This Momorandum is sponsored by CAROLEE.  See Below!

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The Executive Moms Fall Luncheon featured a great discussion between our expert panel, audience and “20/20” correspondent and event moderator Deborah Roberts on “Bringing ‘Momness’ to Business.” 
   

Pictured here, our panel was comprised of: Linda Kaplan Thaler, advertising CEO and author, “The Power of Nice;” Nancy Collamer, Founder, JobsandMoms.com; Marisa Thalberg; Deborah Roberts; Judy Newman, President, Scholastic Books Clubs; and Robin Koval, advertising President and co-author, “The Power of Nice.”

 Here, some of the highlights of the discussion:

How does our ‘Momness’ transfer to ‘Business?’

Perceptiveness: once you’ve raised a child, our perceptiveness becomes incredibly heightened, particularly our ability to distill the real meaning behind the words. As Nancy Collamer related, when her teenager asked three days in advance to have a sleepover with a friend, her mother-radar went up (because… teenagers never plan. Sure enough, the story was a front for an unchaperoned party). That kind of sixth sense is actually an invaluable skill for the business world.

Multi-tasking and prioritizing: There is nary a busy mother who hasn’t learned the art of multi- tasking; similarly, every mom who has one set of arms and more than one child demanding her attention has figured out the art of prioritizing. Both of these qualities are two of the most transferable talents to business.

What would I tell my child? Often, the best compass for how to conduct yourself in a professional situation is simply realizing how you would conduct yourself as mom. As Robin Koval related, in tough situations she has asked herself, “what would I tell my child to do here?” Invariably, therein would lie the answer.

Momness is actually changing the language of the workplace: increasingly, companies are placing a premium on attributes like “collaborative” in their hiring decisions. In fact, one guest, an Executive Recruiter, related that a client recently told her: “I want someone in here who knows what to do with a 2 year-old… because that’s what we feel like we’re dealing with in here!”
 
   
Some of the Best Thoughts on Bridging ‘Momness’ and Business:

Don’t be afraid to occasionally make it your own “bring your child to work day.” Especially once you’ve established yourself in your workplace, as Judy Newman and others attested, it’s good for your children to experience your worklife, and equally important to let your worklife see you, as a mom.

Leverage your momness as an instant credibility builder and bonding mechanism:  if the client, the boss, the colleague (female or male) has children too, you have an excellent basis for rapport, which in turn can be the glue for a fruitful business relationship.

Momness can even LEAD to business:  Linda Kaplan Thaler believes that her willingness to take her children’s daily home-from-school callsù even during a big client pitch, may have helped as opposed to hurt them in winning key accounts. Similarly, Deborah Roberts shared that it was her ‘Momness’ that helped her land the exclusive network TV interview with the mother of missing teenager Natalee Holloway; due to her ability to have a genuine mother-to-mother conversation.

“Market” your momness as a positive:  Rather than take an apologetic tone, if you view your momness as an asset and a source of pride you can help reframe the way ‘momness’ is perceived overall. Remember, as Linda wryly noted, “MEN have kids too.”

Let your “business” have a positive impact on your momness, too:  just as the skills of motherhood can strengthen us in business, there are skills we hone in business, from how to negotiate to how to give positive reinforcement, that are equally transferable to home. Most of all, as our panel readily noted, our careers have a positive impact on our children. As Judy noted, “It’s pretty great when they say, ‘I Googled you, Mom.'”
 
   

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