Becoming a parent is an incredible adventure for all those that decide to undertake it, and juggling work with family time isn’t always easy. At Empatica, from its Startup beginnings to its current growth and Series B funding, we have had the privilege of witnessing many of our employees become parents for the first time while taking on challenging responsibilities both at work and in their personal lives. As we celebrate these joyful events, and we love considering the children of our Empaticans a part of our extended family (our so-called Empa-babies), we know how important our support is in this critical stage. For this reason, we aim to make sure that we can offer the best conditions for our Empatica parents to thrive, always.
This year, our Empa-babies did an excellent job in re-designing their parents’ job roles in Empatica for the occasion of Father’s Day. You can read their amazing contribution in our blog post Celebrating Father's Day: A child's perspective on Dad's work. For Mother’s Day instead, we’d like to give visibility to one of our Empatica Moms, as she recounts her experience with us and shares some amazing tips on how to manage her work and family time.
Diana has been at Empatica for roughly 5 years. She is the mother to 2 beautiful kids, a girl and a boy aged 6 and 2, and she is a valued member of our Customer Happiness Team.
So Diana, can you walk us through a typical day in your life at Empatica?
Yes, so my day is pretty packed! Especially if there are events at my kids’ school but I have learned to manage everything quite efficiently by planning ahead and setting alarms, I have many alarms! In the morning I will bring my youngest kid to the kindergarten, it’s about 45 minutes away from home and then I rush to get back home to start my work day. The time I take to return is somewhat unpredictable but with our flexible work schedule and a team that has my back, I know I can get things done. I’ll then get busy with my work tasks, allowing for focus time and meetings to fit well within my calendar, and twice a week I will go for a swim during my lunch break to keep active. I found that exercising is crucial to keep me healthy - both mentally and physically and I encourage all mothers to fit some form of physical activity into their schedule. Once my work day is over I will pick up the kids from school and I plan to do at least one activity together. We have quality family time until it’s time for them to go to bed, after which I have some time for myself.
How has Empatica helped you in creating a good work-life balance?
First of all, I find that the definition of balance is very personal. What works for me might not work for others, but for my own balance, Empatica was a great support in many ways. For one, I was able to move from a full-time contract to a part-time contract after the birth of my second child. This was so helpful for me as I was having a hard time managing my kids' needs during my previous work hours. This was also facilitated by a job rotation and changing my tasks and responsibilities to meet the needs of my team. I'm also grateful for the flexible work hours, that allow me to tackle any unexpected and unpredictable events in my life without too much stress, and with kids, there is always something unpredictable. And of course, the environment and all Empaticans that will not really mind if my daughter suddenly jumps in the frame of a zoom call.
Also being able to extend my health insurance to my family, and even my Gympass account, is amazing.
What are some skills you used at work that you could also apply in your home? Or vice versa skills you acquired as a Mom that you now apply at work?
For sure Delegating: before having kids I felt that I could do everything on my own, I was very self-sufficient and even at work I would take on many things, sometimes more than I could handle. Motherhood taught me that delegation is important! And just like I have my husband, or even my kids, take on tasks at home, I’m now able to recognize my limits and use the support of others also at work.
Another is Organization: with so many things on my plate, work-related and personal I had to up my organization skills otherwise, I would go crazy. I plan my work calendar very carefully and even have a shared calendar with my husband for everything family-related.
And of course Empathy: working in customer support I have learned a great deal about putting oneself in other people’s shoes, understanding emotional states, and responding with Empathy. I exercise this every day at home with my kids, remembering that they are so young and prone to very strong emotional distress.
What is your favorite Empatica family moment?
Having had the possibility last year to bring my kids along to the summer retreat in Sardegna was an incredible moment. Not only was I able to participate and enjoy all the team-building activities with my colleagues without the stress of having my kids miss me at home, or missing out on them, but also seeing them actively integrated into the company's final event was priceless.
Are there some tips you’d like to give to other working Moms?
Give yourself grace. It’s tough juggling a job and a household! Never compare yourself to other moms on social media or blogs that do it all. Sometimes it’s ok to leave the dirty dishes in the sink for one night, you don’t have to be perfect. Know your priorities and give yourself a break from everything else.
And be present. Allow yourself to focus on tasks and be fully present at work during the day, and allow yourself to be present with your kids when your working hours are over. Have a clear distinction between the two and avoid overlaps as much as possible.
Thank you, Diana!
We hope Diana’s words might be useful to inspire any working mom out there struggling to balance work and life in their day to day. And for everyone else, don’t forget to hug your Moms or caregivers today. They deserve it!
Happy Mother's Day from Empatica!