Something new ...

About a month ago I decided that I'm going to embrace the corporate experience in its entirety.  For years (10 years to be precise) I have been struggling with the corporate establishment - engaged in this push and pull - trying to be a rising professional star, while at the same time being a star mom.  Yet, if I had to be honest with myself, I could admit that my professional "best" has always come with resentment (because of what it took from my kids) while my mommy best comes with feelings of joy and accomplishment (most of the time).  The irony is that the things my professional best give me - i.e. the ability to live in a beautiful home, in a great neighborhood and to send my kids to private school - should never be taken lightly or disregarded.  

This is the reality that made me sign up for golf lessons with a friend about a month ago.  Off we went, two weekends in a row, to Olney Golf Park for what have turned out to be very fun lessons.  Then, to make it better, we went to practice one Saturday morning because my friend lives on a golf course in Bethesda.  To my great surprise, I'm LOVING it!  What's not to love - quiet time, with no-one calling and asking me to do anything and I'm not even breaking a sweat.  The only competition while you're out there perfecting your swing, is You!  How do you make the next shot better than the one before - that's it!  Of course, the thought occurred to me one Saturday morning that anytime men are all over something, women should jump right on it because chances are, we're missing out when we don't.  In this case, we miss out both the down time AND the professional opportunities that the game lends itself to.

The irony here is that I started off with the intention of not having to decline the next golf invitation that came my way. I have now accepted that career growth requires a mastery of both technical proficiency and effectively working the social space. And to be honest, there are some special challenges when working that space as a black woman who also happens to be a mother.  But in the process, I have found a space for myself that I quite enjoy - one where my family can join in the fun sometimes, but one where I can be tranquil and reflective. So here's to my new discovery ... let me know if you want to join in sometime - I promise you just might like it!