Lou’s story

I have always yearned for a village. People to tell me “it’s ok” and “you’ve got this”. 

My Mum died when I was 17. It was an extremely lonely time. I missed her most when I had my own babies, Sasha and Zoe in 2016 and 2017. There were so many moments when I thought “I wonder if my Mum stroked my cheek like this” or “I wonder if Mum felt this tired all the time!”

As a young adult, I was someone who wanted a big career. I dreamed of walking around the Sydney CBD in a pinstripe power suit, talking on a Nokia 5510 to important people. 

In 2007, while I wasn’t in a power suit or talking on a Nokia in George St, I landed a dream job in digital media sales and have had the privilege of working at several global media/tech companies since. 

When my babies came along in 2016-2017 things changed. I realized it was going to be hard to continue my career in media sales at the same velocity with two of the most precious gifts entering my life. 

I returned to work after 18 months of maternity leave in 2.5 years. While I wanted to get back into working again, I had battered confidence and never, ever slowed down. It was a constant, never ending marathon of trying to prove myself at work and also be a mum who was there at dinner and bath time - and everything in between. 

I felt lonely at work. I wasn’t myself. 

At the time, I would need to leave the office at 430pm every day to collect my babies from day care (my husband is a shift worker). I would sneak out of the office. Leave my jacket on my chair. Without a goodbye, I'd swiftly get up and leave. I was afraid if anyone saw me they would question my work ethic and say “Half Day, Lou?”

This isn't that long ago. I am certain there are still working parents today who feel guilt, fear and loneliness when they take on caregiver responsibilities. Sometimes even today I feel torn between work and family. 

Now with some media companies mandating 3 to 4 days in the office coupled with a high pressure economic environment, there is increased pressure for working parents to do it all - and if you can’t prioritize work, someone else will. 

If we lost all parents in our workforce what a great loss that would be. 

I personally, don't want to do it all as a working parent. I want to thrive. I want to be a great Mum and a great employee and Leader. 

I have a real desire to help others thrive too. Especially Mums.

We need more Mums coming back to work after parental leave feeling engaged and inspired. 

We need more women in senior leadership roles - in 2022 only 19% of CEOs in Australia are women and to do this we need more dads taking on shared caregiving responsibilities. We also need employers to encourage and support working parents by offering compassion, flexibility and non-gendered parental leave as a basic requirement. We need our employers to help us thrive!

In 2023, when Lauren and I thought about creating The Village I did it because it's what I needed and what I wished I had. I want a village. I wanted (and still want!) to hear other parents say “I have been through that and did this” or “let me tell you how I made it through that time”. But I couldn’t find one.

So here we are. Lauren and I have created The Village for working parents in Media. Finally, there is a place for working parents in our industry to connect and share their stories. It is a community built on connection, that will give working parents the confidence and resources they need to have the career they want and be the parent they desire. 

My mum, Jeannine, and me when I was 10 months old.  I don’t have many photos (or memories) with my Mum and this photo is one of my favourites.

Surviving the madness of 2 under 2.  My maternity leave was NOT a holiday