Value your time regardless of role

A few days ago I saw a message on Twitter that garnered some very strong reactions. A Kenyan (presumed male) asked why a young woman with no family and a great career has a live-in house help.

Predictably, most respondents were female and questioned why women should not have the freedom to do what they want to do with their time, or money.

This dynamic becomes even more murky once women have families.

They are expected to feel guilty about going to work instead of staying home with their children. Or for staying home with the children instead of bringing home some income. It’s a no-win situation. They are also expected to spend their (most if not all) free time grocery shopping, cleaning, tending to their children, carrying out routine household tasks.

The gender dynamic

And while society dictates how women spend their time and guilts us for making different choices, the same does not apply to men – they are free to do as they wish with their time. If they choose not to do any household or family-related tasks, so be it. But does this not send the unintended message that women’s time is much less valuable than men’s and that their choices less important, while at the same time pushing the guilt dynamic, as if we did not have enough judgment to deal with?

Household hacks

I personally believe in doing everything possible to make the running of my household easier. Doing things such as storing boiled grains and pulses in the freezer, using a pressure cooker, creating a menu and cleaning schedule for live-in helps reduce misunderstandings and back and forth and makes for better planning.

Invisible work

Do you know what invisible work is? It refers to the roles that society has become blind to because it is so pervasive and is traditionally considered to belong in the female domain.

Housework, child rearing, roles that do not ordinarily attract a fee because they are not normally priced are all examples of invisible work. While in certain developed jurisdictions allowances are received say, by women who stay home with the children, this does not apply to the African continent.