– Your Biggest Working Mom Questions: Money and Career
– Event Slideshow
We promised you that whether you could join us for our big spring event we held in April or not, we would capture and share some of the most important nuggets of content with all of you. As a follow-up to our initial Momorandum excerpting our favorite quips of the day, we are now sharing, in two parts, more detail on the conversation and good advice that ensued from our panel of amazing experts; pictured at right, from L to R: Sheila Marcelo; Executive Moms’Jill Tipograph and Marisa Thalberg; Gail Saltz; Tory Johnson; ABC News anchor and event moderator Cynthia MacFadden; and Jean Chatzky.
For Part I, here are some of the highlights on the questions involving Money and Career:
Q: How has the subject of career shifted in recent months?
Career expert Tory Johnson: It used to be the focus was on balance; now financial security is the #1 priority. There is a lot of fear right now. And unfortunately, no one does their best work scared. Most importantly, you need to do what you need to do to protect your job.
Finance expert Jean Chatzky: People absolutely need to be thinking about an emergency or back-up plan for their jobs right now.
ABC News anchor and event moderator Cynthia MacFadden: It seems as if for a while, people were coming out of the closet at work about mom responsibilities like heading out to attend a school play or soccer games… but I’m wondering if now many of us are backing off– and lying. Pretending to have a doctor’s appointment seems more justified than attending a soccer game. Are we going back to the old way?
Jean: Some managers will say, “I’m asking everyone to work harder, for less money, so I’m going to offer perks like flexibility to leave for a soccer game… but other managers will say, “Don’t ask for special favors right now.” It boils down to relationships— you have to know your own specific office culture, in terms of what’s acceptable and what is not.
Q: Given what has happened to our investment accounts, does it make sense to keep trying to put money into college savings plans?
Jean: If you have a baby this year, according to the New York Times it will cost $500,000 for them to go to Harvard. College costs have exceeded inflation for years, and frankly, at some point something is going to have to give. However, yes you should continue to invest in a 529 savings plan, with this provision: your own retirement savings has to come first. Remember, there is financial aid for college. There is no financial aid plan for your retirement.
Also remember to adjust your portfolio over time in your college savings plan, just as you do for a retirement plan. With younger children, you should be investing aggressively. But by the time they reach about14, the equivalent of “nearing retirement,” that college plan needs to get similarly conservative. A good resource is savingforcollege.com (like a Morningstar rating system for college savings plans). When it comes to college, if ultimately you can have saved 1/3 of the cost of college, pay 1/3 of the costs from cash flow, and borrow the final 1/3, you’re doing pretty well.
Q: Should I keep working, even if my salary is going almost entirely toward paying for the childcare?
Jean and Cynthia: “Idling” is fine if you’re breaking even. And it’s especially fine if you happen to love your work.
Tory: Keeping up contacts and keeping connected to your career is worth it – you’re maintaining, and possibly even increasing, your future earning potential, so in many ways you are really investing in yourself. Conversely it has become increasingly difficult for women who have been out of the workforce for years to re-enter. (Meantime with many husbands losing jobs today, there is increased pressure of those women who did leave the workforce to return— and now they are up against unprecedented competition). Realize that the financial motivation to work is to cover your expenses. Your major expense may be childcare, but that in turn is enabling you to maintain the practical and emotional benefits of having a career.
And some personal thoughts on being a working mom:
Childcare expert Sheila Marcelo: I got pregnant when I was in college—so I was a very young mom. And as a result I actually hid the fact that I had a child at my first job, out of fear that they would not take me seriously. I very quickly regretted this, and in fact did not stay long at the job. Ever since, I’ve made sure to be in work situations that embrace women who are mothers (including the companies I’ve started). You need a job that accepts you for who you are. It’s so important to follow your calling, and be true to what you pursue.
Jean: Do good work, because being an asset at work translates into flexibility down the road.
Family and relationship expert Dr. Gail Saltz: Working moms get the best of both worlds: the joy of going to the pediatrician and hearing how tall your child is… and the rewards of working. (Dads, by the way, don’t really experience this— not in the same way as we do). You can’t “have it all” – juggling and making choices are required. But perhaps you can look at it from a different perspective, which is that you GET to make choices.
Have a comment to share in response? Post it to the Executive Lounge
View the Photo Album from the Executive Moms Spring Luncheon
For more photo highlights of our event, take a look at the album we just posted to executivemoms.com. (Best to view it in slideshow format). Comment and share your favorites!
Add Your Comment