Dual-earning couples are now more popular than single-income households. After all, think about the practicality of it all. In a traditional setting, women will be at home taking care of the children and cleaning the house. But a study said that women are more likely to finish college more than men. In 2015, 39% of women 25 to 29 years old completed their bachelor’s degree, while only 32% of men finished theirs.
This means that the antiquated belief that women should stay at home is no longer practical or even the norm. Men can stay at home and do the dishes, too. They can raise the children and “wait” for their wives to go home at night. And yet, in many societies—even in progressive Western countries—women still do all the work despite working a full day.
Many women hold a position of power at work then come home to dirty dishes piled up in the sink. So, they do their work until 5 PM then go home to prepare the dinner, clean the house, iron the clothes, and put the kids to sleep. And yes, some fathers are great at taking care of the household, too, but research already showed that women are doing more at work to prove themselves and more in the house to nurture their families.
Isn’t it a bit unfair? Women still need to prove themselves both at work and in their own homes. Fortunately, women are stronger, and dealing with stress at work and family is just one of the many things that they’re good at.
Proving Yourself at Work
There are plenty of work opportunities for men that aren’t as open to women. In Guernsey, for example, they have just recently welcomed female bailiffs since the role was created in 1969. It is also only recently that women started driving cabs, and that’s due to ride-hailing platforms like Uber. In construction, there was an 85% increase in jobs for women in the last five years.
Traditionally, only men were seen “qualified” for these jobs. They started opening their doors for women, but that doesn’t mean women have it easy. They have to work twice as hard to prove that they qualify for the job. Women needed to take bigger roles and convince their employers they’re better than their male counterparts.
And the challenges don’t stop once you’re hired. Women have to do more such that one woman who works in a cable company as a finance officer needed to learn how to splice cables and go underground to prove her worth. Another said her employer pulled her to the side when she was pregnant and asked how the baby is going to affect her performance at work.
Dealing With the Household
How do women juggle work and the household? Male bosses often find it hard to understand that women are great at time management and multitasking. They belittle their ability to balance work and family life and thus, the snide remarks about priorities. Women can even micromanage their household and work at the same time. It’s partly a natural gift and party born out of necessity.
If you are part of the sector of society that needed to get violently attacked for the right to suffrage, a little thing like juggling work and household is nothing to you. But many women also shared that the most important thing they need when they’re dealing with a career and a family is the support from their community. They have to feel empowered to do it all—pay the bills, read to your children before bed, and tackle the little things that get in your way every day.
A separate study said that career women depend on other women for support. It may be their mothers or nannies or caregivers or some distant relatives; they are more comfortable asking help from women. Their shared struggles bind women to help each other when needed. It is this supportive and nurturing community that allows women to wear many hats—an employee, a mother, a wife, a friend, and all the other roles she plays.
Have you often wondered how the women in your lives are able to do it all? Look at your mother and grandmother. They did not enjoy the same conveniences the modern woman now enjoys. They did everything by hand. And they did it while fighting for their place in society, too. So, every time you question your abilities to do what you need to do for your career and family, take a look at every woman that did it before you.
