Juggling your career and having a baby

Six months ago, my life changed forever.

Now, I’ve been through a lot in the past six years since graduating college: relocating to D.C.; starting my career in a new city with no professional network, moving in with my significant other; getting married to said significant other; becoming a puppy parent…twice!

All that being said, nothing comes close to the lifestyle changes I’ve experienced since our child entered this world.

But rather than ramble on for the next 500 or so words about how great it is to be a parent and how my son is the best (as any parent is always tempted to do), I wanted to share my perspective on the things I’ve learned about being a dad and juggling a career. Hopefully anyone else considering making the leap in the future can take away a few pointers.

Teamwork is vital. In life and work, this one is fairly obvious, but that shouldn’t take away from the importance of the lesson.

Society is quick to point out the significance of the mother’s role in the development of children. After all, it’s often the mother that receives several weeks to even months of maternity leave to bond with the child in the early stages of their lives.

However, from my perspective as a father, I can tell you it’s a lot for one person to handle. Mom needs help. Even Ryan Reynolds will tell you that.

Dads, be prepared to change diapers, cook dinner, run out to the stores at all hours of the night (the 24-hour Harris Teeter near my house got to know me on a first name basis during my time close by).

And finally, don’t be afraid to look to your co-workers for help when you’ve got your hands full. My wife works a full-time job, too. Sometimes that meant me working from home unexpectedly when she had an important meeting. It was nice to rely on the team at Social Tables to conference me in for meetings and help out at customer events when I wasn’t able to make it. It certainly takes a village.

Be Flexible. Children are completely unpredictable — whether they pick up the latest bug going around at daycare or wake you up several times at night because they don’t feel like sleeping. Be prepared to have your life turned upside-down. But, there are steps you can take in advance to stay productive at work.

1. Bring your laptop home from the office every day. This is general good advice whether you have a kid or not. You never know when the Metro will decide not to run or in my case, your son has a 102-degree fever.
2. Sleep! Another general piece of advice that can have a major impact on your life. Until you’re getting much less of it, you never know how the consistent lack of sleep can impact your productivity at work. Recent studies have shown how important it is for your health.
3. Adjust your schedule. I was never an early-to-bed, early-to-rise kind of guy, but that quickly changed when I had my son. Daycare closed its doors at 6:00 PM every day. In order to accommodate, I was able to work with my boss to shift my hours to 7:30 AM to 5:00 PM so I could make the trek from the city to Alexandria in time to pick up my son — sometimes barely in time (thanks D.C. traffic!).

I could go on and on about the things I’ve learned since becoming a parent, but it’s also important to note that every child is different. Your situation will probably be different from mine.

But whatever your situation is like when the time comes, this I can promise you: your life will change forever. And you will never be happier.