I thought I could juggle motherhood and a promotion at Amazon. A turning point made me reevaluate everything.
The author reflects on her experience balancing motherhood and a demanding job at Amazon. Initially feeling successful, she soon realized the toll her work was taking on her family life. A turning point came when she noticed her daughter's distress at daycare, prompting a reevaluation of her priorities.
- ▪The author joined Amazon as a senior user experience designer while on maternity leave.
- ▪She initially tried to separate her work and motherhood, avoiding discussions about her child at the office.
- ▪As her job became more intense, she found herself increasingly distracted from her family responsibilities.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
The first time I interviewed at Amazon, I was still on maternity leave. Loading audio narration... I remember feeling prepared but nervous about the whiteboard exercise. I worried that when I stood up to draw boxes and arrows, my shirt might ride up and expose the elastic waistband of my maternity pants, revealing how recently I'd had a baby.When I joined Amazon as a senior user experience designer in April 2019, my daughter was 5 months old, though I sometimes padded her age to colleagues to make her seem less like a liability. I dropped her off at day care on my way to the Seattle office, determined not to let being a new mom define how people saw me at work.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Business Insider.