Balancing work and motherhood remains a challenge for many women. It’s a demanding double shift that often seems impossible to manage. The challenge is even greater for those who are entrepreneurs, as the care for their business becomes symbolically maternal, and their rest time is even less. Those who live in this reality recognize that it’s impossible to get it right all the time, yet normalizing failures remains a dilemma.
This is because self-imposed and societal expectations about motherhood remain intense. There is a cultural expectation that women should naturally be multitaskers, always available and emotionally stable, even in the face of extreme fatigue and daily dilemmas. This constant pressure contributes to anxiety, guilt, and physical and mental exhaustion. For many, the feeling is one of guilt: ‘When I was working, I felt guilty for not being a mother, and when I was practicing motherhood, I felt guilty for not working,’ shares the businesswoman and co-founder of Capital Concreto, Mariana Menezes.
Mother of 4-year-old Lara, Mariana reflects on balancing her responsibilities. ‘It’s a process of self-discovery. You need patience, organization, and flexibility to meet all demands and understand that despite all efforts, at some points, mistakes will happen. And those mistakes don’t define us as professionals or as mothers.’ Leading one of the top real estate and financial development companies, the entrepreneur also states that, while she values her work, her daughter always comes first.
She recalls that when Lara was born, the company was undergoing significant expansion, requiring her full-time presence. ‘Capital Concreto was in a growth phase, and Lara was still under a year old. At many moments, I truly felt and believed this was a limitation. That remains true even today—sometimes I really can’t be present because she needs me. This has made my relationship much lighter today, not that it’s easy. What I’ve learned as a businesswoman and mother is that now I know my priority. I know where others can do what I do and where they can’t.’
The life of a mother and the journey of an entrepreneur intersect especially when it comes to responsibility, leadership, and resilience. In both spheres, important decisions must be made daily, unexpected challenges managed, the growth of others nurtured, and emotional presence sustained despite exhaustion. In many ways, being a mother is like entrepreneurship—investing time, love, and energy into a project you want to see grow with security and autonomy. Similarly, leading a business demands dedication, planning, and constant adaptation, values also fundamental in motherhood. This overlapping of roles shows that despite the challenges, there is a unique strength in women who take on both, building bridges between affection and strategy, between care and management.
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