Mogul, Mom, & Maid: The Balancing Act of the Modern Woman

by Liz O'Donnell

Overview

The state of working women has been declared and debated since the days of Rosie the Riveter. The headlines, and the statistics behind them, however, don't tell the whole story. The truth is, many women today are breadwinners; and these breadwinners are struggling. They are caught in a perfect storm of male-dominated culture at work, traditional social norms at home, and outdated schedules in the school. Mogul, Mom, & Maid takes an honest look at how women are balancing home life and career. The pressures of child rearing, coupled with an unfulfilling corporate culture, are too great to be ignored. Author Liz O'Donnell goes beyond statistics and tells the stories of women all across America who are juggling careers, motherhood, marriage, and households. Mogul, Mom, & Maid looks at the choices women are making, the options they have, and the impact these decisions have on themselves, their families, and the businesses that employ them.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781937134754
Publisher:	Bibliomotion, Inc.
Publication date:	11/05/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
File size:	35 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Liz O’Donnell is a public relations executive whose clients range from early-stage startups to large financial institutions. A busy working mother, Liz is the founder of “Hello Ladies”, an award-winning website geared toward smart, busy women.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction xi

1 Meet the New Breadwinner: Part Mogul, Part Mom, Part Maid 1

2 A Perfect Storm: The Working Mother's Struggle 19

3 The Mess at Home: America Has a Housework Gap 39

4 Mom and the Media: The Influences That Shape Us 63

5 What About the Men: Why We Need to Talk About Parenting, Not Mothering 81

6 So, Can We Have It All: Redefining Success 101

7 The Emergence of Entrepreneurship: Why It Works for Some Women 119

8 You Wash, I'll Dry: Negotiating Tips for Women 129

9 A Cautionary Tale: How Businesses Can Support Women 145

10 You're Not Alone: The Power of Women 159

Endnotes 173

References 175

Editorial Reviews

09/23/2013
Married mother of two O’Donnell is her family’s sole breadwinner. The founder of the blog Hello Ladies and a journalist, O’Donnell is one of several authors who have registered the popularity of Anne-Marie Slaughter’s “Why Women Still Can’t Have it All” 2012 article in the Atlantic and jumped on the bandwagon. The result is a warning and a call to action against an unsustainable world in which women are “caught in a perfect storm of male-dominated culture at work, traditional social norms at home, and outdated schedules in the school system.” While many women stay at home because it makes sense financially, at the other end of the spectrum, more women today are their family’s greater, or only, wage earner. Nonetheless, they still earn an average of 72.5% of what men earn, and do 30% more housework and child care than their spouses. O’Donnell includes numerous personal stories: tales of maternal guilt, missed deadlines, and marital struggles. These stories are backed up with discussions about how women are redefining success, wrestling with the “mommy penalty” and the media influences that shape us, among many other topics. While O’Donnell addresses how businesses can and should support women, such points are mostly relegated to end-of-chapter “Lessons from the Ladies.” The book unfortunately provides little in the way of new ideas. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

"This is the perfect moment for this important book which advances the conversation about how to provide and care for yourself and your family, while living a happy and meaningful life. Could there be a more important topic? Liz O’Donnell does a wonderful job combining the stories of real women, with helpful research, and specific action steps. Well done." –Jacki Zehner, CEO Women Moving Millions and former partner and managing director, Goldman Sachs

"In Mogul, Mom, & Maid, women breadwinners share their honest views on the challenges they face in reaching their true potential. While many of those challenges manifest at the conference table, they also manifest at the kitchen table. In giving voice to these women and the issues they face managing both work and home, O’Donnell helps crack the code on what’s holding women back and outlines practical steps to help women, their partners, and their employers redefine women’s relationships with and access to power." –Gloria Feldt, co-founder of Take The Lead and author of No Excuses: 9 Ways Women Can Change How We Think About Power

"O'Donnell gives us straight talk and a revealing inside look at an unsung and besieged heroine: the working woman. Drawing on scores of interviews, O’Donnell is a perceptive guide to the challenges posed by husbands (when present), children, workplaces, and women’s own hopes and doubts. Racing to keep pace with a relentless daily calendar and to-do list, the women you will meet here are gutsy pioneers who just might lead us toward a fairer society and a more sustainable balance between work and family." –Charles Derber, professor of sociology at Boston College, co-author of The New Feminized Majority: How Democrats Can Change America with Women’s Values and Sociopathic Society: A People’s Sociology of the United States

"If you think you've read it all about having it all, you haven't read Mogul, Mom, & Maid. Even as moguls debate about 'bringing home bacon and frying it up in the pan,' through a deft mix of research, interviews, and her Hello Ladies’ unique voice, Liz O’Donnell provides a refreshingly candid look at the actual bacon-making of a working mom (and maid’s) life." –Whitney Johnson, cofounder Rose Park Advisors and author of Dare, Dream, Do: Remarkable Things Happen When You Dare to Dream

"Mogul, Mom, & Maid should have been written twenty-five years ago! We would have saved ourselves a collective wandering in the desert. A must-read for anyone looking for a more balanced life, no matter your sex!" –Larry Weber Chairman & CEO W2 Group, Inc.

"Mogul, Mom & Maid is unflinchingly honest about the challenges modern women face as they juggle professional and personal roles. O’Donnell shares her own stories?as well as those from the hundred women she interviewed, many of them breadwinners? and does not pretend there are easy answers. Yet, with humor, she offers useful and practical advice for women and their employers. Lean in to this book — and share it with the women whose happiness matters to you." –Carol Frohlinger, co-founder, Negotiation Women, Inc.

"Liz tells her own and other women’s stories with passion, humor, respect and curiosity. She is a woman on a mission, so here’s to Liz?mom, mogul, maid, and missionary. Mission achieved. A book for every woman and man juggling home, marriage, family and career." –Dr. Anne Perschel, Leadership and Business Psychologist, Germane Consulting, Co-founder 3Plus International. Women-Worth-Knowing

"With Mogul, Mom, & Maid, Liz O' Donnell strikes an inspiring balance between being comprehensive and compassionate. She tells stories of real women like you and me, as well as other women we might not know, and does this with warmth, insight, and empathy. Liz O’Donnell shares the many truths about what it really means to be a woman, a mom, a wife, and a manager. It also goes further to suggest ways that individually and together we can create new truths. Mogul, Mom, & Maid will help you see opportunities in the complexities of the big picture. Even better, it will inspire you to make meaningful changes right where you are." –CV Harquail, PhD, consultant at AuthenticOrganizations.com, Management Faculty at Stevens Institute of Technology

"O’Donnell goes beyond the statistics and takes a hard, first-hand look at how women’s responsibilities at home are impeding their career advancement… and how negotiation can change the game for women everywhere." –Victoria Pynchon, author of The Grownups’ ABC’s of Conflict Resolution and Success as a Mediator for Dummies

From the Publisher