As a John Maxwell Certified Coach, Speaker and Trainer, Stay-at-Home Mom (SAHM) Wellness Coach, Motherhood and Lifestyle Trainer, and an Intentional Parenting Advocate Mrs. Viv Obinna helps women, especially Stay-at-home Moms, to discover their full potential while raising their kids the best way possible.
Mrs. O as she’s fondly called shares her expertise and experience with the public on the underappreciated roles and challenges of Stay-at-Home Moms as a proud CEO of her home. Viv is also the author of 11 Habits of The Productive Stay At Home MUM and The Business Side Of A Stay At Home Mum.
For over 14 years Viv has been a Stay-at-home Mom (SAHM). In an earlier publication, she describes herself as a superpower mom of 5 wonderful children and an awesome husband.
It may surprise you to know that Viv was a well-to-do banker before she quit her job to become a full-time stay-at-home mom in 2007.
According to her, she rocked her banking career, hence, she decided to rock her family too.
It wasn’t and hasn’t been easy to rock her transition job and she has come out to share that this is the same or similar situation with most SAHMs. This prompted her to address some of the major misconceptions of being a stay-at-home mom.
In the simplest of terms, a stay-at-home mom is a Full-time Housewife. Funny but true.
To most people, the first thing that comes to mind when they hear stay-at-home mom is a lazy housewife or a sleeping mother.
To Viv, this is hilarious because most people don’t understand the reality of what being a stay-at-home mom means.
According to Viv:
“Most of us stay-at-home moms can’t say what we do all day that gets us so exhausted at the end of the day.”
However, to better appreciate the activities of stay-at-home moms, it is best to look at it from the angle of roles instead of tasks. This is what amumandmore.com is all about.
Now, here are briefs presented by Viv on the underappreciated roles of stay-at-home moms. SAHMs according to Viv Obinna play multiple roles such as:
Family and Child Care:
This is something that every good parent can relate to. But the full scope of the responsibilities of this role can only be felt when you get to do it full-time.
This role includes activities such as attending kids’ school preparations, after-school activities, weekend sport, medical appointments, and other appointments coordination for the family.
House Chores:
Being a stay-at-home mom, all housework falls on you. For example, grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, laundry, and other house maintenance may seem awkward to outsource when you know you can handle them. Even managing your nanny can be daunting because you tend to often micromanage them just to meet your desired standard.
Remote Work:
Yeah, there’s no need to be puzzled because gone are the days where being a stay-at-home mom translates to an inability to do some paying job and earn.
In the current gig economy, stay-at-home moms may choose to work from home for some job functions and earn extra income to support the family while still taking care of the family.
This is what resilience looks like and technology just keeps making the impossible possible.
Finances:
Stay-at-home moms may not be the breadwinners of the family but they usually get the duty of managing family finances. They ensure that family finances are intact and properly spent by suggesting, implementing, and executing ideas or strategies. For instance, feeding budget and market expenses among others are good examples.
But being a stay-at-home mom isn’t a walk in the park contrary to popular opinion.
From personal experience and that of other moms whom she’s had the opportunity to interact with, the few predominant challenges SAHMs face include but are not limited to:
● Loss of identity
● Total financial dependence
● Societal judgment
● Idleness
● Feeling inadequate
● Poor self-care
● Loneliness and unnecessary isolation
● One-income family becomes challenging if the man is struggling to provide financially for the family.
The truth is that being a MOM is a FULL-TIME job for every woman in this time and age. And choosing to become a SAHM is a blessing in disguise. It’s a sacrifice that keeps giving.
Societal influences make this choice a bittersweet experience for most mothers. However, we intend to change the narrative and we’re doing so by telling our stories ourselves. So permit me to ask you, “do you still think stay-at-home moms are lazy housewives?”
Join BusinessDay whatsapp Channel, to stay up to date
Open In Whatsapp
