Oversight or exclusion?

I came home from work last week and was excited to find the latest issue of Working Mother magazine in my mailbox. I like curling up with the magazine after a long day at work, flipping through the pages to find tips to help me balance my work life with everything else I do.

I rush through my evening and put my kids to bed. I plop onto my bed and start reading.

An article titled, “Secrets of Powerful Women,” catches my eye. Eleven moms are profiled, giving quick little anecdotes of how they made it to where they are.

Now, of course all the women featured are over 40 or close to it. Working Mother caters to a certain demographic – the average reader is 39 years old. But most of these moms had their kids in their mid-to-late 30s. So what kind of message does that send, especially as the average age of the first-time mom still hovers around 25? Will you only have a successful career if you spend your 20s childfree?

One mom in the article had her first child at 18 and then another at 23. Today she is 41 and she is a vice president at Metlife. I want to hear more about her. Was she still in high school when she had her eldest son? How did she juggle having a newborn and managing college courses? What was her biggest challenge at work? That inspires me.

I’m a 24-year-old wife and mommy of two. I have a full-time job managing the social media strategy and website of a large corporation. It is not easy, but I make it work and I am always looking for people to inspire me and keep me going. Where am I supposed to look for examples of women who have similar lifestyles?

I live my life believing fully that young moms can be professional women. We are incredibly driven. We are smart. We are passionate about creating a great life for our kids and ourselves.

We do not have to be stuck in lower-paying jobs with less prestige. We can climb the corporate ladder and we can thrive there.

We just need people to pay attention.

Tara is the mother of two beautiful toddlers. Read more about her life as a young mom over at The Young Mommy Life.