How to Ask for a Promotion as a Working Mother
Waiting to be noticed rarely works for anyone. It works even less reliably for working mothers. Here's how to ask directly and effectively.
Mothered exists to make sure that is no longer a secret. This is a permanent, deliberate documentation of who working mothers actually are: the drive, the discipline, the leadership, the vision, the extraordinary work of women who happen to also be mothers.
Every issue is a record of a moment. This is ours, kept for as long as it matters.

Six working mothers who refused to choose between ambition and family. This issue documents what it actually looks like to build something meaningful while raising someone who matters most.
"We are here to rewrite the narrative. And it is long overdue." Mothered, on record
"We are here to rewrite the narrative. And it is long overdue." Mothered, on record
of working mothers believe they are better leaders because they are a mother.
Future of Working Motherhood 2026 report
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more likely, working mothers take on invisible labor compared to women without children.
Harvard Business Review
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Mothers reported being more than twice as capable at managing time effectively after becoming mothers.
Maternal Strengths Report 2026
Read more in Insights →The world underestimates working mothers. Mothered exists to correct the record.
Waiting to be noticed rarely works for anyone. It works even less reliably for working mothers. Here's how to ask directly and effectively.
It has a name, a body of research behind it, and a real cost. Here's what the mental load actually is, and what helps.
The motherhood penalty is real, measurable, and well-documented. Here's what the research shows, and the strategies that help offset it.
Founders. Physicians. Therapists. Financial planners. Product builders. Each one documented at the intersection of ambition and motherhood — permanently, honestly, exactly as they are.
Meet the women"The most driven, focused, and formidable women in any room are often the ones who are also somebody's mother." Mothered Magazine
So honored to be featured alongside these amazing moms!
Reflecting on motherhood and the tug of war between mom guilt and ambition turned out to be more cathartic than I expected. What I walked away with was a gift for my own kiddos.
So honored to be included with these amazing women! So grateful that you have Mothered Magazine for all of us!

Alexa Starks is a TEDx speaker, author, and award-winning workplace culture innovator, working to redesign working motherhood globally. Her work has been featured in Forbes, Inc, Business Insider, AP News, and Newsweek.
But most importantly, she's a mom of two toddlers.