The Adventures of Mz. Mom & Friends…

Today, it seems as if the hurdles are higher to jump over and the obstacle courses are getting almost impossible to complete for working mothers. We are all trying to do our best at finding the right balance between raising our children, providing for our families while making sure we don’t lose our personal passions. Most of us are working on a tight-budget with limited resources and absolutely limited time for ourselves. These challenging times require us to get extremely creative with our careers and better at bartering our skills and services. But most importantly, now is the right time for you to really find your true passion and go for it!

To help you begin to strategize and create your new personal plan, I enlisted Atlanta’s top executive coach to share her expertise with three of our MyWorkButterly Mother’s who are facing a “career crossroad challenge.”


Lisa Hudson is a Sr. Organizational Development Consultant with AT&T
where she assists executives to stimulate their strategic thinking techniques in order to develop innovative ways to examine and solve organizational issue from a people perspective, ultimately resulting in improved business results. Company executives rely on Lisa’s expertise in solving organizational issues to continually help the corporation operate more effectively and productively. With more than 12 years experience in human resources, Lisa is one of the leading authorities in the field, specializing in executive coaching, facilitation, staffing and recruiting senior level employees, performance management and process improvement.


Irene –
Irene's situation: I'm a single mom to a 9 year old son, I've been divorced since he was a baby. As hard as it is, it is the most rewarding thing I have ever done. My son is awesome, and we are very close - I'm not sure we would have the same relationship if I was still married to his father. I am eternally grateful to my son for making me who I am. I've been unemployed since January of this year and am having a tough time finding a new job that A) matches my skills and experience, B) can pay me at or near what my previous salary was and C) is relatively close to home as I am responsible for picking my son up from school every day - it's been tough trying to stay upbeat & positive, but I know I'm not alone in this journey.

ADVICE: You're absolutely right, Irene, millions of American's are finding it extremely difficult to secure employment in today’s tough economy. With that said, I believe in making lemons out of lemonade. This could be an opportunity for you to consider an alternative career or go back to school. If that is not an option, I would recommend that you target your job pursuits towards industries that have flex hours or various shifts, which would allow you to pick up your son from school every day.

All in all, I would encourage you to take this time to find your passion and pursue it wholeheartedly.
Good luck!


Kristina -
Kristina's Situation:I left my job as a Marketing Director at a large healthcare company in the summer of '08 with the hope of finding a better balance between my work and home life.

ADVICE: You mentioned that you have experience with Online sales and marketing. Have you considered teaching an online marketing class? Currently, there’s a high demand for online teaching. The students would truly benefit from the academics and real-life experiences that you would bring. Have you considered starting your own consulting company? Many companies are moving towards a virtual environment that needs your level of expertise in marketing their products.
Having your own business allows you to better manage your work - life balance and puts you in control of your destiny...

I wish you the very best!

Christine –
Christine's Situation: I am a full-time working attorney of 2 wonderful boys. I telecommute 2 days a week. The job is very demanding and my home life is very demanding - with a long commute, 2 kids, a husband with an equally demanding job and a husband in graduate school. I am constantly trying to figure out a good work-life balance and ways to better organize my life to be more efficient.

ADVICE: Wow! It sounds like you have an extremely busy life...
Have you considered going part-time or perhaps finding a lesser demanding job, closer to home?
Many mothers are finding relief in hiring someone to cook meals for the family 2 -3 times a week, or perhaps someone to assist with the cleaning and carpooling.
Currently, there seems to be a trend in having an extended family member move in to help with the children and chores... Of course, this requires very clear expectations

Every little bit of help -- truly does help!

You can reach Mz Mom by emailing her at mzmom@myworkbutterfly.com


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