Single Working Parents
Being a single working parent is no easy feat, and is almost impossible to overcome if you have children and are not married. As much as you would prefer not to be that working mom or dad whose never home, you have to provide for your children.
Single working parents make up a larger percentage of today’s families than you might think. According to a report released by the U.S. Census Bureau in November of 2009, there are approximately 13.7 million single working parents in the U.S. today. The study also found the most common characteristics of single working parents are as follows:
- Around 84% of custodial parents are mothers
- 34% of those mothers have never been married; 45% are divorced or separated; almost 2% are widowed
- Of the 16% of single working parents who are fathers, 56% are divorced or separated; 20% have never married, and fewer than 1% were widowed
- Almost 80% of single working mothers are fully employed; 90% of single working fathers are fully employed
- 27% of mothers who are single working parents live in poverty; only 19% of single working fathers live in poverty
As you can see, if you are a single working parent you are not alone. There are countless support groups, daycares, and websites available to help in the struggle you come against every day with finding a proper work life balance between being a mother and a father to your children, as well as a breadwinner.
All of it put together and put a strain on your mental and physical health, as well as your personal and work relationships. Therefore, although there are plenty of articles and blogs in our working parents resources section, we will cover some tips for single working parents here.
Tips for Single Working Parents
Don’t ever think you can take on the world on your own. Not only do your kids need you to help support them mentally and physically, but you need to stay mentally stable at your career, and if you are drained both of these aspects of your life will falter.
Use our tips on keeping a good work life balance as a single working parent:
- Develop a support network – Finding a support network of like-minded individuals is crucial for your family’s development. This network can include your close friends and families, or even other single working parents you’ve found online.
- Schedule alone time – Being alone allows time to unwind, reflect, and meditate. It is extremely important for you to take time out of your busy and tiring lifestyle for time by yourself… and we don’t mean when you’re alone in the car driving home from work! Find time to read a book, sip tea, or garden.
- Be present with your kids – Make sure that your time with your kids is just that… time spent with your kids. Make sure you are not working on something for your career, either actually or mentally, when you are with your kids. Being emotionally present will make your time with your kids mean more. And trust me, your kids will notice.
- Pay attention to your physical health – It is no surprise if you feel more drained and tired now more than you ever have before in your life. Pay attention to this feeling of exhaustion and fix it! Make the extra effort to eat healthy foods and choose energizing ways to fuel the body, like taking a walk at lunch time and make sure you get enough sleep!
- Focus on the positive – This is a time of immense growth in your life. Think about the challenges you’ve experienced, and how you’ve overcome them. Take pride in what you’ve overcome. This will not only empower you to take on more challenges, but will provide your children with an example of how to overcome challenges.
