Fatigue, nausea, aches and pains, endless doctor appointments at inconvenient times and restrictions on travel – a pregnant woman is hardly the employee of the year… Or that’s how I’ve been feeling at least.
But has pregnancy really made me a worse employee? My first reaction was “yes probably” but then I started thinking. Worse than who? Worse than me before pregnancy? On which day?
Memories grow sweeter with time and it’s easy to think that before pregnancy I was some sort of a superwoman – never tired, always energetic and motivated, mentally and physically on top of my game. But thats’ not exactly how it went.
I’ve been consistently working 11-12 hour days for years now (not to mention the business travel). Some months are particularly stressful in our cyclical business. On top of that I was training 5-6 times a week while trying to maintain some sort of a social life. Of course all of this was by choice, so I’m not complaining, but just telling it how it was. It would be fair to say I was tired a lot. I didn’t get sick often but yes, sometimes I’d have a cold or something worse and would need to take time off work or at least wasn’t working on full capacity. Sometimes I might have troubles in my personal life (heartbreak, illness in family etc) that’d have an impact on my focus and drive at work. All this is normal!
When I first moved to London you might think I was the ideal employee: driven and ambitious with a clear objective to make a career and prove myself to myself and others. With no family nor boyfriend and only a few friends I would have minimal distractions and nothing to rush back to after work. The flip side of the coin was however that since my career was everything to me, I felt I was under extreme pressure to excel. I had given up so much to be working in the City in London – fail and it would have all been in vain. I would argue I’ve never been at my best when under a great stress, although I have surprised myself in certain situations (read: CFA exams).
Fast forwarding to present. I’m well settled in London, I’m in a stable and loving relationship and have good friends to turn to for support when needed. I am still motivated to push my career forward but it does not mean everything to me. Love and health and family do. That being said, starting a family and planning a house purchase are big financial commitments and suddenly my career is also about financial security.
From my employer’s perspective I am a much more loyal and committed now, when I am no longer free to just pack my bags and move to where the grass would seem greener at the time. I believe I’m also a more stable and rounded as a person now and overall stress less, which in my case results in better performance.
Sure, feeling the baby kick in the middle of a meeting was definitely distracting (but oh so lovely!). And yes, I’m not physically at my peak at all times but who is anyway?! And pregnancy is only temporary!
A happy employee must be more valuable to an employer in the long run. It’s a win-win situation 🙂
xoxoxo,
Sini