Embracing Motherhood is the theme for Hong Kong Momtrepreneurs in 2020. We have invited our members and partners, either mothers or not, to share their own stories of #EmbracingMotherhood.
Hear from our member, Amy Kwan, her thought and experience on Motherhood:
Q: Although you are not a mother, what have you learnt from motherhood that helped you at work? Or the other way around?
A: Patience! I can imagine being a mum, patience is the first prerequisite. No matter in what stages, from baby to child to teen, as a mum, you do a need a lot of patience to handle / deal / communicate with your kid. People always say fishing is the best activity to train one’s emotional strength in patience. I would think being a mum in fact gives the best training! If you can handle your emotions, be calm and patience as a mum, I am sure you can handle any situations in a workplace.
Q: How does the identity of mother connect with their role in the workforce?
A: Everytime when I meet new people, I can kind of tell if he or she is a parent from their interactions and conversations because usually, I would not say a 100% but most of the time, parents tend to be more caring and understanding, and would generally put family first. I once had a senior at work, she definitely was a workaholic in everyone’s eyes. And then her world had a 180 degree change after she has her first child, she started to slow down with her work, took time off for her family and most importantly, she encouraged the junior members of her team to spend more time with their family.
Q: What are the common traits you may see between a mother and a working professional?
A: I think there are quite a few, but the most related ones are caring for others, persistency and integrity. Regardless of which field you are in, you will be dealing with people, internal or external, and caring for others are very important, be it your colleagues, customers or partners you are working with, just like a mother cares for her child. Persistency in dealing with challenges at work, just like any challenges in raising a kid, from child to adulthood and even after that, is also what you can relate to work. And finally, integrity.
Doing the right thing and hold yourself in high integrity, for your own business or the company that you work with, just like a mother doing all the right things for the sake of her children.
Amy Kwan
Q: Tell us a fun fact about yourself in relation to your unique experience of #EmbracingMotherhood.
A: This has to be the feeling that I have during the first moment when I hold a newborn baby! It was an intriguing experience and the funny thing was, the baby felt so fragile on hand that I was so worried that I would “break” the baby! And through that experience I can also feel the power of motherhood, and each and every mother in this world definitely deserves an award! I think the feeling of having the baby inside your body for 10 months, and giving birth, is an experience, no offence to all fathers in the world, that is only unique to all mothers which is unexplainable by words.
Q: In a single word, what is Motherhood to you?
A: Challenging.
Unlike a business, a child is an individual who has his own thoughts and feelings. I cannot dictate his way, whereas as a founder, my business can change its course as a result of my decisions. This is what I am also learning to cope with.
Q: As #EmbracingMotherhood campaign unfolds, which topic(s) would you like us to cover in relation to this theme?
A: How to balance motherhood and career.
Stay with us to hear more #EmbracingMotherhood stories and continue supporting us on Hong Kong Momtrepreneurs’ Moms Take Off campaign. Stay tuned.