The Boston Marathon went off yesterday and the field was comprised of 40% women. Forty years ago, only one woman entered and ran. The Boston Marathon is in it's 111th year and over time it has evolved. The notion of balance in women's careers is also evolutionary. A convergence of government, social and economic programs will eventually begin to swing the balance of work and personal obligations.

In the meanwhile, let's take a look at what it takes to make incremental changes in your work now. It takes confidence to pursue part time work and employers need help to find ways to make it work. Many times a seasoned employee has asked for time off to care for a family member and had the time approved only to return to work with a little cloud of stigma settled firmly around them. The best strategy to get everyone back on track is the the same one used to get the time off in the first place -- communication. For, although it is difficult to work up to courage to ask for caregiving time in the first place, we often accept that we deserve to be punished for taking it. Women, in particular, tend to believe that we just have to hunker down and pay for our flexibility.

This is not actually a bad idea because talented employees are appreciated in the office and getting back to work will quickly get things back on track. I advise people to take it one step further and to thank the boss and coworkers who helped out and to communicate clearly and often how you are prioritizing the work that was waiting upon your return. Then communicate widely how much you appreciated the flexibility your employer showed you. This will demonstrate that a precendent has been set and help others to ask for the time when they need it. Even companies who have been working to support a diverse workforce for a long time are continually evaluating and updating their support programs. Concerned employers will be quickly able to assess the productivity and retention gains they enjoy from creating part time or short term leave programs for their talented employees.