Family roles can significantly impact the career development of different people. Chapter 10 discusses various issues that affect the professional growth and work-life balance of women and men. In particular, there are two family systems: one focuses on the career, and the other prioritizes childcare, which makes parents change their work schedule accordingly. This information helped me realize that I value a career-centered system of work-family balance and will try to succeed at work despite many complicating factors. For instance, I will discuss and equally distribute family roles and responsibilities between my partner and myself.
Besides, the information from the chapter will improve my understanding of family roles and relationships while working on-site. I believe that childcare is not only the mother’s responsibility but a crucial task of both parents. A woman often works a second shift after working on-site and performs most of the household tasks (Chung & Van der Lippe, 2020). However, this approach should not be normalized as it limits women’s professional development.
My partner will have a life-career approach similar to mine; namely, they will aim to share responsibilities equally and efficiently. In my view, teamwork and equal opportunities are central to a successful work-family balance. This perspective will affect how I work by helping me focus on my career achievements without sacrificing them due to childcare. Besides, my partner and I might need to use daycare services. In that case, we would need to earn enough money to afford them while covering all other expenses. Overall, it is essential to be aware of issues with work-family balance and prepare strategies to solve them.
Reference
Chung, H., & Van der Lippe, T. (2020). Flexible working, work-life balance, and gender equality: Introduction. Social Indicators Research, 151(2), 365-381.