There’s a lot of talk about “power moves” in leadership: commanding meetings, negotiating salaries, launching ventures. And then there’s the other kind of power move - one you won’t find on LinkedIn or listed under #bossbabe hashtags:
Getting two small humans dressed, fed, and out the door on time…every day.
No applause. No awards. Just a cold cup of coffee and the slow, deliberate mental inventory of who’s got what, what’s in the lunchboxes, and whether you actually brushed your own teeth.
I’ve lived both sides: the corporate boardroom and the school run. I’ve worked in high-pressure leadership roles and I’ve navigated the mental load of motherhood. And let me tell you - the second one? It’s the real MBA.
Not the glamorous kind with business-class flights and networking mixers. I’m talking about the kind where you learn strategic prioritisation, emotional intelligence, crisis leadership, and system creation on the fly - often with someone yelling about a missing sock in the background.
It’s easy to label this kind of life as “dull.”
Predictable. Repetitive. Unseen.
But here’s the truth:
The so-called dull parts of motherhood built my leadership edge.
Everyday motherhood looks ordinary. But beneath the routine lies a masterclass in leadership.
Tactical Prioritisation
Forget colour-coded spreadsheets - try triaging a morning where the baby’s nappy explodes, the toddler spills milk down their shirt, and you have a Zoom call in 12 minutes.
Motherhood forces you to make rapid decisions. What’s urgent? What can wait? Where’s the leverage? That’s not chaos - that’s executive function in action.
Strategic Delegation
Running a home isn’t a solo mission (or at least, it shouldn’t be). From partners to kids to support networks, mothers learn to delegate - and fast.
You figure out who’s good at what, how to communicate clearly, and how to let go of perfection so that things get done. That’s team management. That’s scalable leadership.
Crisis Leadership
Plans fall apart. Emotions run high. Someone always loses a shoe.
And yet, you keep going…adapting, calming, deciding.
Mothers don’t avoid crisis. We lead through it.
The same skills apply whether your toddler is melting down in the supermarket… or your team is navigating a restructure at work.
Emotional Intelligence
This is where motherhood quietly forges some of the best leaders on the planet.
Understanding non-verbal cues. Regulating your own emotions while helping someone else regulate theirs. Communicating clearly under stress.
These aren’t soft skills. They’re power skills.
And they’re some of the most in-demand leadership traits today.
So… Why Don’t We See It That Way?
Because society doesn’t know how to value the invisible.
It celebrates output, not unseen labour.
It rewards noise, not nuance.
And frankly, because “dull” is easier to swallow than “deeply skilled.”
But just because something looks ordinary doesn’t mean it’s not exceptional.
Just because it’s unpaid or unglamorous doesn’t mean it lacks power.
And that’s why I speak - and coach - the way I do.
I want women, especially mothers, to stop shrinking their stories.
To stop calling their skillsets “just life experience.”
To start owning the strength it takes to live in the mundane and still lead with heart, humour, and vision.
How I Started Turning the “Dull” Into Strategy
My own turning point came when I negotiated a full-time leadership role into four days.
Not because I wanted to do less. But because I knew I could deliver more strategically.
I’d learned to lead with focus.
To cut the fluff.
To communicate clearly.
To balance the needs of different people.
To protect my time and energy so I could show up as a mother and a manager.
And it worked.
I led a team that hit its KPIs. I had capacity at home.
And I felt - for the first time - like I was living in alignment.
That was the moment I stopped seeing my motherhood as something I had to work around.
And started seeing it as something that worked for me.
You Don’t Have to Be Loud to Lead
The beauty of the so-called dull is that it shapes you quietly.
You don’t even realise what you’re building until the moment you need it.
But here’s what I want every woman reading this to know:
If you’ve ever kept a household running through exhaustion…
If you’ve ever shown up for others when you were running on empty…
If you’ve ever balanced logistics, emotions, and expectations without applause…
You already know how to lead.
You just might not be positioning it that way…yet.
The Bottom Line
We don’t need to glamorise the grind.
But we do need to stop underestimating the everyday.
Because it’s not dull.
It’s discipline.
It’s deep leadership.
And it’s time we gave it the respect - and recognition - it deserves.
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