“A child will ruin your dream career.”
“You won’t be able to get a degree with a child.”
“Maybe you should drop out and work minimum wage for a couple of years.”
These are a few of the things I was told when I announced my pregnancy as a junior in college. I know I am not the only one who experienced discouraging words when announcing one of the biggest blessings in life. I have spoken with other moms who have endured the same negative comments and even celebrities like Cardi B, Beyonce, and Kerry Washington have been shamed because of pregnancies that others believed would cause harm to their career.
Those who speak negatively on a woman’s career after a pregnancy announcement may have a point as to why they think this way. Did you know?
- Less than 1 in 10 students with children complete a bachelor’s degree within 6 years of college entry
- 61% of women who have children after enrolling in college fail to finish their degree, which is 65% higher than the rate for those who don’t have children
- Unplanned births account for nearly 1 in 10 dropouts among female students in college, and 7% of dropouts among college students overall
With statistics like these, no wonder people see the birth of a child as a career death sentence! Among unmarried young women (age 20-29) nearly 70% of all pregnancies are unplanned according to The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. This means that there are a lot of young moms in our communities who seem to be losing motivation due to the birth of a child.
I want to change this. I really believe it can be changed!
I started a #MotivatedMomMovement to encourage young parents not to give up after an unplanned pregnancy but to instead use this blessing as motivation to go above and beyond what you had previously envisioned for yourself.
Before I had my son, I honestly didn’t care what I was going to be when I grew up. I just knew I would have a degree from Clemson and would go back to my hometown and work. But after having Romeo, a change occurred within me. I became motivated.
Some may see the birth of a child as the end of a woman’s life but I saw it as the beginning of mine. Romeo gave me this sense of motivation that I could no longer be average, that I had to be EXTRA in every single way possible because I was now a mom.
I had someone looking up to me.
I had someone depending on me.
I had someone to make proud.
Motivated Mom is a movement stating that young mothers who experienced unplanned pregnancies will no longer let the statistics, stigmas, and history define their road to success. Motivated Mom is a community of women, mothers, and catalysts. Our hopes are that moms everywhere will begin to see the birth of their little ones as motivation to achieve more, to “go harder”, to be successful, and to do the impossible because they are now motivated by this human being created specifically for them.
Please join us in this movement by posting a picture of you with your blessing using the hashtag #MotivatedMomMovement and pledge that you will not settle and that you will succeed at all costs because failure is not an option when you have a little one looking up to you!
Read more of Georgina’s contributions to AllMomDoes here.
