Women can have it all!
“Unsure of what the balance held I touched my belly overwhelmed By what I had been chosen to perform But then an angel came one day Told me to kneel down and pray
For unto me a man child would be born Woe this crazy circumstance
I knew his life deserved a chance
But everybody told me to be smart ‘Look at your career’, they said ‘Lauryn, baby, use your head’
But instead I chose to use my heart Now the joy of my world is in Zion.”
Lauryn Hill’s ode to her son titled To Zion on her Grammy Award-winning 1988 album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.
FOREVER IMMORTALISED is the figure of Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce captured in a picture on Sunday. Right arm flexed. On show, every defined muscle, chiselled by rigorous athletic training and gold-medal grit.
To her left, a very different demonstration of strength. The gentle but secure cradle of a mother carrying her truest prized possession. Two-year-old Zyon, too young to understand the majesty of the moment he and his mummy were sharing, nestled in the familiar safety of her shoulder.
Oh, what it meant to Shelly-Ann to experience that. What it meant to Jamaica to see that. What it meant to the world!
Shelly-Ann, in that moment, was a reminder to women that we can have it all. We can be, in the truest sense, the very best at our chosen careers and at the same time not forsake the critical nurturing role we play in our families. We can self-actualise and excel in any profession we set our sights on and still make time to kiss boo-boos and give the kinds of hugs only mummies can. You’d better believe that after Shelly-Ann beat the world on the track, she’ll be there by the sidelines cheering on Zyon on sports day.
Jobs that make us feel like we have to choose between family and career do us a disservice. My cousin lives in Japan, and her husband dare not go home before his boss. Caught up with appearances, activity supersedes and is often mistaken for productivity. Everyone sits there for hours looking busy until the boss leaves. Doing nothing. And work-life balance is a faraway fantasy. That’s no way to live.
The greatest corporate lesson I ever learned was from my boss at Digicel. Harry Smith sent me home to my family late one night, reminding me that if the work killed me, he’d say, “She was such a hard worker,” and in the same breath call HR for a stack of résumés to find my replacement.
FAMILY FIRST
That moment of triumph for Shelly-Ann, and the way she chose to do her victory lap, with the weight of winning off her shoulders and the embrace of her son instead filling her arms, I loved everything about it. I was reminded that sometimes, family is the motivation we need to succeed.
It’s the reason farm workers spend nine months away from home with their shoulders to the wheel – to pay their children’s college tuition and keep the lights on. It’s the reason we put pictures of those we love on our desks at work, reminding us to press on long after the nine-to-five commitment we made in our contracts has passed. In this topsy-turvy life, we too often live to work and not the other way around.
Dedicate more time to creating memories with those you love. The number-one regret people express is: “I wish I had spent more time with my family.” No one ever said, “I wish I had made more money.” Family first!