We are all aware of how crucial strong female role models are today. However, awarded novelist Danielle Steel’s most recent interview with Glamour left us feeling reprimanded and demoralised rather than empowered.
Almost everything contributes to the myth that “moms need to physically do it all,” making many of us anxious and unhappy.
The best-selling author claims that fatigue and the need for a break are “millennial diseases,” despite having published 179 novels and having nine kids. We apologise sincerely. As a Gen Xer who enjoys sleeping, Ms Steel, I take offence at this writer.
Glamour claims that Steel told her son and his boyfriend, who are in their twenties, about the “millennial sickness.”. Her son bragged about how he consistently completes his work on time and how his contemporary workplace provides free food, alcohol, and video games. This irritated Steel, who found it.
They anticipate having fun, she said. To improve your quality of life later, you should work hard in your twenties and for a significant portion of your thirties. I mean, I never anticipated having that kind of life at 25. I simultaneously held three jobs while writing after work. Now everything is guaranteed to be remarkable. “.
Okay, we can see how the notion that “everyone gets a great job with free beer by the age of 25” can be unsettling for people whose lives do not feature such luxuries.
However, Steel’s disregard for sleep offends us because we know she is a mother. We must draw the line at that point. Steelworks 20 to 22 hours per day, claims Glamour.
You did read that correctly, I’m sure. In times of “the pinch,” she will forgo her lazy-ass two to four hours of beauty sleep to work nonstop all night in her cashmere pyjamas.
“Rain or shine, dead or alive, I go to my desk and finish my work. She told the magazine, “I’ll spend a book in the morning and begin a new project in the afternoon.
Wonderful Danielle. I’m halfway through my career, and I’ve never had: A workplace with IPA on tap; a cashmere nightgown; or the capacity to regularly work as a working mother on, say, six hours of sleep per night.
That doesn’t mean I’m a useless piece of trash, though. In addition, Ms Steel, who was watching your nine children while you worked 22 to 24 hours a day? If I may be so bold.
Most people can’t imagine living with nine children they only see for 30 seconds in the morning at the toaster, but if you can have smoke, mirrors, and invisible childcare, that’s great.
Whether or not Steel intended to offend a sizable group of working mothers, she did. These women are attempting to balance caregiving for their kids, ageing parents, employment, household duties, a personal life (ha! ha! ha! ), perhaps a marriage or partnership, and self-care to avoid burnout.
In an interview with Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts about her 2017 book Dangerous Games, Steel admitted, “I’m usually juggling around five [projects] at a time… It’s exhilarating, like jumping through flaming hoops. “.
Sleep and steel conflict. She told Glamour, “I don’t go to bed until I’m exhausted and can sleep on the floor. “A night for me is fantastic if I have four hours. “.
Notably, Steel, 71, chose not to respond to the interviewer’s inquiry about how her advanced age affected her performance. She said, “I want to die face down in my typewriter.”. Damn.
Steel consequently thinks that self-care or balance for working mothers is for snowflakes, just like sleep. Steel only consumes decaf coffee, dry bread, and bitter chocolate bars. And the wailing of women like me, unsure if she is human or a robot.
Depending on how you define “correct,” I suppose you could say that this lady is acting appropriately. After all, she has succeeded admirably in all of her endeavours. She is achieving those standards.
However, she admitted to Glamour that she wished she had “a bit more fun,” which makes one wonder if Steel is deteriorating with age. “Don’t worry, and she’s on it thanks to her Paris shopping and a week off in the south of France, where she claims to have read some books in addition to her manuscripts.
No way, no how would I want Steel’s way of life and path to success for myself, celebrity and fortune aside. Is that something other working mothers—any mother—should aspire to?
We sincerely do not think that. But you do you. Since inadequate self-care and lack of sleep are well-documented and established flaws, they should be avoided whenever possible.
Burnout happens, people. Also natural and vulnerable is mental health. Too many people would be perilously close to reaching rock bottom on this rigid self-imposed routine. Although Steely Steel attests to its effectiveness, leading a work-centred lifestyle has too many risks.
I beg you, I won’t, and I hope my mother-friends will too. Since both my bed and my kids are calling. I can finish it tomorrow after work, even if it means I’ll never appear on the list of the New York Times bestsellers.
