Featured on Barrons- Juggling Motherhood and a Career: How 5 Financial Advisors Strike the Balance

Mother’s Day is this weekend, and it got us thinking about all the financial advisors who are doing that important work and raising kids at the same time. It is to the industry’s credit that it has made room for working mothers, but still, being there for clients and for growing kids is no easy feat. So for this week’s Barron’s Advisor Big Q, we asked five advisor-slash-moms how they make it all work.

Laura Herrera, financial advisor, RBCWealth Management: I’ve been an advisor for almost 14 years, and I have three children, ages 5, 3, and 1. I feel extremely lucky to be in this industry. Being a financial advisor is a lot of hard work, but we also have a good bit of flexibility. A lot of advisors work within a team, and that allows people to be able to enjoy both working and things outside of work. I have four financial advisor partners, and all of us are very committed to the business, but we all have interests and responsibilities outside of work, and we are able to support and back each other up as needed.

One thing that I heard a few years ago that has really stuck with me is the saying, “Be where your feet are.” That’s something I think about a lot. When I’m at work, I try to be really focused on serving my clients and collaborating with my teammates. And when I’m at home, I try to be present with my children and spouse. I rarely will be on my work phone or laptop before my children are asleep.

It takes a village. I have a lot of support at home. We have a list of sitters who help out a lot. I have a great, supportive spouse. And the culture at RBC is really incredible. There’s a lot of support from leadership and throughout the firm. When my supervisor five years ago gave me the opportunity to serve as branch director, I was honored, but I had some hesitations because I am juggling a lot. I told him that one of my boundaries to maintain work-life balance is that I need to leave at market close each day. Without hesitation, he said, “Absolutely, do what you need to do. You’re the best person for this role and I trust you to get it done however you need to.”

Ashlea Jones, Advisor, Prime Capital Financial: I have three kids, ages 10, 8, and 6. The office is about an hour from home, so I always worry about the day that I get a sick call or something like that and I’m scrambling to make it back in time. I’ve always been self-employed, since before I had my first son. The biggest two things I’ve learned are to stay organized and to not procrastinate. Anytime I put something off until tomorrow is when someone wakes up sick and I can’t get to the office to finish what I wanted to finish. And then be organized. Obviously I can work from home if I need to, but I’ve gotten caught, for example, needing a form that’s sitting on my desk in my office an hour away.

I started building my book from ground zero just over three years ago, so being able to constantly create activity and see people is the priority professionally. My two boys and my girl are all involved in sports, and we coach everything that they’re in. While that comes with a little bit more responsibility, it comes with a lot more control, too. We can set their schedules rather than being at the mercy of somebody else setting the schedules and interfering with our flow. It’s all just a big bucket of chaos that you have to embrace. For whatever reason, I think I operate better when I have more going on. When there are a lot of moving pieces, it forces me to be more organized.

Hillary Stalker, financial advisor, CapWealth: I don’t necessarily think that work-life balance exists per se. I think it’s a sliding scale depending on what season of life you’re in. Every stage of motherhood while working looks different. I have a 10-year-old son and a 7-year-old daughter, so we’re no longer in the daycare phase. One key is just recognizing that it’s never going to be a 50/50 split. I care deeply about my clients and doing a good job in my role here at CapWealth, but I also don’t want to miss anything from my kids. There’s a give and take. If my son has a baseball game tomorrow, that might mean that I work a little bit different hours today to make sure I don’t miss it. I’m also spoiled in terms of family support: I have a very supportive husband, parents, and my sister and brother-in-law, who live nearby.

If I can’t do school pickup because I’m in a client meeting, I know that my kids are being greeted with loving arms by their grandparents or somebody who loves and adores them almost as much as I do, and that helps immensely with the inevitable mom guilt we all feel at times. I’m not the Pinterest mom crafting cute valentines for her kids on a Tuesday afternoon, because I’m at work, and that’s OK. I’ve had to retrain my brain to realize that I can’t be everything to everyone. But my kids know how loved and cared for they are. My kids see me working really hard and achieving something, and that’s important.

Dana Rhodes, chief operating officer, Axtella: The most important thing for me has been setting boundaries. If I wanted to, I could work all day and into the evening. But I was diligent about setting boundaries to be present at home and with my daughter and my husband.

Remove yourself from toxic work situations, because no matter how good you are at separating work and home life, they need to be harmonious. If you’re having an awful day every day at work, it does bleed into your time with your family. It’s one of those things I learned the hard way.

My husband is a great support, but you need a community of support. For me, it has been other moms. You can be a super mom, but if you’re also working, there are just too many logistics to filter through and figure out. So you have to use your community, whether it’s co-workers or friends or your kids’ friends’ parents. And take advantage of opportunities you’re given. My daughter, who is 17, and I are really close. She loves to work out. I like to work out too, but not at her level. But I’ve started to do it because the one-on-one time with her is precious to me. I get to be a part of something she loves, and I like to think she feels like I’m pretty cool for doing it. have great conversations, and so that’s time when I focus on being 100% present. And you get in shape too, so there’s that!

Jody King, director of wealth planning, Fiduciary Trust Company: I joined Fiduciary Trust Company 20 years ago, and worked here part-time, from the time my oldest was born until my youngest went to college. That was one of the big reasons I was able to accomplish what I did. Many of my clients didn’t even realize I was part-time, and the ones that did respected me for it. I tell other women in the business that you have to look at your values, and if a relationship with your children is important, then you need to make sure that happens.

I always say the kids will never remember you were at their soccer game, but they will remember all the ones you missed. And that becomes important as they get older. Every child deserves to feel like they’re the most important to someone, so if you as a working parent agree with that, I think it’s important to make sure they feel that way. I remember when my one son was around age 4, and I was sitting on the floor with my BlackBerry out, and he walked up to me, pointed at me, and said, “My eyes are here, Mom.” That’s cute, right? But it was him saying I’m important. That stuck with me, and I’ve put my phone down many times since then.