Working mums are an age-old business


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I've found a new label to add to how I describe myself: mumpreneur. Part of a growing business lexicon addressing the ways women choose to engage in the marketplace, it's a novel way to describe the age-old trend of women who have children and then find employment that works in tandem with their new family responsibilities.

Today, a mumpreneur is more specifically a woman who has given up her corporate career to have children, and while on maternity leave or after giving up her job to stay at home, she starts her own business.

It's a rather cheesy descriptor that plays on the cutesy aspect of mummyhood, rather than on the serious business of employment and economic activity. So while I applaud the recognition of the trend, does our nomenclature really have to make women's employment into something fluffy and not like real work at all?

It makes us working mothers less threatening to "real work", and firmly stamps the "mum" part of our activities as our primary definer. "Mumpreneur" reinforces the notion that "work" is only for men, and "family" is for women, and that the two do not overlap.

The mumpreneur phenomenon is hardly surprising. Corporate structures are proving too slow for women to rise up and succeed, and they do not offer women the flexibility they want in the way they manage work and family. In practical terms in many countries there is a lack of quality affordable childcare. In terms of social acceptance it means women don't have to deal with the judgemental attitudes that are applied along with the label "career woman". Who talks pejoratively about a "career man"?

It is increasingly popular to be a work from home mum as I am. For me it is the best (and in some ways worst) of all possible worlds. I enjoy my work, and the finances are certainly helpful. I get to spend time with baby, especially while she is so little. And it means that when she is older and goes to school I will have kept my hand in the labour market. My time is utterly optimised. I wish I had known how to be this efficient before motherhood.

While being a working from home mum is enjoyable, it's demanding too. Suitable jobs and understanding employers are rare. It's challenging working from early morning until last thing at night between the mental demands of work, the physical and emotional resources required for childcare and the strain of normal domesticity.

But there is something about this type of work - whether it is a business that is entrepreneurial, or simply the style of work - that is necessary for modern women, as well as extremely fulfilling. The flexibility of arranging work and family as best suits both is a gift. It is unbelievably satisfying to be able to use so many of your own skills, and to successfully achieve your own personal, employment and family goals. I love being able to write a presentation in the morning, do a radio interview at lunchtime, and then spend the afternoon reading alphabet books and running around the garden with my toddler, teaching her the names of flowers, or how to water plants.

I celebrate the recognition of this path that women are forging for themselves, it's fantastic that they are throwing out convention and shaping their lives as they wish. But I don't think it's as new as the novel name suggests. Many of the grandmothers I know had their own businesses when they were mums. I'm just glad we've found their wisdom in our own era.

Shelina Zahra Janmohamed is the author of Love in a Headscarf and blogs at www.spirit21.co.uk

Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut

Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”

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Teaching your child to save

Pre-school (three - five years)

You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.

Early childhood (six - eight years)

Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.

Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)

Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.

Young teens (12 - 14 years)

Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.

Teenage (15 - 18 years)

Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.

Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)

Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.

* JP Morgan Private Bank 

THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick

Hometown: Cologne, Germany

Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)

Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes

Favourite hobby: Football

Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk