Parents need true understanding to manage work, family commitments
If there’s one thing business ownership and motherhood have taught me these last two years, it’s this: Success isn’t about doing more. It’s about doing what you enjoy and respecting your limits.
For years I believed that being successful meant saying “yes” to every opportunity, attending every meeting, answering every email immediately and proving that I could “do it all,” even with little kids. Like so many working mothers, I wore busyness like a badge of honor and commitment. But somewhere between school drop-offs, client meetings, volleyball games, naps and trying to build a business, I realized I wasn’t thriving — I was simply surviving.
Life with children rarely follows an organized calendar. Someone gets sick. A school calls unexpectedly. A golf tournament is rescheduled. A preschool concert lands in the middle of the workday. To any working parent these moments are special. But to moms, these moments are life. It’s the reason we’re better business owners or employees. Our minds are at ease. Our creativity returns and our stress decreases.
As CEOs and business leaders, you have more influence over the well-being of your employees than you may realize. Expectations in the workplace are essential as they provide clear directions. But the quality of life your staff experiences when they leave the office is also important.
For working mothers specifically, flexibility and understanding extends far beyond the new coffee bar or wellness seminar. When employers allow flexibility in work hours, hybrid schedules, remote work or taking their kids to the office occasionally, they communicate trust. That trust creates loyalty.
As women, we don’t want to sacrifice career momentum, so we often quit our jobs or set invisible expectations. We want to excel at work while creating magical childhood memories, maintaining a beautiful home, supporting our spouses and staying healthy. Then reality sets in. It’s exhausting and unhealthy to do it all.
My fourth baby, who was born a year ago, has been a blessing. She has taught me that I don’t have to overextend myself to prove my worth. Saying no isn’t failure; it’s setting healthy boundaries to protect my energy and time. Delegating isn’t weakness; it’s knowing my physical or mental capacity. Choosing margin instead of constant hustle isn’t laziness — it’s wisdom.
Companies that will attract and retain exceptional talent in the years ahead won’t necessarily be the ones with the biggest salaries or the nicest offices. They will be the organizations that understand people have full lives outside of work — and they choose to find ways to support those lives.
Every year, my husband’s company hosts a Christmas dinner for their staff and spouses. All three regional offices gather to celebrate accomplishments, welcome new staff and share goals for the following year. When several of our kids were little, I would automatically tell him he could go without me since it required hours of driving and staying overnight. But I’ll never forget how happy I was when his business partner offered their home as a safe place for our girls during the party. His young adult girls would take care of them. When we arrived to drop them off, our girls were welcomed with little baking kits, pizza on the table and toddler board games.
Working mothers don’t need special treatment or more PTO. They need realistic support — leaders who recognize that caring for a family develops the most incredible professional skills! Communication, patience, determination and resilience. Breastfeeding a baby, for instance, is a monster of physical and mental exhaustion while on little to no sleep. Waking up every two to three hours around the clock requires strength to push through and the ability to ask for help.
Employees will likely forget the catered lunches and office perks, but they’ll never forget the leader who encouraged them to go home early to calmly attend their child’s spring concert. At the end of the day, flexibility isn’t just good for working mothers, it’s good leadership. •
Born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, but raised in Indiana, López DeMarco quickly developed resilience when learning a new language and culture at 7 years old. Her passion for community improvements has earned her Volunteer of the Year Award from the Goshen Chamber, 40 Under 40 award, the Elkhart Chamber’s Business Diversity Initiative award and recognition from the Indianapolis Latino Institute as an honorable leader. Yolo loves balancing her life as a mom to four active girls and as a spouse to her husband, Tony.
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