Are you a working mom? Do you like it? A recent employment survey at WomansDay.com says that most working women don’t like it.
Of the 4000 working women surveyed, 63% said their jobs are “just a paycheck,” and 79% said they want something better for their children when asked if they want their kids to follow in their footsteps.
So while we stay-at-home moms (or even work-at-home moms) sometimes wish they were out in the work force, doing something that made them feel like they were “contributing to society” or doing something fulfilling with their lives, working moms (and non-moms) are wishing they could stay home and do the same thing.
Perhaps most telling was the question:
Do you ever wish you could ditch your job and stay home with your kids all day?
- 57%: Yes. I’d give anything to do that.
- 40%: No. I need to get out of the house.
- 4%: I’m already a stay-at-home mom.
That’s almost 2-to-1 wishing they could stay home. (And I guess we don’t really know if this question was asked of only mothers, so maybe some of those saying “No” don’t have kids at home. Staying home alone would probably get boring.)
I also liked the question “Is work/life balance a myth?” Interestingly, there was a very close contest here (though that might be because of the way they phrased the answers). 53% said, “Yes, work/life balance is a myth created by men,” while 47% chose, “No, you can have it all.”
Maybe the grass isn’t always greener (but please don’t call the cops on me!). And maybe, as Sher put it, “I think we need to water our grass more. Then it can grow and look better than that on the other side.”
What do you think? How can we water our grass, at work or at home? Do you enjoy working/staying at home, or would you want to switch?
One reply on “Is the grass really greener?”
That’s interesting. My dad says something along the same lines, “If the grass looks greener on the other side…(dramatic pause) water your grass.” I’ve always loved that saying:)
I love staying at home, even though the past few weeks I’ve wanted to pull all my hair out. I can’t imagine ever wanting to switch as my working years during college were quite aggravating. I’ve been at home since then and it’s been so freeing. I can’t believe how much more I’ve grown as a sahm, than while I was at college learning and working. And heck, my kids like me best of anyone; I don’t want to go spend my day with people who don’t like me as much as they do. Does wonders for my self-esteem:)
For me, watering my grass is as easy as making the conscious effort to look for what is good in my life instead of focusing on what I don’t have.
Also, I find the answer to the work/life balance a myth question hilarious! “Created by men.” Why would men do that? If anybody created that myth it was women.