did not know what I wanted to be when I grew up and in my heart I wanted to be home with my babies, for awhile at least. I wanted the opportunity to further my education before choosing a career path. Money and childhood beliefs of success kept me at work.I am thirty-two years old now. I am very close to earning my B.A. degree and I am finally in a position at work where I feel I can move forward.Looking back, I realize several things. First, being I had always worked at low paying jobs, and not having a formal education, I should have dedicated those ten years to my children. I now know the value of devoting time to raising children which I will discuss later. Now that I am divorced, I see I gained very little by working all that time. I have to work now and I do enjoy it very much. However, given the opportunity to raise my children full-time, I would. BALANCING CAREER AND FAMILYDual Career Couples. The average young couple planning to continue working after marriage does so for the most altruistic reasons. Their employment is a cooperative venture which will help the marriage financially and socially. There will be no more "your money" and "my money". Sharing and decision-making will be mutual and equal. But as human beings, they are subject to the frailties of people. One major threat to any marriage is competition. Competition between couples is a natural by-product of today's concept of marriage as a partnership of equals. While striving for mutual closeness and togetherness, young married's are also struggling for individuality and trying to develop themselves as persons. In the book Marriage and Families, author Essie E. Lee states that one noted sociologist feels that two growing selves will certainly be more competitive than a merged pair, in which one person (usually the wife) probably did most of the merging.According to Marriage and Families, different kinds of competition within a marriage include:...
