It's Ok {not to be perfect} Thursday

We interrupt this regulary scheduled link up for an important message: It's ok not to be perfect!

I had lunch with my aunt yesterday and she brought me an article from last week's Newsweek. The article is written by a former Harvard Business school professor, and current president of Barnard University. Debora Soar wrote: Why Women Should Stop Trying to be Perfect.

Powerful. Insightful. Right. As a 29-year old married, professional woman I have felt the pressure to do it all and do it all perfectly on my own. How many times do we stress about being the perfect mom, wife, sister, daughter, career woman? And how often do we stress about doing this all with perfectly coiffed hair, pristine manicure, and dressed to the 9's? But who's to blame? Media, men, ourselves?

I agree that women still struggle to make it in a man's world. We make $.77 to their $1, we head less companies, lead fewer firms, and have yet to become President. We still reach high, but inevitably hit the glass ceiling. Yet, we are worried about taking the mommy-track, ostracized for missing recitals, plays, and the like, other women bully us for not taking enough time off for maternity leave (hello anchor on channel  4 this morning who said Yahoo CEO should take more than 2 week because "she can afford it") I mean, come on! Support one another. Champion women. What happened to good old-fashioned commraderie amonsgt women? The quilting bee, the neighborhood carpool, the coffee klatch?

The point is: we cannot do it all, and its ok. (Think Sarah Jessica Parker in that movie whose name escapes me at the moment). We don't have to choose between career and family, but we do not have to put such pressure on ourselves to do all of it perfectly.

Read the article. Comment. But get the message out there. As women we need to support each other and stop teaching our daughters that you have to be Everything-Barbie.