Ping @federico_monaco is this topic maybe also interesting for you?
1 Like
Also, make sure your kids can go outside to play:
1 Like
If you are interested and want to join the event comment here. Share your experience or a question regarding childcare for freelancers and remote workers:
When one cannot safely rely on kindergarten, not even on relatives without putting them somewhat at risk, what else is left for parents besides taking turns (if they are lucky to still be together) and ā¦well, working less?
Iāll be curious to see what options we may be missing, and also to ask about the potential bad effects of this blurred work/life space and time on children.
2 Likes
Hi! Iām Ana Catarina Lopes. Iām one of the panellists.
2 Likes
Hi. Iām Vann, one of the panelists today. Iām happy to answer any questions!
1 Like
HI, I am Christian, one of the panelist too. Lets connect and talk about tech and Childcare. In case you would like to reach out please connect on linkedin.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-schmitz-01b7a969/
Best Christian
1 Like
If you are interested and want to join the event comment here. Share your experience or a question regarding childcare for freelancers and remote workers:
Even if I was in a recording booth with a big red light on, they would still come in the room to tell me something pointless.
1 Like
I was on an important video call earlier, and they all burst in, and I gave the casual āwaveā out, but they kept talking, so I gave a stronger wave, followed by a glare, then a mute and a āGET OUT!!ā.
When I spoke to them after they were like ābut we needed to tell youā¦ Cato didnāt have a chocolate this morningā.
4 Likes
Thank you everyone for todays conversation!
there were some great and interesting point raised and lots of topics I would like to continue discussing here:
- Examples for how to set and communicate boundaries @Ine Wilems and @Ana_Catarina
- The positive shift of it becoming more acceptable to have a visible familylive as a professional. @Vann
- Technology for children and how itās role is a different one for this new generation with low entry barrier apps. āwhy a developer decides against a tablet for his/her childā. And if there are other examples of positive applications or uses where you actually feel like your children are learning? And how much screen time do you consider appropriate? @Vann
- Examples of including childcare in coworking @Amparo Fuentes
- How technology can support new living and childcare models? What is beeing developed already? What are those models? What happens if you let your imagination run wild? @C.schmitz
will turn those soon in their own threads and ask some of you to comment on them 
A short summary of the discussion will follow in a few days
thank you for joining the conversation here. sadly it was too late to send you a link to the call. but please tell us more about your experiences with large red lights that are not accepted and I hope the summary will be interesting for you.
Our kid is on 75% of the calls I have when sheās home - at some point she just comes in, closed door or not (it doesnāt lock).
In some way, Iām glad to see peopleās reaction to it. Itās a little bit like looking at how people treat the waiter or staff to understand whether this is a person Iād like to be working with.
Of course thereās also times I need to keep her out, e.g. when Iām giving a presentation or when I need to be super focused because Iām moderating. In those cases I actually block the door with something heavyā¦
2 Likes
Itās a little bit like looking at how people treat the waiter or staff to understand whether this is a person Iād like to be working with.
(Side note: has anyone made a personnel decision based on this? I have. I was in New York meeting the new owners of my SF Gate site and at lunch the guy i would most work with was outright mean, though with a toothy grin, to the nice woman serving us and I made the decision to myself that I did not want to work with that guy. And I didnāt.)
3 Likes
Hey @MariaEuler - somebody has just asked me if they could view a recording of it. Is one available?
Handheld devices are a big no for me. It very seldom happens, and itās never me giving it to him because Iād rather he does anything else but that. Our 2.5yo is allowed 30 minutes of cartoons, on the big TV, and even that stops if he stands too near the screen. I think being a luddite is, in this case, the right thing for small kids.
We are lucky that he is very active and stops caring about videos after a while anyway, and that he likes puzzles a lot so thatās a better alternative for self-entertainment.
It is tricky though, because of the examples we set: with remote work, and myself being possibly mildly addicted to the internet, we tend to spend a lot of time on screens, and he sees that.
And this is when I really miss living in a small village surrounded by hills, woods, and the Tuscan countrysideā¦ Outside we both are much more peaceful, and easy access to nature really makes me want to stay outside as much as possible. Yerevan doesnāt fit that bill Iām afraid.
2 Likes
Thatās really a worry for me tooā¦ especially because she does not understand what we do but only that we are looking at a screen (Just thinking of things like setting a timer while Iām cooking or adding something to a calendar).
I try to think of it in a similar way to other aspects of life, that itās more important to model a behavior (whether itās how much tech to use, or what kind of food we eat, or how we treat others around us) than to police (seemingly arbitrary) ārulesā.
1 Like
I have seen toddlers go into an iPhone, select the photo app, then scroll through the photos by correctly swiping - before they could even talk.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Itās the same scenario in my house.
A couple of weeks ago, I engaged with someone on twitter who raised the issue of employerās perspective on parents as humans. The question was:
Do employers have now a different view of combining parenting and working? We were discussing if the exposure to the āparenting sideā of an employee made companies (managers, HR etc) gain a deeper understanding of the struggles and therefore adopt a more parent-friendly approach.
What do you think?
1 Like