How to be a working parent? Lower your standards

0:00This is Ira Glass.

0:01On This American Life, we tell stories about when things change.

0:04Like for this guy, David, whose entire life took a sharp, unexpected, and very unpleasant turn.

0:10And it did take me a while to realize that it's basically because the monkey pressed the button.

0:15That's right, because the monkey pressed the button.

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0:24You're listening to LifeKit from NPR.

0:29Hi there, I'm Marielle.

0:31I'll be onboarding you today.

0:34Welcome to your unofficial orientation to working parenthood.

0:37Now, lucky for you, I'm not going to send you down to the front office to get your ID photo taken, and you don't have to get a laptop set up with IT.

0:44But if you open your welcome packet, you'll see that you have your work cut out for you.

0:49Going from worker to parent to working parent is no small task, especially if you're making the transition soon after your baby is born, as a lot of us in the U.S.

0:58do.

0:59What people are doing is they're learning two new roles really fast under a lot of pressure with lack of sleep and zero guidance and zero support.