The Importance of Bring Your Child to Work Day

Ever think about the way you talk about work to your kids? I started my company the same year that I gave birth to my first child and have been running it through the birth of all four of my kids. There have been many a morning, an evening and even weekend when I have had to say goodbye and leave the house, until the end of a day.  The first few hundred times were heart breaking, and I can’t say they got a whole lot easier on my heart, but I have changed how I talk about work so that in those goodbye moment, I’m instilling the right messages.

It is inevitable that at some point our kids are going to have to work for a living (if by some fortune they don’t, I imagine you would still want them to work, whether for self fulfillment, to learn the value of the dollar or even for enjoyment). So, how do many of us mothers talk about work?

Phrases like, “I’m so sorry mommy has to go to work,” “I would stay if I could,” “I’m so sorry I need do this this call,” “I wish I could stay but I can’t,” are not exactly Rosie pictures we are painting. It’s no wonder our kids aren’t interested in what we do and begin to look at work as an evil thing.

It is not that there aren’t days when I wish I didn’t have to work, but I see the bigger picture and for me it is this:

1. I need to work to support my family.
2. I want my girls and my boys to have ambition, drive, an understanding of the value of money and hard work, an understanding of the importance of school, and to look forward to their exciting journeys in the work place, whether that be in an office, at home or elsewhere.
3. Be proud of and inspired by their mother for her career and why she works.

In order to achieve any of these goals I realized I had to change my narrative about work and not apologize for it. I learned I had to share the whys, the excitement of what I could achieve that day, my triumphs, stories about my day, and how I’m always so happy to come home to my sweet darlings.

Whether your work is at home, on a plane or in a corner office somewhere, make sure you are talking about your work in a way that will shape your kids to look forward to the day they can earn a dollar. Talk about work in way that makes your children proud of you, not angry that you choose to spend your time at this terrible place rather than with them. Even if you love your job, if you don’t talk about it correctly, the wrong message will be conveyed.

April 27th is take your children to work day. Whether you take them out of school to spend the day with you at home or commuting to an office, take them with you. Explain the good and the bad, and also why it is worth it and know you are parenting even when you have to get to the office every morning.

Tags: Bring Your Child to Work Day, Career, parenting, rosie pope