워킹맘의 역설: 고정관념과 강점 풀기

### 고정관념에 도전하기: 워킹맘의 강점
* 👩 '워킹맘'이라는 용어는 종종 부정적인 고정관념을 떠올리게 하여 **직장에서의 능력을 과소평가**하는 결과를 초래할 수 있습니다.
* 📺 이러한 고정관념은 사회적 영향, 미디어의 묘사, 개인적인 경험에 의해 형성되지만 **실제 개인의 복잡성을 포착하는 데는 실패**합니다.
* 📊 연구에 따르면 **워킹맘의 능력이 떨어진다는 편견**으로 인해 **취업 기회와 승진, 심지어 실직**까지 이어질 수 있다고 합니다.
* 💼 한 연구에 따르면 육아를 책임지는 여성은 **유능하지 않은 것으로 인식**되어 초봉이 낮고 채용 과정에서 차별을 받는 것으로 나타났습니다.
* 📈 하지만 많은 워킹맘들이 아이를 낳은 후 **업무 효율성이 높아지고 공감 능력이 향상**되며 동기 부여가 되어 **"모성 우위"**를 경험한다고 합니다.
* 🔍 400명 이상의 학업 중인 엄마들을 대상으로 한 설문조사에 따르면 **83%가 부모가 된 후 업무 성과를 향상시키는 기술**을 습득하여 직장에서 더 잘할 수 있게 되었다고 답했습니다.
* 🛠 이러한 이점을 활용하려면 조직은 **편견을 인식**하고, **워킹맘을 수용할 수 있도록 업무 구조를 조정**하고, **각 개인의 경험이 고유**하다는 점을 이해해야 합니다.
* 🌟 에이다 러브레이스와 우르술라 번스 같은 특별한 워킹맘들은 여성에게 기회가 주어졌을 때 얻을 수 있는 귀중한 공헌을 예로 들며 **여성들을 과소평가하지 않는 것**이 중요하다는 점을 강조합니다.

워킹맘은 해로운 고정관념을 깨고 전문 역량을 강화하는 고유한 강점을 가지고 있습니다.

let's start with the vision exercise. I'm going to say a term, and when I say that term, I want you to press pause and capture the first image that pops into your head. Okay, ready? The term is working mother. What do you see? Is your working mother busy, happily typing away at her desk, or is she slumped over, exhausted, in need of caffeine? What we instinctively think about people is based on our stereotypes, these widely held but oversimplified images and ideas, which are based in part by our surroundings, you see in the media, in movies and TV shows. Our stereotypes are also influenced by our own lives, how we grow up, our role models, our peers, who we associate with, and stereotypes can be unreliable or even harmful because they can never capture the wonderful complexity of a real human being. So, I'm going to share with you today why our common stereotypes of working mothers are untrue and result in women being underestimated at work, and there are important implications of this underestimation that affect not only the

moms themselves, but their jobs, their workplaces, their organizations, and beyond. What if I told you right now that there are women working throughout laboratories and collaborating and meeting rooms, and they're gonna be the ones to someday discover this cure to some horrible disease or innovate some new technology that we can't imagine living without. But instead of making these advancements, Belen said, leave the workforce because some manager along the way decided a woman wouldn't work as well after having a baby. There's a business case to be made for why working mothers should not be underestimated. That is, it matters to the bottom line as well. So just as your image may have been somewhat negative, I too once shared those negative assumptions. I used to work in a fast-paced job in New York City as a human resources professional, and I would coach managers on employee issues like maternity leaves. And you know, I was a freewheeling single young woman, always dressed in my polished, perfectly pressed business casual. And I remember thinking, Wow, having a baby sure interferes with your career. I

didn't get it right. All I saw in my co-workers is how they were limited because they had children. So fast-forward over a decade later, I'd quit my job, go back to school to get my PhD in management, and I become an assistant professor. And during those grueling, stressful tenure-track years, I have children of my own within 22 months of each other. And my experience when I became a working mother was exceedingly challenging. The pressure was on to publish research. I got back to demanding teaching and service commitments. My mom had died a few years prior. The rest of my family lived 2,000 miles away. After I had my first baby in particular, it was one of the most lonely times of my life. Of course, I loved my baby. I loved nursing her and smelling her hair and all those precious moments. But I was beyond exhausted physically and emotionally, just depleted from a difficult pregnancy, a two-and-a-half-day-long birth, and a highly spirited baby who liked to cry more than she liked to

sleep, but you know my experience was so much different from what I had expected it to be. Now, instead of wearing my perfectly pressed business-casual every day, of course, I'm just trying to get out the door without one or both of my kids spilling on me or peeing on me somewhere. The struggle is real. Things were different. They also realized there are ways I was better at my job, happier in my job, and more fulfilled in how I did my job after having kids. But that's not the common stereotype of working mothers, is it? That's not what we see portrayed in movies. That's not what's discussed in hiring meetings. People tend to assume, as I did, that when a mom returns to work after having a baby, that she'll be less capable or less committed than she was before. That working mothers are all sleep-deprived, baby-crazy, conflicted, and struggling with work-life balance. Don't get me wrong, that was my experience and then some, right? I mean, the stereotype is often at least partially true, but it's

not the whole truth, and this leads to what I refer to as the working mother paradox. That while we assume working mothers are less than they were prior to having children, they often end up having more to offer their jobs than before. And there are important consequences of these assumptions that impact every manager's behavior and decisions. As a result of these assumptions, women are offered fewer opportunities. Research shows that women are routinely discriminated against after having children. They are not hired for jobs, they're not selected for promotions, or they're even fired. And organizations then lose out on valuable talent as women are demotivated in their jobs or even end up leaving the workforce. A study by Shelley Carell and colleagues found that looking at resumes, right, their study looked at resumes and compared, and resumes that indicated someone was on a parent-teacher association, all those being equal, was half as likely to get called back for an interview. Those women were perceived as less competent. They received lower starting salaries. Mothers, but not fathers, suffer from a substantial wage

penalty, and all of these assumptions prompt academy-award-winning acting that women engage in when they return back to work. They try to pretend as if nothing has changed. They try to pretend like they're the same that they were before to avoid being treated differently, to avoid being stripped of opportunities, and all this only further depletes their own resources. So, I propose a counter-narrative to this working mother paradox that parenting helps us rather than hurts us, that being a parent should be considered an asset, not a liability. And this idea has been referred to by author Elissa court as the motherhood advantage. But there are skills and abilities gained from the experience of having babies and raising children that can then be applied to the job. I want to start a new stereotype. Gwyneth Paltrow built a 250 million dollar company with a hiring strategy that included a focus on hiring working mothers, saying, and I paraphrase, that lady will get things done. When a mom returns to work after having a baby, she may need

help. She may need temporary accommodations or support, but don't assume that because of that she's less than she was. She very likely will become more than she was. Different does not mean diminished. So, being a researcher, you know I wanted to investigate this idea. So, together with Sharon Kim, a fellow management professor who also had two babies while tenure track, we ran a survey with over 400 academic mothers who had recently given birth and returned to work. And we asked them a series of questions, open-ended questions, about their return to work experience and what we found just floored us. Yes, we heard a lot about the challenges and limitations. We heard a lot about the problems that they experienced. But what floored us was the bright side that 83% of our participants shared specific ways that they were better in their jobs after having children. So, this is studied already, right? This is studied in the field of work-family scholarship as family-to-work enrichment, that when you have personal and family experiences, through those experiences, you can engender resources.

that you can then apply to your jobs. So, we brought in an expert in this field to help us out, Danna Greenberg, to help us analyze and interpret our data. And I'll share with you now three really interesting ways that we found our participants were enriched. The first way was that they gained skills in efficiency. They became better at time management, multitasking, and prioritizing. When participants said, I am super efficient now. I prioritize ruthlessly. Another said, I get so much more done now after having my baby. I am more productive. The second way our participants experienced enrichment is they gained enhanced skills in being able to relate with other people at work. They shared how they got better at conflict management, at compromising, with enhanced abilities in being empathetic and compassionate with other people. One participant said, I'm a better and more confident negotiator now. I can attest about who doesn't become a better negotiator after having a toddler. Another said, I'm a better manager now. I can relate more to the challenges that people are experiencing with more

patience. The third way our participants were enriched is that they gained an enhanced perspective of themselves and of their jobs. Babies and children put a bad day at work into perspective. They influence how we're motivated at work, the meaning we derive from our jobs. Stakes are so much higher when you have little ones watching your every step and emulating your choices. One participant said, I now know I can juggle anything thrown at me. Another said, I used to be scared about things like teaching and speaking in public, and you realize now after having children, I am much more capable. Another participant said, My work has greater meaning to me since the birth of my child. So, those are our three categories of ways our participants were enriched. And now think about this, right? Being more motivated, better negotiating. Aren't these skills you want to see in your employees? And here's the best part: what happens when the pressures and challenges of babies and young children are alleviated, right? Kids get a little older, a little more self-sufficient. Do these skills just go away? No, they can

continue to be applied to the job in the years to come. So, while in the short term, there are challenges; in the long term, these gains remain. Okay, so now what can be done? How can we all leverage this motherhood advantage? I'll offer suggestions, and there are especially for those of you who anticipate you might become a working mom someday, for any of you who are in the throes of your own return to work experience right now, and especially for those of you who are in a position of influence to make decisions about the working mothers around you. My first suggestion is to know your biases. Being aware of them is the first step towards not letting them influence our decisions. As I learned, it's hard to understand something that you haven't gone through yourself. The second suggestion is to consider how to adjust jobs to accommodate employees. Jobs that are part-time, share, or flexible in some way can help to keep working mothers in the workforce, and such needs are often temporary. Other resources like accommodating or on-site daycare or paid parental leave can help.

to achieve this as well and has a bonus. Aren't employees likely to be even more committed and loyal to you because you helped to work with them through this temporarily challenging time? The third suggestion is to resist the power of anecdotal examples. Doing so expands your stereotypes. Every woman's experience is different. Just because one person needed two months off and a standing desk doesn't mean that the next one will. I once made a hilarious list of all these things I wanted to do during my first maternity leave. Just because I didn't accomplish any of those things doesn't mean that another woman wouldn't be able to do everything. My fourth suggestion is to remember that time matters. A study by Matias Craft and colleagues found that after working mothers had a baby, they were more productive in the long term of their careers, swallowing the short term. There may need to be some investment in some support in the long run. Employers are likely to get a return on that investment. So those are my suggestions, and I would argue that they're

applicable beyond working moms, beyond even working parents, that when any employee faces some personal or family challenge, don't assume they're only limited by those challenges, whether an illness to fight, an elder parent to care for, a death to mourn, an illness to overcome. Managers and leaders allow for your employees to use what they've learned from their challenges in how they do their jobs. This year my kids turn 2 and 4. I turned 40 and I finally earned tenure. And thank you. I didn't attend your in spite of having my children. I am Who I am now because of them and because of what I've been through. I am stronger and better because of what I've been through. And finally, let me leave you with this. I want to share with you a few examples of some extraordinary working mothers. Okay, ready? First, mathematician and writer Ada Lovelace. She published what's considered to be the world's first computer algorithm three years after having her third child. Esteemed award-winning astronomer Cecilia Payne Capuchin. She

was so influential. She had an astrophysicist award named after her, and she was a mom of three in the 1930s. She also shocked her Harvard colleagues back then by lecturing while visibly pregnant. Wasn't done back then, right? Ursula Burns, ranked by Forbes as one of the most powerful women in the world, grew her career at Xerox, ultimately becoming CEO. She has a daughter and a stepson. Pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha blew the whistle on the water-led contamination crisis in Flint, Michigan. How many lives has she improved and saved? And she's a mom of two. Two United States Supreme Court justices, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sandra Day O'Connor, also have children. All of these contributions to the world would have been lost had these women been denied opportunities just because they also happened to be mothers. Don't underestimate the working moms around you. Thank you.

Don’t Underestimate Working Mothers | Dana Sumpter | TEDxCSULB

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워킹맘에 대한 고정관념은 종종 부정적이고 지나치게 단순화되어 직장에서 워킹맘을 과소평가하는 결과를 초래합니다.

이러한 가정은 워킹맘 당사자뿐만 아니라 조직과 사회 전체에 해로운 영향을 미칠 수 있습니다.

연사는 워킹맘에 대한 부정적인 시각을 갖고 있다가 직접 어려움을 경험하기까지의 개인적인 여정을 공유하며 직장 내 여성의 가치와 잠재력을 인정하는 것이 중요하다는 점을 강조합니다.

워킹맘은 종종 아이를 낳은 후 능력과 헌신이 떨어진다는 고정관념에 직면하여 채용과 승진에서 차별을 받기도 합니다.

이러한 고정관념에도 불구하고 많은 워킹맘들이 육아 후 더 성취감을 느끼고 직장에서 더 많은 것을 제공합니다.

육아를 자산으로 인식하고 자녀 양육을 통해 얻은 기술을 직장에서 가치 있는 것으로 장려하는 인식의 전환이 필요합니다.

모성이 경력 개발에 미치는 긍정적인 영향

400명 이상의 학업 중인 엄마들을 대상으로 한 조사에 따르면 83%가 출산 후 업무에 긍정적인 변화를 경험한 것으로 나타났습니다.

참가자들은 업무 효율성이 향상되고, 대인관계 기술이 향상되었으며, 자신과 업무에 대한 관점이 향상되었다고 답했습니다.

육아라는 도전에서 얻은 이러한 기술은 고용주에게 도움이 될 수 있으며 자녀가 자립한 후에도 지속될 수 있습니다.

직장에서 모성 보호의 이점 활용하기

편견을 인식하는 것은 워킹맘에 대한 공정한 결정을 내리는 데 매우 중요합니다.

시간제, 유연근무제 또는 공동 역할을 제공하도록 직무를 조정하고 사내 보육 및 유급 육아휴직과 같은 자원을 제공하면 워킹맘의 직장을 유지하는 데 도움이 될 수 있습니다.

각 여성의 경험은 고유하며, 워킹맘을 위한 지원에 투자하는 것이 장기적인 생산성과 충성도로 이어질 수 있다는 점을 인식하는 것이 중요합니다.

개인적인 도전이 직원에게 미치는 영향

개인적 또는 가정적 어려움에 직면한 직원의 잠재력을 과소평가해서는 안 됩니다.

관리자와 리더는 직원들이 자신의 경험을 업무에 활용할 수 있도록 허용함으로써 이점을 얻을 수 있습니다.

이 연사는 일과 가정의 양립을 위해 노력한 특별한 워킹맘의 사례를 소개하며 모든 직원에게 기회를 제공하는 것이 중요하다고 강조합니다.