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A Fond Farewell to Working Parents Readers

Posted by: Lauren Young on November 24, 2009

This is a week to give thanks-and to say goodbye.

After six years at BusinessWeek and four years as a lead writer on this blog, I will be leaving BusinessWeek on Dec. 1.

Working Parents was started by my colleagues Amy Dunkin, Anne Tergesen and Toddi Gutner, based on the conversations we had about our families-usually on Monday mornings. Since the blog’s launch in January 2006, we’ve been successful in our mission to “lead a broad discussion of the issues and day-to-day concerns of working parents, offering up interviews with work/life experts, examinations of relevant research, and personal accounts of bouncing between separate, sometimes conflicting worlds.”

Some of my favorite posts How Mac ‘N Cheese is Like a Cigarette and Honoring a Wonderful Life were written by my colleague Cathy Arnst. A post I wrote on The Motherhood Penalty went viral. And I constantly refer back to an interview with Leslie Morgan Steiner, author of Mommy Wars.

I feel especially appreciative that I was able to ride the BusinessWeek train for as long as I did. I’m also thankful to McGraw-Hill, which owned BusinessWeek for the past 80 years. The corporation has a commitment to work-life issues, incredible benefits, and an impressive women’s network. A flexible work schedule kept me sane during the past five years. In addition, my BusinessWeek managers and peers were especially supportive during a rough period when my son had seven surgeries. For that, I am eternally grateful.

I’d also like to thank the other bloggers out there who keep the conversation alive. Special shout-outs to Cali Williams-Yost, Marci Alboher, The Sloan Work and Family Research Network, The Families & Work Institute, The Juggle, The Motherlode and countless other thought leaders out there.

Although my time at BusinessWeek has come to a close, I’ll be blogging about parenting issues and work-life topics in the future on MommyTracked. You can also find me on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Have a happy, healthy Thanksgiving.

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Reader Comments

Katherine

November 24, 2009 11:10 AM

Lauren, I'm sorry to see you go! I've really enjoyed your posts and look forward to seeing you over at MommyTrackd.

Marcia Stepanek

November 24, 2009 11:31 AM

Lauren -- Thanks for an incredible run and fabulous insights. You'll be missed, but best of luck with MommyTracked. I'll be reading!

Marcia Stepanek
http://causeglobal.blogspot.com

Cathy Arnst

November 24, 2009 12:52 PM

You will be missed more than you know Lauren. Readers should know that you didn't just write for this blog--you kept it going when writer after writer got laid off or left, recruited new contributors, and always came up with insightful posts. You were also the party organizer par excellence in the office, and the cheeriest person on the floor. All while doing TV appearances, writing about personal finance, contributing to other blogs, and raising a great kid. I don't know what we'll do without you.

anne tergesen

November 24, 2009 01:54 PM

Lauren,

I miss our daily conversations about the work/family juggle/struggle. I will also miss your posts on this blog and your presence in the magazine. Someday (soon, I hope!) we will have to work together again.

Lourdes

November 24, 2009 02:10 PM

Lauren,
As Cathy said, you kept the blog going. You were our engine and our cheerleader. We'll manage. We'll improvise. In work as in parenting, that's what we do. But you're leaving a huge hole.

Toddi Gutner

November 24, 2009 02:58 PM

Hey Lauren, I ditto everything Cathy said...and to add one more important thing you did for everyone: you always had time to help others ---when I left Businessweek three years ago, you generously offered to pack my office which which stuffed with 11 years of story files, books and the like...and if that wasn't enough, you hooked me up with several of my current ongoing journalism gigs that make up the foundation of my contract writing/editing work. So, as I mentioned to you, let us all return the favor. I'll be reading MommyTracked.

Aviva Goldfarb

November 24, 2009 03:31 PM

Lauren, I always love reading your columns, tweets, and other post, and will follow you wherever you lead.

marci alboher

November 25, 2009 12:01 AM

Lauren,
I'm not even a parent yet your voice and your ability to find the universal in all moments of work and life always got me over to this blog. I'll be following you on Twitter, MommyTracked and wherever else you go. And in this new journalistic frontier, I hope that we can collaborate one of these days. Thanks for the props on my work. It's a joy being virtual colleagues with you.
-- Marci


Candice

November 25, 2009 08:59 AM

Lauren, as a journalist and a friend, you're top-notch, and I'll follow you on MommyTracked (a regular read for me already) and in life forever!

Karen Corday

November 25, 2009 11:40 AM

Lauren, Working Parents will be very much missed, but I'm looking forward to MommyTracked!

Leah Ingram

November 30, 2009 01:12 PM

So sorry to see you go but glad we'll stay in touch via Twitter et al.

Anne Newman

November 30, 2009 01:50 PM

Lauren, what will Working Parents be without our hardest-working parent? Thanks to your encouragement and tireless leadership, our parenting blog has always ranked well among BusinessWeek's more business-oriented blogs. Just like a mom, you picked us writers up and patched us together during life crises. Your steady cheerleading, social networking savvy, and extensive sources helped ensure that we've been very much a part of the parenting conversation. And you made it seem so effortless while, as Cathy said, remaining the cheeriest person on the floor, caring for everyone else, and producing top-notch journalism. It's impossible to describe how much you'll be missed.

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About

In this blog, BusinessWeek’s Cathy Arnst, Diane Brady, Anne Newman, Mauro Vaisman, and Lourdes L. Valeriano, lead a broad discussion of the issues and day-to-day concerns of working parents, offering up interviews with work/life experts, examinations of relevant research, and their personal accounts of bouncing between separate, sometimes conflicting worlds.

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