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A Balancing Act: Tory Johnson, CEO of Women for Hire

As a new mother, I am always amazed by how certain women appear to handle it all with seamless finesse. It would be great to learn their secrets! I figured that my friend Tory Johnson would be the ideal subject for the first Modern Mom column dedicated to balancing work and family. Tory is not onlyGood Morning America's Workplace Contributor

Samantha:

Your work has you dealing with countless job seekers, putting you on the front lines of the work life balance issue. Have you noticed any changes?

Tory: In the last several months, women have become more vocal in their desires for flexibility, from the ability to telecommute to arranging a compressed work week.

We're questioning why work has to be the traditional 9 to 5 model and we're forcing employers to recognize new ways of realizing high productivity and reduced turnover. This is a great thing for employers, employees and society.

Do you have any tricks for avoiding the feelings of guilt that plague so many moms?

Somewhere around my fifth or sixth business trip after becoming a mom, I realized that feeling guilty about not being home 24/7 is a downer with no redeeming qualities.

I forced myself to snap out of those bouts with depression and instead focus on establishing some kind of compromise so I could honor my kids and my career.

I can't go on every field trip or attend every class event, but I can definitely establish compromises with my kids.

Any examples?

I'll share two of my favorites.

My daughter's class had a performance planned on a day that I knew I'd be out of town.

I asked the teacher if I could attend a dress rehearsal.

Even though I was the only mom who missed the real play, I was also the only mom who got a sneak peek during the rehearsals, which made both my daughter and me feel great.

Another time, my son's class was going to the Statue of Liberty, a trip I couldn't chaperone.

I promised to take him on the ferry to Ellis Island so he could teach me everything he learned on the field trip.

He was thrilled because it meant two visits!

How do you make sure your kids feel like they get time with you every day?

Our family always eats dinner together-even if we're running late.

The four of us recently saw Akeelah and the Bee and it inspired a brand new tradition in our home.

After school, both kids look up a word in the dictionary-from something they heard at school to a word they point to on the page-and write it on an index card with the definition.

We share it over dinner and then tack it to a huge bulletin board.

It'll take several months to fill up and we'll have learned many new words by then!

It's a simple task, but the excitement and memory will be everlasting.

How do you handle traveling for work? Do you have any pre-trip rituals?

When they were younger, I'd hide little packages in various parts of the house and then I'd call and tell them where to look.

We'd be on the phone and they'd discover a fun treat in a drawer or at the bottom of the closet.

As they got older I ran out of hiding places!

Now we get through the trips by planning in advance something fun to do together when I get home. This could be a movie, a manicure, bowling, or any number of activities.

It helps the time pass quickly because we eagerly anticipate what's in store for us.

What careers do you see as the best for working mothers?

More important than the specific career choice is the company choice.

Working moms can do anything-from science to sales.

But they can be happy and do it well when they're working for a company that really gets work/life balance.

If you won the lottery, would you continue to work?

Absolutely. I'm lucky that I love what I do and there's way too much unfinished business to just give up because my bank account grew.

I'd just wear much nicer shoes to work, and perhaps stay in fancier hotels while on the road.

If you had an extra hour each day how would you spend it?

As selfish as it sounds, I'd spent it on a shoulder and neck massage-every single day!

I rush in and out of my manicure each week and my mini indulgence is a 15 minute shoulder massage while I'm there. If I could extend that with my husband getting pampered too by my side-it'd be heaven.

To see how Tory is changing the world for working women visit womenforhire.com and read her weekly column at Good Morning America's website at gma.abcnews.com.

Samantha Ettus is a new mother and the creator of The Experts' Guide series. Her third book, The Experts' Guide to the Baby Years, a collection of chapters from the 100 leading parenting experts, will be published by Crown Books in October, 2006. You can learn more at www.expertsmedia.com Comments? Email Samantha at

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