An open letter to our P&G working mamas
Apr 30, 2020
Dear Kate, Lisa and Malorie:
Our P&G working moms.
The term “working mom” has taken on a whole new meaning recently. Parenting a curious and active child (or children) while working from home and simultaneously navigating your own emotions is the new normal for many. Throw in a global pandemic, and these are conditions no parent has ever faced before.
Since we don’t have children, our only frame of reference for “pandemic parenting” comes from the examples you’ve set day in and day out.
And you are *initiate singsong voice* badasses.
Kate, Malorie and Lisa, not to add to the pressure, but we are all watching you. We see you. We admire you. We are inspired by you. We support you. And, quite frankly, we wonder how the hell you do it.
In the past — four? six? seven (has it really been seven weeks?) — weeks, P&G has connected in a whole new way. While this poses obvious challenges, we’ve gotten to know your children as honorary members of the team. We’ve seen you work tirelessly to maintain consistency and security in their lives without missing a professional beat, and TBH we love a good toddler cameo appearance. Actually, if we didn’t see or hear your kids on Zoom, we’d start to wonder what you did with them. Are they in the basement with your cat?
*cough* Kate *cough*
We are grateful to be surrounded by women who consistently defy social norms and prove we can have a family and our careers. We see your sacrifice, determination, strength and overall commitment to being authentically you. Much of the work we do is to honor you and all the other incredible women who paved the path for us to thrive as women in business.
Our point? Your kiddos will always remember the sacrifices you made, hold it in their hearts and be better humans for it. Better yet, they will carry on your legacy of doing work that makes a difference in other people’s lives as they go out into the world. While you may not have time to teach your kids a second language (forget the assholes who try to make you feel guilty about that), the lessons learned by co-working with your toddler are bigger than color sorting.
We aren’t moms, but we hope to acquire that title at some point in our lives. Seeing you all navigate being kick-ass moms with happy children while slaying it in the career game gives us hope we can accomplish that too.
Thank you for keeping it real and sharing the “not-so-glamorous” side of being a mom. You humanize motherhood, and for that we are grateful. You’re setting an example for your kids and for future mamas.
Next time you need us, you have our word — instead of offering up a color-coded itinerary that includes baby Pilates and matcha green tea powder facials as a “solution” (no judgment, both of those things sound lovely), we promise to just listen, support and preach grace.
So, whether you’re fixing a ponytail while giving client updates (Mal, we see you), have Disney soundtracks on repeat (Kate, we know these are really for you), or are dyeing your little girl's hair pink for fun (Lisa is not a regular mom, she’s a cool mom), you all are doing everything right. Right for you and right for your family. No matter what, we have your back.
Thank you for showing us that you can be …
A mom and an entrepreneur.
A mom and a freelancer.
A mom and a boss lady.
A mom and professional.
A mom and a coworker.
A mom and a lifelong-learner.
A mom and <insert whatever the hell you want to be here>.
With love,
Cassie, Hilary and Tess
