By today's standards, it's laughable to think of vacuuming in heels and pearls. Mrs. Cleaver always looked more like she was going to a business meeting than going to clean the kitchen. She could pull a roast out of the oven with nary a hair out of place. I admire that.
My cleaning days start with a debate over whether I should take a shower or not. Makeup or no makeup? Wash hair or leave it in filth? Stained t-shirt or sweats?
I don't see June debating such things. I think she got up and prepared herself for business. You gotta respect a person who takes her job seriously enough to dress for success.
I recently had to upgrade my standard (work outside the home) job attire from jeans and tennis shoes to slacks and heels. My projects have taken me into corporate settings, so I've had to start paying more attention to dressing appropriately for an office environment. A couple of times I've felt completely underdressed, and therefore less intelligent, than when I've been confidently poised with just the right accessories.
And I've noticed something else along the way. People respond differently to me when I look professional vs. just another mom-turned-business woman. They take me more seriously.
It's got me thinking about how I approach my "business" here at home. When I get up and put on my tattered, stained t-shirt and sweat pants, I'm much more likely to curl up on the couch for a nap than tackle the next thing on my list. I feel a little listless and depressed. Maybe I'm not respecting my job as Mom/CEO of the home like I should.
Worse, maybe I'm not getting the respect I deserve from my underlings and my business partner (aka husband) when I look like I just crawled out from under a rock. After all, they aren't going to take me any more seriously than I take myself.
Sometimes I've used the "oh, poor me, I don't even have time to take a shower because my life is so difficult with these kids" card to try and make my husband feel sorry for me. He's off having glamorous business lunches while I'm here in the trenches with the urchins. It has rarely worked.
It's always worked better for me to try and go for the Cute Look....well, as cute as you can look with spit-up on your shoulder, but you know what I mean. I'd love to have him come home and think "Wow! My hot wife is working hard for us!" And even if I have to TELL him how hard I'm working, at least I'll look good while lowering the boom.
So I picked up a couple more "Perfect T's" at Old Navy, and I'm throwing out a couple of my old, gross shirts. For 8 bucks a top I can go from Bag Lady to Cute Mom, and that's Money Well Spent. In about 8 minutes, I can throw on some makeup and go from Scary to Not Half Bad, and that's Time Well Spent. It's surprising how little effort it takes to look and feel a lot better about my job here at home. I might feel less inclined to park myself on the couch because I look so professional.
Hey, I might even put a roast in the oven.
Thanks for the inspiration, June.
