Raising Great Girls: How to Do the Job with Darlene Brock

“Mom” is the job that gets no break, no personal time, vacation, or maternity leave—because that particular break is part of the occupation. Motherhood isn’t just one job, but many, and those jobs are accomplished in different ways at different times throughout your child’s life. If you have the added pressure of raising girls, it just gets more complicated. So, I thought I’d get a few answers from the author of the book, Raising Great Girls: Help for Moms to Raise Confident, Capable Girls, (perfection not required), Darlene Brock. It was a pretty easy task since I also work with her.

Question: I know you’ve written this book from hindsight, but tell me about what your life looked like when you were raising your daughters?

Answer: When I was raising Loren and Chelsea, I did so while working full-time (and often more than that). I traveled a lot, produced music videos, was COO of a record company, and managed multiple bands. At the same time, I was trying really hard to be a part of my girls’ lives: I was “room mother” at their school, attended their events, and present to listen when they needed to talk. Sometimes I pulled it off, other times I didn’t. But, I believed my most important job—no matter what—was that they knew I loved them first and always over everything else in my life.

Question: Each chapter of the book is just one more job moms have to do, which seems overwhelming. Why did you do it that way?

Answer: Because I worked outside the home my whole adult life, breaking this role of mom into individual jobs seemed to be natural. Doing so made the overwhelming task digestible to me. When I discovered that there were a season and time for each job, even the ones I hadn’t realized I’d taken on, it all seemed much more doable.

From Time Manager to Security Officer to Relationship Counselor, the role of “mom” can be broken down into countless positions. While in this book I unpack 13 different jobs for mom, you won’t do them all all the time, or all at the same time. I hope that by breaking down “mom”, mothers feel encouraged that this is a job that they can and will successfully tackle.

Question: You added chapters for dads. Why did you do that, and how are they different?

Answer: A dad plays a special role in his daughter’s life, but I feel that there are key roles that should rise to the top—ones that every mom can hand over to her man! So not only did I include bonus chapters on the three jobs for dad, but I explained why these jobs are uniquely suited and designed for a dad. I do understand that either parent is capable of performing all parenting jobs, and some single moms find themselves tasked with doing them all. That said, I have to throw something in here.

If you are a single mom without help from your daughter’s father, look for a man you trust, perhaps an uncle, grandfather, or family friend who can be in your daughter’s life to serve as an example of what a good man should be. There are certain jobs that are more effective when fulfilled by her dad, and times in life when a girl needs her daddy. These chapters are shorter and easy to digest, but not lacking in encouragement for the man in your girl’s life.

Question: What do you want other mothers to get from reading this book?

Answer: I want other mothers to be encouraged and know that they are fully capable of being the best mom for their girl. I have not written the guide on how to raise a perfect daughter. Neither am I offering a no-fail blueprint to becoming a perfect mom. Perfect mothers and daughters don’t exist, and that’s okay because the goal is to raise some pretty great ones. I believe every woman can be the great mom who will raise a girl of whom she will be proud. As mothers, we have the opportunity to instill in our daughters the knowledge that they are capable and to build their confidence. It’s my goal to help mothers know how to do that.

With that, I think every mom of girls out there needs to get her hands on Darlene’s book, Raising Great Girls! In it, she vulnerably shares her wisdom learned through experience and lessons gained through the lens of hindsight with the hope that every mom who reads it walks away strengthened in her position. I don’t know about you, but I’ve found the perfect source of encouragement for every girl mom in my life!

As we continue to celebrate the release of Raising Great Girls here at Grit and Grace Life, we’re thrilled to share a free chapter with you!

Take a peek at this free chapter and enjoy!

Download the Free Time Manager Chapter, Now!

You can get your copy of Raising Great Girls on Amazon, here!

Don’t miss this episode of our podcast where Darlene’s daughters shared what it was really like being raised by her! How Can You Raise Great Girls? Darlene’s Daughters Tell All – 054