Twenty-two months ago, I walked away from the relentless pulse of the marketing and communications industry and into the uncharted chaos of motherhood. Deadlines became nappy changes. Strategy sessions turned into 3 a.m. nursery rhymes. Canva decks dissolved into pureed pears. I became a mum, and the woman I’d spent 18 years building, the high-achiever who thrived on the industry’s hustle, began to unravel. As I wrestled with who I was becoming, the industry grappled with its own reinvention, artificial intelligence rewriting the rules of creativity and connection. Like me, it faced the question of how to evolve without losing its soul. My story is personal, but it’s also a mirror for a marketing and communications industry that’s overdue for a rewrite, one that makes space for those of us who dare to redefine success.
The collapse of certainty
Motherhood didn’t just slow me down; it shattered my sense of self. Sleep deprivation was a thief, stealing words mid-sentence, blurring days into weeks, and leaving me stranded in a fog of anxiety. My career, once a cornerstone of my identity, felt like a ghost. I’d stare out the window during endless contact naps, my son’s warmth anchoring me, and ask: Who am I when I’m not delivering, achieving, performing?
I love my son with a ferocity that rewires my soul. But love didn’t silence the ache for something more, a piece of me that wasn’t just “mum.” Then, in the midst of maternity leave, redundancy hit. No warning. No roadmap. Just silence where my career used to be. The industry I’d poured myself into had moved on, and I was left with questions that cut deep: What does ambition mean now? Can I be the mother I want to be and still chase work that sets my heart on fire? And the most pressing one; will I still be relevant after such a “career break”?
The power of the pause
This industry thrives on speed, pitches, campaigns, trends, but my pause taught me something the industry rarely acknowledges: stillness is where transformation happens. In the messy middle, through tears, long walks, and raw conversations with my husband and two fierce friends, I began to rebuild. I grieved the woman I was. I questioned the hustle that had defined me. And I realised that ambition isn’t a one-size-fits-all sprint. It’s a flame that can burn differently, slower, deeper, truer.
This pause wasn’t a detour; it was a revelation. I discovered a clarity I’d never had in the frenzy of agency life. I want to be a mum who shows her son what it means to live with purpose, and a professional who proves you don’t have to sacrifice your soul for success.
A challenge to the industry
My journey isn’t just mine. It’s a wake-up call for the industry. We’re an industry that celebrates the grind, but we’re bleeding talent because we don’t make room for life’s pivots, motherhood, caregiving, reinvention. Women like me, who step away and come back transformed, aren’t liabilities; we’re assets. We bring resilience, perspective, and a hunger to do work that matters. But too often, we’re met with rigid structures, outdated expectations, or silence.
It’s time to rewrite the rules. Flexible work isn’t a perk; it’s a necessity. Parental leave policies should empower, not isolate. Cultures that reward authenticity over burnout will unlock creativity and loyalty. If we want an industry that thrives, we need to stop sidelining those who pause and start celebrating what they bring when they return.
To the trailblazers in transition
If you’re in the messy middle, navigating motherhood, career shifts, or the ache of redefining yourself, hear this: you’re not failing. You’re forging something new. The doubt, the fear, the quiet moments of becoming, they’re fuel for a fire that will light your way.
I’m stepping into my next chapter, not as the woman I was, but as someone stronger, clearer, and unapologetically ambitious in a new way. I’m ready to contribute to an industry that’s evolving, and I’m not alone. To my peers, to leaders, to every agency chasing the next big idea: let’s build a future where ambition isn’t a straight line, but a vibrant, winding path that honours who we are, at every stage.
Kate Russell, founder of Hum(ai)n, a consulting firm supporting businesses in navigating the people and culture impacts of an AI-driven workforce while preserving and strengthening their company culture. Hum(ain) is about bringing humanity to AI driven change.