And it's not just Susan B. that cleared the way. People like my former boss (whose name I won't mention because we just had a conversation on Friday about Googling yourself and if she chose to do that, I'd be busted). The reality is, she was one of the women who sacrificed a great deal to prove that women could do it. And do it, she did--she's a VP in a Fortune 500 company.
But, she didn't get to do this:
flexible work schedules, telecommuting, job sharing. Women in particular, but also a substantial percentage of men, have made it clear that is what it will take to keep them loyal. A study by the Families and Work Institute shows that 24 percent of women and 13 percent of men who work full-time would like to work part-time. And among the youngest workers, those now having children and most actively juggling family and career, Fortune magazine found that 61 percent would leave their job if they could find another that allows them to telecommute.
I work part time. If my child is sick, I telecommute. (I want to telecommute 100%, but that hasn't flown yet.) I've had a flexible schedule (within reason) from the moment I started at this company, 6 years ago.
We've come a long way. Now, if I can just figure out how to get paid without doing anything other than blog...
2 comments:
You can thank my mom and dad andothers like them, too. She married my dad in 1941. Dad was a pastor. My mom turned out to be an unconventional Pastor's wife. While she followed my dad from place to place and their deal included her being responsible for cleaning and cooking, she wore pants and had a career. They put back all her money which later paid medical bills for her cancer and bought some of their last trips. It also paid for the maid who came to clean. At one time she was a copyrighter for an ad agency and got an award. The evening she received it, she made sure we had dinner, then went off to receive her award. It's easy to see how she was a role model, but don't forget my dad. He took a lot of junk from church councils and parishioners about his unconventional wife, but he always supported her publicly and privately. They were quite a team. We owe them.
I'm in favor of unconventional. I like to ask "why not" rather than "why?"
Sounds like you had a great team of parents.
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