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Why I’ve updated my LinkedIn profile…

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A few years ago, I sat the other side of an interview panel talking to a woman who (in her words) had “no confidence, whatsoever”. She was shaking, red faced, sweaty and nervous as hell. Why? Well, because *all* she had done for the last ten years was look after her kids. All! ALL! ALLLLLLLL! Now, if you are reading this, it’s likely that you too have children, and you too are shaking your head at this. ALL!!

Raising children is hard work. Beautiful work. Challenging work. Gross work. Hilarious work. But it’s work. And because it’s work, you

SelfishMother.com
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gain quite a fair few skills. I’ve joked about this before, but the joke’s over friends-shit just got real.

Reading all the brave and hugely courageous women share their stories of PND, anxiety, loneliness and poor self esteem during maternal mental health day, I got sad. Then I got angry.  I’m pretty pissed off on behalf of all of us. As parents, we have to pretend like these skills, these challenges, this work means nothing. That women (and it is mainly women) who have spent months, years, a lifetime, doing the grafting of raising kids

SelfishMother.com
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don’t see their work as valuable because the world does not see it as valuable.

To pretend that our home selves don’t have any impact on our work selves is born out a refusal to see parenthood as meaningful, as important, as a skill. But it is! My children and my time on mat leave has given me a whole bunch of new skills, and they’re pretty  good ones too. As I like to sing to my wee ones- this little light of mine, I’m gonna let in shine.  So in that spirit, I’ve updated my LinkedIn profile.

Not only does it have my professional,

SelfishMother.com
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paid work skills, experiences and connections- now it also includes my new and improved parenting skill set. I can manage complex projects. I can produce creative solutions. I can work to deadlines whilst under pressure. I can learn new skills quickly. I am a counsellor. An artist. A cleaner. A bookkeeper. I am a parent.

This tongue in cheek CV is also a call to arms. You guys, people do not take our work seriously. Our mental health suffers. Our professional life suffers. Our pay suffers. ENOUGH ALREADY. I take our work seriously. I take our mental

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health seriously. I take our professionalism seriously. You are doing a great job, you are doing a job, and so let’s tell the world about it.

See my profile here

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- 5 May 17

A few years ago, I sat the other side of an interview panel talking to a woman who (in her words) had “no confidence, whatsoever”. She was shaking, red faced, sweaty and nervous as hell. Why? Well, because *all* she had done for the last ten years was look after her kids. All! ALL! ALLLLLLLL! Now, if you are reading this, it’s likely that you too have children, and you too are shaking your head at this. ALL!!

Raising children is hard work. Beautiful work. Challenging work. Gross work. Hilarious work. But it’s work. And because it’s work, you gain quite a fair few skills. I’ve joked about this before, but the joke’s over friends-shit just got real.

Reading all the brave and hugely courageous women share their stories of PND, anxiety, loneliness and poor self esteem during maternal mental health day, I got sad. Then I got angry.  I’m pretty pissed off on behalf of all of us. As parents, we have to pretend like these skills, these challenges, this work means nothing. That women (and it is mainly women) who have spent months, years, a lifetime, doing the grafting of raising kids don’t see their work as valuable because the world does not see it as valuable.

To pretend that our home selves don’t have any impact on our work selves is born out a refusal to see parenthood as meaningful, as important, as a skill. But it is! My children and my time on mat leave has given me a whole bunch of new skills, and they’re pretty  good ones too. As I like to sing to my wee ones- this little light of mine, I’m gonna let in shine.  So in that spirit, I’ve updated my LinkedIn profile.

Not only does it have my professional, paid work skills, experiences and connections- now it also includes my new and improved parenting skill set. I can manage complex projects. I can produce creative solutions. I can work to deadlines whilst under pressure. I can learn new skills quickly. I am a counsellor. An artist. A cleaner. A bookkeeper. I am a parent.

This tongue in cheek CV is also a call to arms. You guys, people do not take our work seriously. Our mental health suffers. Our professional life suffers. Our pay suffers. ENOUGH ALREADY. I take our work seriously. I take our mental health seriously. I take our professionalism seriously. You are doing a great job, you are doing a job, and so let’s tell the world about it.

See my profile here

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Feminist. Mum of two. Lover of red wine and Channing Tatum.

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