Turinys
They are called the “mompreneuses”. During their pregnancy or at the birth of one of their children, they have chosen to create their own business or to set up as independent, in the hope of reconciling professional and personal lives more easily. Myth or reality ? They tell us about their experience.
Laurence’s testimony: “I want to see my daughter grow up”
Laurence, 41, childminder, mother of Erwann, 13, and Emma, 7.
“I worked for fifteen years in the hotel and catering industry. It was there that I met Pascal, who was a cook. In 2004 we had Erwann. And there, we had the joy of discovering that there was no childcare solution for parents with atypical schedules! My sister-in-law helped us out for a while, then I changed lanes. I took a position as line manager at La Redoute. I could pick up my son after school and enjoy him on the weekends. In 2009, I was made redundant. My husband also arrived at the end of a cycle and after a skills assessment. Verdict: it was made to work with children. The idea of setting up a house of childminders then quickly imposed itself on us. After the birth of our daughter, we took a local and we started. We had a good day: 7:30 am-19:30pm But at least we were lucky to be able to watch our daughter grow up. We were much happier. We bought a bigger house and reserved a part for our work. But working from home doesn’t only have advantages: parents recognize us less as professionals and feel allowed to be late. And our daughter, who has always known us as childminders, does not accept seeing us take care of other children. I hope she will eventually realize how lucky she is! “
The expert’s opinion: “A lot of moms fantasize about working at home. “
Starting a business certainly gives more freedom and autonomy, but certainly not more time. For the money to come in, you have to invest fully and not count your hours! “
Pascale Pestel, Head of the professional support consulting firm Motivia Consultants
Ellhame’s testimony: “I find it difficult to discipline myself”
Ilhame, 40, mother of Yasmine, 17, Sofia, 13, pregnant with her third child.
“I started my career in finance. For more than two and a half years, I managed the commercial animation of the international subsidiaries of a large group. As I often had to travel abroad, it was my partner who took care of the family logistics. And then, in 2013, I rebuilt my life. It made me wonder about the meaning I wanted to give to my life at the dawn of my 40th birthday. Even though I had a very attractive job, I understood that it was not enough for my development, that I wanted to devote more time to my children. So I started training as a naturopath with the ambition of practicing in private practice three days a week, and the rest of the time, to offer natural medicine boxes via the Internet. But finding myself alone at home overnight is not easy. First, because I no longer have anyone to challenge me. Secondly, because I still have trouble disciplining myself. At first, I forced myself to shower and dress every morning as before, and I worked at my desk. But that did not hold… Now, I invest the table of the dining room, I interrupt my work to take out the dog… I will have to be more rigorous if I want to succeed in raising my son who is to be born very soon. For the moment, I am not considering a type of childcare and it is out of the question for me to become an employee again. “
When the child helps us change our life …
In “her life before”, Cendrine Genty was a producer of TV shows. A hectic professional life, in which “when you leave at 19:30 pm, you are asked if you have asked for an RTT”! The birth of her daughter, when she was 36, will act as a revelation: “It drives me crazy to have to ‘choose a side’: my job or my child. Cendrine decides to change her life and work differently. She sets out to meet French women and discovers women, like herself, torn between their professional and family lives. She then created “L se Réalisent”, a digital and event-driven program that supports women in their professional retraining. The touching (and strangely familiar…) testimony of a woman in the midst of a rebirth. FP
To read: “The day I chose my new life” Cendrine Genty, ed. The passer
Elodie Chermann interviu