Let’s be honest. When we built Adland, pregnant women, working mums and family life in general weren’t really drawn into the blueprint. The mad pitch deadlines, the late nights, the working weekends, the anti-sick-day culture, the mid-week booze sessions... It’s a bit at odds with the life of a new parent. 

The good news is that there are certainly positive signs that the industry is shifting culture to ensure that, when they have children, droves of talented women don’t walk out the door in search of something more suitable, flexible… (Cue: “I think I’d like to go client-side”…). In short, having a baby doesn’t mean the end of your hard-fought, much-loved advertising career.

Just like working parents in any other industry, it just takes willingness, endless energy, sharp organisation skills and a strong support network to make it work.

So what can you do if you are having a baby and work in advertising?

Carefully build your support network

Ask any working parent and they’ll tell you that the key to their working success is their support network. Support in the form of the other parent, the immediate family, paid childcare – those resources you call on to steady the juggle of working life and looking after a baby. But crucial to your career success is identifying your supporters in the workplace – the boss who will enable you to get out on time, the team colleague who will work alongside you to ensure that a child’s sick day isn’t detrimental to your project, the client who will be willing to flex on meeting times to ensure you’re able to be present. It takes clear communication, along with building a strong rapport and trust with these people, to get the flexibility you need as a parent, especially in a client-serviced based industry like advertising.

Ask for advice

While the numbers are not as high as we’d like, there are still plenty of parents in leadership positions in Adland. Reach out to mentors in the industry who have managed to combine babies and careers, and ask their advice. I was lucky enough to have a working mother as my agency GM when I first returned to work. She is the definition of a superwoman and still an incredible mentor I can turn to for both career and life wisdom.

Define your working parametres and work to make them happen       

In going back to work, you will probably have a clear idea of how you want to make the juggle work. Be that part-time days, working from home or set working hours. You will also probably feel strongly about maintaining the boundaries between the home and the office. If being home to put your baby to bed is a must for you – you need to commit to making that your reality. If weekend work is something you can only do in exceptional circumstances, you need to lay the ground work so that this is possible – getting it done in the week, making it known to people when you really can’t be on call for anything but urgent items. Drawing these boundaries and doing the hard work yourself of adhering to them will help you achieve the balance you’ll be happy with. 

Be realistic

Leaving the office for childcare pick up at 5pm may be your necessity but you need to be realistic and expect that some days you will need to be available for work, calls and email after hours. If you are working in a part-time capacity, you may miss some critical meetings on your days off, or find yourself dialling in to be there. The reality is that advertising doesn’t suddenly become a normal 40 hour a week job for you after you have kids. The key to flexible work in advertising is the give and take of flexibility - being flexible yourself along with asking for flexibility from your agency.

Check in with yourself

Amidst the ‘busy-ness’ of life in advertising as a parent, and the reality of mortgages and bills to pay, you might forget to assess your happiness. It’s important that you stop now and then to make sure that you’re still enjoying your work. If you are struggling to make the balance work, it might be time to consider alternative career moves. For me, it was the birth of my second child and the ensuing madness, that made it clear to me that I did need something different and more flexible than advertising while my kids are young. Reaching out to recruiters at this point can be really helpful – while you’re busy juggling, let people like us do the hard work in helping you find a job that uses your talent in a new and rewarding capacity. 

So congratulations on your pregnancy! Rest up and eat well – you’ll need the energy. Know that with the right support and some careful planning, you can achieve the best of both worlds.