career tips
5 career tips from working mothers
Mothers #workingatTR provide 5 tips on how to succeed in your career
As one of the ‘Best Companies for Women’, Thomson Reuters understands the importance of developing the talents and championing the contributions of female employees and promoting women as equal partners in the success, achievement and profitability of Thomson Reuters. We caught up with a few working mothers of Thomson Reuters and asked them to provide us with their best advice on having a full-time gig outside of the home and how Thomson Reuters supports them as a working mother.
Emilie Love, Business Systems Analyst, and Mother of One
Really think about what you need in order to balance work/life. Moms are always the default parent, so what can change at home to support your mental health, and make sure your entire life isn't working at work, and then working at home? Maybe it's having your spouse help more around the house, doing a regular activity on your own or with friends, kids doing one less activity, hiring a housekeeper, grocery delivery, eating out every Friday, etc. Have regular "me" time and date nights (also, time exercising should never count as "me" time! You should always just get that!). Not everyone can afford a maid service, but if you don't want to spend your free time cleaning or doing yard work - maybe a niece/nephew/cousin/etc. wants to make some money? I hire my 17yo cousin to clean my house once every couple weeks. She needs the money, is super affordable, and does a great job!
How Thomson Reuters supports me:
I’m appreciative of the Thomson Reuters parental leave policy. I think that, along with the ability to work from home and having a flexible schedule, allows me to put my family first, and still have a career.
Melissa Scheel, Recurring Content Manager, and Mother of Two
As a parent (especially a new parent), it's easy to lose who you are when you're managing a career, figuring out parenthood, managing a household, and striving to be a good mother/partner/friend/child/sibling/etc. Prioritize things that make YOU happy too. Is it a hobby? Is it reading? Is it going for a run? Is it going to plays? Is it painting? Make sure you are still working in time for that thing that you enjoy and that is a part of who you are. If that means you need to cut out a child activity in your weekly schedule or skip a baseball game or hire a cleaning service or spend extra money on grocery delivery it will likely be worth the sacrifice to focus on YOU. It's hard to be a good, present parent if you aren't your best self.
How Thomson Reuters supports me:
TR has supported me in many, many ways as a working mother. Between the parental leave, the ability to alter my work day as needed to accommodate doctor/dentist/child assessment appointments, and the ability to take volunteer time to volunteer at my child’s school, I very much feel like I can be a successful professional while maintaining involvement in some very important pieces of my child’s growth and development.
Heidi Peterson, Solutions Manager, and Mother of One
A grocery delivery service saves tons of time and energy! Have your groceries delivered to your front door when it is convenient for you. There are many options out there such as Peapod, Instacart,
How Thomson Reuters supports me:
TR has been an amazing and constantly accommodating place to work due to their family first mentality. I have the ability to alter my schedule to accommodate the special, even the small, yet important moments in my child’s life. For example, I have attended all my son’s Montessori day school parties throughout the past 3 years that parents from other companies find difficult to attend. The culture here is family first which reduces the stress all mothers feel when they have to pick between work and family. TR makes the decision for you! Everyone from my Senior Director to my coworkers will help to ensure I along with other mothers can
Heather Rolloff, Project Manager, and Mother of Two
I like to meal prep when possible. I will generally make a double batch of something that can be frozen. We eat one for dinner and the other half is frozen for a quick meal another night.
How Thomson Reuters supports me:
I’m also a mom of a special needs child and TR
Kaitlin Klein, Sales Specialist and, Mother of One
Since we are apart from our children 8+ hours a day you have to make the time you do spend with your kid's count. I know that when we get home we are often the ones making dinner and cleaning the house, so I try to make my son a part of it. It is more fun for me because we get to spend time together and for him, he learns something new. I set up his high chair in the kitchen so he can watch me cook and I let him smell all the herbs I am cooking with. Then, when the floor needs to be swept I'll put him in the ergo and he will sweep with me. Everything is new to babies so what you think is mundane will be a fun experience for them. And hopefully, you can get them to think that sweeping the floor is fun so they will want to do it when they get older!
How Thomson Reuters supports me:
Thomson Reuters has been the best place for me to be as a working mom. I found out I was pregnant shortly after starting at Thomson Reuters. Even though I had not been with the company for a year, I still received full parental leave. I even got a promotion before I went on leave and my new manager was very supportive of me taking the full time off to be with my new family. After my son was born I was able to set up a 529 plan as well as get legal assistance in creating a will that will include him through TR. Whenever there is a time my son has a doctor’s appointment or is sick, my manager lets me make up the time as needed. The benefits and the flexibility at Thomson Reuters has made the transition to being a new mother much easier for my family.
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