the workforce is illustrating an exceptional model for your kids!

4. Your Kids are Developing New Skills

Your children are developing new skill sets outside of your arm’s reach. If they are put in social environments like nanny-shares and daycares, especially, their social and interpersonal skills might get a jump! They will learn loads from those around them! They may also gain a degree of healthy independence.

Their caregivers (outside of you!) may be able to teach them things they don’t pick-up from you. They may share ideas, interests, expertise and activities you might not have thought of. They may teach things to them in different ways than at home, lending to a greater understanding of various abilities, strengths and perspectives. Being around new people, environments and activities is great for skill building in so many ways.

5. Your Kids Get (Built-in) New Experiences

Having experiences outside of you and/or their own home is growth in itself. A sense of self-reliance, confidence and independence might be fostered by some time away from one or both parents.

Experiences in new surroundings (like a daycare), or with a separate caregiver can add to the understanding of new and different personalities, background, cultures, ways of doing, being and thought, lending to their brilliant development in so many various ways.

This is not to stay that children with stay-at-home-parents are robbed of any of the above! Parents can go out of their way to expose their children to new experience, places, things, thoughts and encourage their family to welcome in diversity tons of ways. However, if you are a parent leaving the home everyday and your child will be placed in the hands of someone else – you can be grateful for their journey as well!

6. You are Developing Too

There is opportunity for betterment in everyone’s everyday. However, your place in the workforce might allow for inherent learning and self-development through professional challenges and new projects. Your leadership skills or decision-making might be sharpened at the office. Your position might lend to networking opportunities – building on interpersonal skills and the framework of various relationship. You might be offered trainings, classes or courses that further your knowledge set or hard skills. Sure, there are plenty of ways this can also be done without going to work everyday but being in a job outside the home can be your built-in opportunity! A life of learning and self-improvement is worthy of praise and is a great model for your kids.

7. You Share the Burden

If in a two-parent house, sharing the weight of both working outside the home and managing the internal working of the household can be an excellent representation of partnership. Distribution of responsibility within a household can be a great thing for everyone! If both parents are working outside the home – your children may see you share in both financially providing for the family as well as managing and taking care of the household and family more fairly.

8. You Bring Things to the Table

When you work outside the home, you bring something back to the table everyday from the “outside world”. Whether it is just money, or more, like knowledge, humor, experiences, self-improvements, new perspectives or skills, or friendships from the office, it can lend positively to the conversations and best practices in your family, marriage, and the overall day-to-day.