The famous first daughter reveals how she balances both work and family—and is encouraging her employees to do the same.
By Audrey Goodson Kingo , Republished from Working Mother Magazine with permission of the author and publication
Love her or loathe her, there’s no denying that Ivanka Trump makes working motherhood look easy. And that’s pretty impressive considering that, before serving in her father’s administration as assistant to the president, Ivanka was an executive vice president of The Trump Organization—while also overseeing her eponymous line of fashion items. This mom of three stays busy.
And sure, she probably has lots of help around the house, but that doesn’t change the fact that, like all working moms, she wants to spend as much time with her kids as possible while also climbing the career ladder. No surprise then that navigating those competing priorities looks to be a big focus of her new book, Women Who Work: Rewriting the Rules for Success, which hits shelves tomorrow. (To avoid conflicts of interest, Ivanka says she will donate all proceeds to charity and is skipping the usual book publicity tour.) Fortune shared several exclusive excerpts, which largely focus on the challenges of balancing work and family.
Though the first daughter’s admittedly glamorous lifestyle is aspirational at best for most working moms, even her detractors may find themselves nodding along in understanding as she describes her struggles to balance babies and boardrooms. And it’s hard not to admire her efforts to foster a family-friendly work environment for her employees.
And maybe, like us, you'll be fascinated by the snippets that have been revealed so far:
1. She didn’t share a photo of her youngest daughter Arabella publicly until after her first birthday. That's because she worried “being a young female executive with a baby would undermine my authority in the eyes of my colleagues and peers in a very male-dominated industry.”
2. The positive reinforcement she received online from other moms encouraged her to show more of her own experience. “So many people expressed surprise and relief that I was comfortable revealing a more private side of myself,” she explains. “Especially in the first couple of years, I often heard things like, “It’s so inspiring that you’re such a hands-on mom and not intimidated to show that part of you.”
3. Work-life balance doesn’t exist even for Ivanka. “If I am negotiating a major partnership, I might work three weeks straight. If I’m planning a work trip, I know not to book something the night before I leave or after I return because I want to spend time with my family. Then I have other moments, like if one of the kids is sick, that completely change the dynamic of the day (or the week!). It’s about taking a bigger-picture approach and creating a routine that works for you and your family.”
4. During high-stress times (like when she was on the campaign trail for her father), she lets go of self-care and seeing friends. (It certainly didn't show!)
5. She doesn’t usually work from home. Ivanka says during the campaign she often worked from home—which is unusual for her—to make up for the time she was away from her family.
6. She prefers short vacations. “I sprint hard for eight to 12 weeks and then I’ll take a long weekend with the aim of resting and recovering. Taking a traditional week or two off happens much less often, but this routine works well for me.”
7. She doesn’t expect her employees to check their email at 11 p.m. “My team knows that I trust them to make the right decisions about how they allocate their time, and they would never abuse the privilege. They also know to expect e-mails from me at 11 p.m.—and that I don’t expect an answer at that hour, unless they, like me, leave early!”
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8. She announces when she’s leaving to go on vacation or pick up her kids from school. “If a leader sends the message that flexibility is tolerated or even embraced, she creates an honest, supportive work environment in which other people feel it’s acceptable to acknowledge their lives outside of the office, and are inspired to go beyond what’s expected of them to deliver great results.”
9. She used to have a standing weekday lunch date with her daughter, Arabella. “By occasionally bringing my kids to the office, I’m sharing what I love to do with them but also sending the message to my team that I prioritize my family and they can, too.”
10. Arabella has her own mini desk in Ivanka’s office. “She prefers my ‘pink’ Ivanka Trump office to my real estate one, in part because it has a kids’ desk that folds out of the wall, complete with treats, toys, colored pencils and markers.”
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