How corporate women can balance work and family

Mutesi Jackline of Kimironko, is a typical 21st century woman, she owns and runs three hardware shops around Kigali, yet she has a family to attend to also. “My life has become as stressful as hell, many times am torn between attending to children, house chores, maintaining a strong relationship with my husband and extended family, and yet a demanding work schedule waits,” she reveals.Family and business are two very important aspects in anybody’s life; therefore the ability to juggle the two may be a heaven sent attribute. Phillip Rwigiro, a business consultant with Nziza consult notes: “Focusing on family should come first since the ability to keep everything going in a business largely depends on a solid foundation at home. Having a stable family also inspires one to work harder since they obviously have a feeling of purpose.”Angelique Uwikizeye, a supermarket owner in Kabuga Town and mother of five, shares that it’s important to build a team both at work and home, since, one is probably the coach of both teams, it may be necessary to plan and let respective members get details early enough so they know their particular assignments and start working on them immediately.“Before I leave home for work , I make sure that the maid and all my children know their particular daily chores. I also do the same with my partners before leaving work, so when I come back and find undone tasks, I know who to hold accountable,” she adds.Keeping work at work and vice versa ,may be a good alternative, for example, worrying about domestic problems while at the office may affect ones productivity, in a similar way, finishing reports or responding to work related emails from home, may bite into the time one is supposed to spend with their family.“It’s always necessary to hire an assistant at the office who can handle the little emergencies, enrolling your children in day care centre or recruiting a baby sitter may also come across as a clever move, as these enable one strike a balance between the two fields” notes Uwitonze kamariza, a counselor with Twese clinic in Kabeza.Sharing the rewards of business success with the family is also a fine strategy to reinforce the work and family dynamic one has established. Whether it is a financial reward (extra allowance or purchasing something that has been wanted for a while) or emotional reward (spending more time doing fun stuff because the bills are getting paid) let the family share in the fruits of combined efforts. On getting rewarded, they will be more motivated to support the business. In conclusion, sometimes when things don’t get done its important to forgive one self, since balancing the two is obviously not an easy assignment. However, it’s always prudent to be alert and willing to assume responsibility for any of the tasks that need to get done at any time. Getting too comfortable too may become detrimental.