March is the month we traditionally celebrate women, particularly mothers. International Womens' Day, Women's History Month, Mothering Sunday, and Matronalia all take place in this month and I'm sure there are even more festivals I am unaware of. It was fitting then for the Women's Equality Group meeting at my institution to choose March to host a visit from The Career Mum, Amanda Newman.
I've mentioned previously how much I value online groups like The Career Mum, especially as it can be difficult to get alternative support. Amanda created the Facebook group at the end of 2017 and I found it incredibly helpful when I returned to work after my second maternity leave. I'm sure that if it had been in existence after my first it would have been very helpful then too and I may have avoided some of the issues I had. The group welcomes everyone whether they are parents or not, working or not - Amanda is the career mum of the title. It is full of people who provide help with dilemmas around work, whether that be getting into work or balancing responsibilities once in it.
Amanda told us about herself and then followed with a Q&A session. Some of the biggest tips I took away from her talk were:
Map your life so far: I remember dong a similar exercise on the Aurora course and it really does help you understand how far you have come, what your drivers are and to identify your strengths and challenges. This was also the exercise I encouraged the students on the UCL leadership and Management course to do as I strongly believe that self awareness can help people become fantastic leaders.
Map out who can help you: I'm terrible at doing this even though I regularly help others and give them this same advice. As a consequence, I probably struggle through a lot that I don't necessarily need to. Taking this on board, I have just texted a neighbour to see if she can recommend a plumber!
Take up coaching or mentoring wherever possible: I'm completely biased here as I'm training to be a coach; however, I've taken up offers where my colleagues have needed to practise on people and it has already helped me move forwards with a number of goals and stopped me ruminating over them. There are coaching and mentoring circles being set up within the Facebook Group so if you have one near you I would strongly recommend it.
Build your resilience: I've mentioned previously that taking some responsibility for your own happiness, wellbeing and resilience doesn't let the organisations and power structures who make lives very difficult off the hook. However, we can to some extent help ourselves become mentally, physically and emotionally stronger by engaging in exercise, eating well and participating in mindfulness.
Lastly, own your identity. This ties in with the first point about self-awareness. Our identities can be very much tied up with work or those we care for and, while this can be fine, it can lead to problems if there are major changes. Finding out what else interests and drives us can offer some protection. As Stephen Covey wrote in 7 Habits of Effective People, know who you are otherwise others will shape you and your life.
I'd love to know your response to these tips and how you may have approached them? Leave me a comment below!
I've mentioned previously how much I value online groups like The Career Mum, especially as it can be difficult to get alternative support. Amanda created the Facebook group at the end of 2017 and I found it incredibly helpful when I returned to work after my second maternity leave. I'm sure that if it had been in existence after my first it would have been very helpful then too and I may have avoided some of the issues I had. The group welcomes everyone whether they are parents or not, working or not - Amanda is the career mum of the title. It is full of people who provide help with dilemmas around work, whether that be getting into work or balancing responsibilities once in it.
Amanda told us about herself and then followed with a Q&A session. Some of the biggest tips I took away from her talk were:
Map your life so far: I remember dong a similar exercise on the Aurora course and it really does help you understand how far you have come, what your drivers are and to identify your strengths and challenges. This was also the exercise I encouraged the students on the UCL leadership and Management course to do as I strongly believe that self awareness can help people become fantastic leaders.
Map out who can help you: I'm terrible at doing this even though I regularly help others and give them this same advice. As a consequence, I probably struggle through a lot that I don't necessarily need to. Taking this on board, I have just texted a neighbour to see if she can recommend a plumber!
Take up coaching or mentoring wherever possible: I'm completely biased here as I'm training to be a coach; however, I've taken up offers where my colleagues have needed to practise on people and it has already helped me move forwards with a number of goals and stopped me ruminating over them. There are coaching and mentoring circles being set up within the Facebook Group so if you have one near you I would strongly recommend it.
Build your resilience: I've mentioned previously that taking some responsibility for your own happiness, wellbeing and resilience doesn't let the organisations and power structures who make lives very difficult off the hook. However, we can to some extent help ourselves become mentally, physically and emotionally stronger by engaging in exercise, eating well and participating in mindfulness.
Lastly, own your identity. This ties in with the first point about self-awareness. Our identities can be very much tied up with work or those we care for and, while this can be fine, it can lead to problems if there are major changes. Finding out what else interests and drives us can offer some protection. As Stephen Covey wrote in 7 Habits of Effective People, know who you are otherwise others will shape you and your life.
I'd love to know your response to these tips and how you may have approached them? Leave me a comment below!
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