Emma Thompson

I love being a mum to my two little boys, and I also love my job! Being able to be a great mum and progress in my career at the same time is something I am super passionate about and working part-time is key to helping me achieve this. It is a constant juggle but there are a few things that help me manage the day-to-day:

• By far the most important has been finding a way to fairly divide the mental load of running our household with my husband (gamechanger!). We are super deliberate about who owns what tasks and knowing that if a tasks is yours it's not just the 'doing' but also taking on all the thinking and planning involved too
• There are always lots of balls in the air, so knowing which ones will bounce and which ones are glass really helps me prioritise what's really important
• Having really clear boundaries around available hours and communicating these with your team is key, simple things like turning off notifications helps me to resist the temptation to check emails when it's times I want to be really present at home

Being a part-time working parent is a real challenge but it's also super rewarding, and important to me, to set an example to others for a different and sustainable way of working in the season of life I am currently in!