The clock chimes at 5 A.M and you jump out of bed. You head to the kitchen and fix something before rousing the family members from their deep sleep. You then ready the kids so that they are in time for the first trip of the school bus. You then serve some breakfast to your significant other before he departs for work. You prefer that couch by the window so you will sit there and check emails, bang some responses, schedule meetings and probably call some prospective clients. The nature of your work dictates that you spend more hours in meetings than you do changing diapers. So your days will be spent in board meetings convincing investors, wooing clients and networking. The face that leaves home in the morning glowing with confidence returns home tired and saggy from a hard day’s work. You’re a modern mum. You love your family. You work hard. You never say cheesy things like ‘I am ever busy’ or ‘I rarely spend time with my family’. You try to strike a balance between your career, family and health. It’s sad that the weight of those responsibilities is wearing you down.
In this light, Intel East Africa in partnership with Lenovo and @supamamas organised an event for working mamas who secretly wish they had supernatural powers to multitask effortlessly. Being a mums’ affair, much was obviously said but here I will highlight what really stood out from that event that took place last Saturday at Radisson Blu Nairobi. Intel, runs the Intel® She Will Connect program which is aims at empowering millions of women to connect to a range of new opportunities through technology.
Online safety
The online space has greatly opened up and lots of activities take place there – good and bad. There’s virtually no end to the amount of info you can take from the internet. From do it yourself videos to tutorials even on how to chop onions and recipes. As a parent in the digital era, you want to be fully aware of what goes on in there. You spend a great deal of time online – learning, downloading stuff or just surfing the robust virtual world. In this era, kids also get or can access gadgets that are able to access the internet. They lock themselves up in their rooms and browse unlimited pages on the web. But how safe are the both of you? For instance, do you access your accounts using free wifi that is open to the public? How sure are you that there is no hacker in range to access vital information which should not be accessed be strangers? Your kids, how safe are they online? Do you monitor what they do without necessarily making them feel like you do not value their privacy? Cases of cyber bullying and cyberstalking, fake identities among others can adversely affect your kids which will make them become withdrawn. Every so often, take time to understand how your kids are fairing. You can set time where you get off your gadgets every day and engage them on how to use technology safely and find out if they have encountered anything suspicious while online.
Work-life balance tips
As aforementioned, the modern woman is not a sit-at-home-and-wait-for-the-hubby-to-provide kind of a woman. She is empowered and she will want to contribute to the family kitty as much as the man is doing. She has many things she want to do for the wellness of her family and still have time for a téte-á-téte, exercise, chamas and a bunch of other things. Striking a perfect balance so that all these activities seamlessly fit, may require that learn how to schedule your activities so that you have time for everything. Basically, have a plan. Here comes the Intel-Lenovo partnership.
Sleek devices
The introduction of sleek devices in four different modes (300, 500,700 and 900 series) marked the height of this themed event. These devices-Yoga laptops-have specs that make them sophisticated yet fun to operate. From being convertible to being portable to having lightning fast processors, they are versatile and can be used for various activities. They are beautifully slim and to fit in your bag which means you walk around town without much hassle. The Lenovo’s Yoga series of 2 in 1 laptops, tablets and ultrabooks are convertible machines that will help you multitask when handling the different areas of your life be it at home or at work. You can use them as a laptop, tablet or prop them as a stand so that you operate easily. They are therefore the device of choice for women who want technology that helps them strike a work- life balance.
