Recently I was introduced to Twitter and quickly became smitten with the notion of hyper-relevancy and hyper affinity.  Take the “sound byte” and put it to good use – ie, collaboration.  As a newbie to social media, I have been fascinated by the direct correlation of success to openness.

I met my husband at work – from our earliest moments together we spent no less than 18 hours a day together.  In fact, when I decided to leave where we worked- he actually thought we might run out of things to say to one another.  We just did so well – working side by side – but those times were over and we adjusted to a married life with children and two very different work patterns until a few months ago.

I used to simply find a tremendous relief when I found a Starbucks…a warm place to grab coffee and work on my laptop.  Then they discovered the idea of strategically placed outlets so my laptop wouldn't run out of power.  Unfortunately I haven't quite figured out how to ask them to lower the music or the volume of the cappuccino machine if I have a phone call scheduled.  Of course, rainy days and seats by the door in the winter are not ideal but it still works.  Also, I suffer from perpetual curiousity and I can't help but eavesdrop on what everyone is working on. Net-net – Starbuck's logo has become the McDonald's arches for me in terms of what I can expect – a place to go where I can be comfortable and  do my work for hours without worry that I'm not welcome.

I am the youngest of 4 kids and remember quite clearly the day my mom went to work.  I was 8 years old, and my dad put the backdoor key on a string and I kept it around my neck.  My siblings made sure I walked to school safely (and of course a solid distance away from them so I wouldn't embarrass them) and got home as well.  My mom checked in everyday at 4:00 and she and my dad were home by 6:30.  I remember feeling a bit sad in the beginning as many of my friends still had their moms– but this quickly became familiar and happy family routine – and we were always together for dinner.

My kids have only known me as a working mom. And recently I've noticed how my children have become flexers in training!  Below are a few examples from this week-

Next month I’m turning the BIG 4-0…I can’t say I’m very “zen” with it – not because of my actual age – but that everything around me seems to be “shutting down” at a time when my world should be “opening up.”

In January 2007, our au pair arrived – we were both dazed ….she from jet lag and one week of orientation in NYC, which I was sure included plenty of nightlife and I in shock that some person was coming into my home. I mean – did she even really know how to take care of kids???   I was no stranger to child care – after all my daughter was in daycare at 6 months.  But I’m a business owner – never one to even think I’m a qualified stay at home mom – so work was a must.  Ironically, my company focuses on work-life/flexibility solutions!!

by Robin Roschke, CTO and COO for FlexPaths
Recently, I had drinks with a co-worker and we were commenting about the incredible length of the Democratic primary. But after we vented about our own particular views - we did circle back and take notice that a woman and an African American were running for the Presidential nomination.” To think that 40 years ago, African American youth were attending separate schools and women were only supposed to be teachers and nurses. I think I've been so caught up in the detail statistics (and the price of gas) that I neglected to take notice of just how far we have come.

We have more options and choices today on EVERYTHING. Both sides of the work-life equation have a tremendous number of variables. Every day is a rebalancing act requiring that each of us have an incredible sense of honesty about our personal vision/aspirations to even get started.