Recently, I updated my profile on LinkedIn. I had not changed its content since my last Comm & Events position in Switzerland. But this was before little L was born and we moved to Dubai. It suddenly felt wrong to leave a “hole” in my professional pathway “just” because I was a full-time mum now. This simply wouldn’t do justice to my current job! I know that some mums think it is better not to mention the fact that you have children on a CV or on LinkedIn. Being a mum myself now, I think you actually SHOULD proudly mention this experience. And this goes out to all the HR managers and recruiters out there: never underestimate a person’s experience as a full-time mum (or dad). Never before have I learned as much about stress management, working under pressure and sleep deprivation, multi-tasking and personal development as during the last year. Never have I worked so much and slept so few.

When I read through my profile, went from one of my former professional experiences to the next, I started to wonder how my life had changed since I became a full-time mum. Completely. And yet, not that much. I was a workaholic in a corporate world before. I am a blogger mummy in Dubai today. Sounds like two different worlds. But is my current life really so different from the life I had before?

My work day

As a workaholic

5.30 am. The alarm clock rings. I switch it off. 5 minutes later. It rings again. The snooze function is my best friend. I get up. Too late. I need to hurry. I run to the bathroom to take a shower. The cold water immediately wakes me up. I have the best ideas of the day while taking my morning shower. I run out of the flat to catch the train. But it’s worth it. I love to arrive early at work. My days are full of meetings, emails and phone calls. I always try to take some time to have a proper lunch break with the team before rushing to the next meeting. My mobile would usually ring during the lunch. Once, twice, three times… well… It’s 6.30 pm, my laptop begins to slow down. Let’s just finish this document. I watch the clock. I will miss the train – again. I’ll take the next one. At home, I quickly grab something to eat before I continue working on a project that inspires me… or fall asleep in front of the TV. But not on Fridays. Fridays are sacred. TGIF – let the weekend begin!

As a (full-time blogger) mum

5.30 am. The alarm clock rings. I switch it off. 5 minutes later. It rings again. I could sleep a bit longer. I hesitate. But I want to have some time for myself before little L wakes up. I get up. Super tired. Quick – I need a shower. Best thing in the morning. It immediately wakes me up. I plan my whole day while taking my shower. If I’m lucky, I’ll get some me-time, some time to enjoy my müsli and fruits while reading the latest news. Then, suddenly, the babyphone goes on. There’s no choice: my workday starts immediately. Breakfast for little Mr. L, grocery shopping, some playtime, putting Luca to bed, cooking lunch, feeding lunch (can be replaced by trying to convince a 14-months old that eating is actually not an option but a necessity to live), heading out for some activity, coming back, making dinner, feeding dinner, bath time, putting L to bed, making dinner for my husband and myself, cleaning the kitchen, doing some housework, doing some writing, discovering the time: 11pm!, thinking “shit, shit, shit”, being reminded by my husband about the time, saying “yes!!! I know!!!”, quickly finishing to write one paragraph on the blog, hearing my husband telling me “if you don’t want to sleep, I won’t wait for you!”, giving in, going to bed, falling asleep after 2 minutes, dead… Well, thankfully, tomorrow is the weekend. But wait: I forgot – I am a mum…

 

I love my job – most of the time

As a workaholic

I love my job. Well, most of the time. Of course, there are moments when I am tired and stressed. Of course, there are times when I would need a vacation. But I wouldn’t change my life for anything in the world. People don’t always get why I am working that much. People always need a reason. She absolutely wants to make career. She must be unhappy in her relationship. Maybe she just needs another hobby? The truth is: there is no reason other than I really love my job. I like to get things done and to work with people that inspire me. I like to see how all things come together, how an amazing event happens after months and months of hard work. I live for these moments. They make me happy. I like to learn new things that make my life interesting. That’s it. That’s all.

As a (full-time blogger) mum

I love being a full-time mum. And I love being a blogger. Well, most of the time. Of course, there are moments when I feel tired, stressed and lonely. Of course, there are times when I would need a vacation (and some help haha). But I wouldn’t change my life for anything in the world. People don’t always get why I chose to be a full-time mum. Especially in Dubai: You can have a nanny. And a maid. Seriously, in Dubai, getting some help is cheap. So you can work. You have always been such a workaholic. How come, you are leaving everything behind now? Well, that’s the funny thing. Being a workaholic and being a full-time mum are no opposites to me. They are lifestyle choices you make. I was very happy investing a huge amount of time in my work before. Because it was the right time to do so. And I am very happy to be a full-time mum now. Because it seems to be the right thing to do at the moment. I have the chance to be able to stay with our little monkey at the moment, to be there when he sits up for the first time, when he walks and talks for the first time. Plus, I have the chance to do something I have always loved to do: writing. Writing about being a mum is exactly what I want to do at this exact moment. I am exactly where I want to be. And that’s the best feeling in the world.

 

Intellectual challenges

As a workaholic

My dad always told me “your job is as interesting as you want it to be”. You can come to your workplace in the morning, do the necessary and go home. And that’s totally fine. This just never was what I was looking for. I was always asking for more. What if… we make things differently? What if… we try out a new way of working? I think the more often you are asking yourself this kind of questions, the more new questions will arise. The more new challenges you will discover. The more interesting your job will become.

As a (full-time blogger) mum

You would probably think: Intellectual challenges as a full-time mum? Not many. And you might be right – kind of. There are days when I feel terribly under-challenged. At least, I felt a bit like this when Luca was still a very small baby. When we’d just arrived in Dubai and I was all alone with little baby L (three months at that time) I just wanted to work or at least talk to an adult from time to time. But then, being a full-time mum is like any other job: it depends on what you make out of it. It’s not the job that makes it interesting and challenging, it’s you. Being a mum is probably the most challenging and diversified job in the world. BUT you need to see it. There is nobody who will tell you what to do. But there’s this little human being in front of you, like a rough diamond. And he just waits for you to show him the world. The world he will discover is the world you will show him. I have never had a job that was as challenging, a job that has inspired me so much. So, if you’d ask me if there are any intellectual challenges in my life now that I am a full-time mum, I think I should simply tell you ‘your job is as interesting as you want it to be’.

 

Evaluation

As a workaholic

At work, you are constantly evaluated. By your superiors, by your colleagues, by your (internal) clients. In my former company, we had two main evaluations per year. A mid-year and a final one. Managers would also get a 360° evaluation. Objectives were fixed with your superior at the beginning of the year and they were pretty clear. You could achieve, over-achieve or, well, not achieve them. You know where you were going.

As a (full-time blogger) mum

As a mum, you are constantly evaluated. And I am not only talking about your mum, your mother-in-law and all the millions of other mums out there that are watching you, comparing your way of doing things with their own ones. Neither am I talking about the millions of not-yet-mums that are watching you, thinking “my child will never do this” or “at that age, my child will already be able to do that”. I am talking about your little boss just in front of you. Cause he might not be that much listening to what you are saying. But he is certainly watching what you are doing every second of the day. His eyes are following you wherever you are going. The only thing is that he doesn’t discuss objectives with you. He doesn’t set them neither. So, nothing is that clear anymore. There is no achieving, or over-achieving or not achieving. And if there is, you don’t see it immediately. There is no black and white anymore. Just listening to your heart and, maybe even more importantly, to this little human being that might actually give you some indications.

There are many other parallels between my former life as a workaholic and my life as a blogger mum today. Maybe I am not checking my emails that often anymore, maybe my phone is not ringing all the time, but I am definitely checking the comments on my blog and on Instagram. Maybe I am not that well informed about the latest fashion and beauty trends anymore but I can certainly tell you all the cool baby / kids boutiques in Dubai and the most trendiest play areas in town…

I might have changed a lot but I somehow have remained the same. I’ve just taken on another job. A job that takes all of my time now. A job that inspires me. A job I really love.

xxx

A (former??) workaholic