One of the things I did at the very end of 2020 is clean out my office. I haven’t used the office since March, but we were locked into a year long lease that I couldn’t get out of until January. My team (of two) has been working remotely, which has been going fine, and I don’t see it changing any time soon.
It’s interesting. I used to think having an office was a milestone of success. It said my business was doing well enough that I could afford to rent a place to go to work. I also have regularly touted the fact that I could not have accomplished what I have if I was working from home. I had a nanny who picked up my kids from school so I could have a full work day at my office without distractions. For meetings, contract negotiations, brainstorming sessions, creative development, editing, research, writing, etc. And for some reason, it has always been important to me that my friends and followers understood that I am a working mother, despite making a living off posting about parenting.
I have no idea why that has always mattered so much to me. I guess being career focused has always been a core part of my identity. An identity that existed way before I became a mother.
But I’m not sure having an office is necessary to do my job anymore. Part of this is because the world is changing. But another part is because I have entered a new phase of parenthood. My kids are old enough now that we can exist in the same space, while doing our own thing.
I’m not sure I would have realized this if it wasn’t for the pandemic, but I like working from home now. I like being there when the school day is over. I love breaking for a hug, sharing a snack and then working on my laptop while my kids do their homework at the same table. I can tell them I still have work to do and they will listen. Or I can choose to be distracted.
It’s not breastfeeding or playing on the floor or giving them baths, it’s just being near them. Available to them. At home. And maybe that’s the true measure of success. The freedom to do your job, while being available to your kids.
So goodbye for now to Mommy Shorts HQ. It’s not sad. And there are no regrets. It served its purpose.
I chose to have my kids attend virtual school since September, and I have worked from home for years. I have loved the past 5 months, stepping away from my desk for a hug/snack break, having a brief few moments outside in the sunshine when otherwise I might not have left my desk. My twins are in Gr 4, so they are still motivated to attend school (and are generally good students), and are also quite capable of understanding what is being asked of them without needing me to interpret. I know that I am one of the very few fortunate ones, and I am so thankful for that. Congrats on your transition! Change can be good!