As it turns out, as soon as I told my boss he couldn’t have been happier for me on a personal level and more supportive of me on a professional level. Together we worked out a plan for my cover and the training of my replacement which was digestible and manageable and kept any stresses I had about the process to an absolute minimum. We recruited together and found a brilliant cover for me who we got in weeks before my Maternity Leave was due to start so there would be plenty of time to train her up. No stress and no worries, until that is I complicated matters by having my little girl a month early right at the start of my last week of handover, leaving my poor successor with a few things we hadn’t covered. But even me kickstarting my Maternity Leave with a bit of a bang didn’t phase my team, it was all taken in Acuity’s stride and I was left to not worry about work at all but to focus on a whole new fast track training programme, how to be a parent!

Maternity Leave was the steepest learning curve I have ever dealt with and whilst it is rewarding beyond comparison it can leave you a little battle worn too, even with a wonderful Husband helping every step of the way. Thanks to a few keep in touch days and regular messages and well wishes from my team, going back to work wasn’t a thing of dread for me as it is for some mothers. That said it was still daunting for several reasons, mainly worries over how my daughter would get on with nursery and the sadness and guilt of leaving her behind but also, if I’m honest, daunting in the sense that I genuinely didn’t know if I was up to the job any more.

Being a working Mother can make you feel that rather than doing a great job at any one thing you are doing half a job of everything and that feeling is something that I certainly beat myself up with during the initial few months of my return to work. My colleagues and my boss however could not have welcomed me back in to work anymore encouragingly, my boss even shared an article with me on how parenthood has so many transferable skills to the working life, embracing employees that are parents and the new skills they may have acquired that can add to your business, rather than seeing new parent’s, particularly new Mothers, as a little checked out. This attitude, whilst you would hope is common, is really not, and to know that Acuity looked at Maternity Leave and becoming a parent in general, as something that could boost my performance in work, rather than hinder it was utterly refreshing and wholly reassuring. In fairness, if you can successfully negotiate weaning a child on to solid food without losing your cool, tackling a tricky work dilemma will be like water off a duck’s back, or more accurately spaghetti out of a Mum’s hair.

I felt, and still feel in fact, that having a child was my choice and that my work life should not be affected, after all I am paid to do a job, regardless of any choices I make in my personal life. The reality of being a working Mum however blurs that stoic idea more than I thought and hoped it would as sometimes your family simply needs you more than your work. These days are kept to an absolute minimum, but life happens, and you need to become an expert organiser, knowing exactly where you need to be and what you need to do every minute of the day to make sure everything is getting done and everyone is getting what they need out of you, family and colleagues alike. This can be a lot to juggle and feel like an awful lot of pressure but having a work environment that supports you makes it a damn sight easier.

Since returning to work at Acuity I have embraced the challenge of getting back to the day job, and my team at Acuity have helped this infinitely, without even really realising. At work I am not Mum, I am Sarah and I have a job to do and a team to work with, a team that is 70% female incidentally, and a work ethic that encourages its employees to give their best in work to get the best out of it and it’s a balance that works brilliantly for Acuity. When I am at work I give 110%, but if something happens like a sickness bug striking on the bus on the way to work (joy of joys!), and I need to go be Mum, there are no eyebrows raised, no eyes rolled and whilst this doesn’t stop me feeling guilty, it makes me feel supported. In return, though it is not asked, I make sure that every I is dotted, and every T is crossed in my role, the same way I did before I was a Mum and between us we actually do achieve a balance.

This week, more than usual, the balancing act of being a Mum and having a career has been well and truly tested, and I’m sure they will be my fair share of similar weeks to come. But the comfort of working for an organisation that values its employees, full stop, regardless of whether they are parents or not, male or female, just on what you bring to the table and whether you perform your job and supports you to do the best job you can, is totally invaluable. This particular Business Manager, Female and Mother feels that she has just about got the hang of this tight rope but enjoys knowing the safety net is there if something happens to shake things up.