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Slacker Moms vs. Alpha Moms: Media-brewed battle or real cultural divide?

Sarah Gilbert — Fri, 11 May 2007 22:10:00 EST

Even though I have an "Alpha Mom" t-shirt, I'm afraid I really fall into the "Slacker Mom" (or "Beta Mom") camp. Do I want what's best for my children? Sure, but I'm not going to give up my career or my sanity to get it. I'll admit it: I let my kids see my cry, and sometimes when I'm in a particularly awful mood I put a DVD on "repeat," lock myself in the bathroom and take a good, lonely soak. While my girlfriends from business school and even my buddy Isabel Kallman (who runs the Alpha Mom network) were taking their three-year-olds to soccer practice and playdates and swimming lessons, I was discovering that I really didn't like singing "The Wheels on the Bus" and trying to convince my own three-year-old that he should go to bed before midnight.

According to the USA Today, "There's a backlash brewing ... an anti-Alpha movement is taking hold. Those moms have it together sometimes. They may forget to send back permission slips or lose track of their turn for team snacks ... Some, including former CBS TV news anchor René Syler, have written books advising the Alphas to lighten up." Whenever I see an article starting out with the "backlash" concept, I have to admit, my first reaction is to backlash myself. Not against those perfect moms that I observe, with wonder, from afar (and, yes, sometimes wish weren't quite so perfect). But against the media who's so obviously taking advantage of a couple of marquis moms to brew a controversy that will sell books ... but may not actually reflect the realities of mothering.

The article calls the Alpha Mom a "marketing creation," while in the same breath pitting her against the moms who just don't have it quite so together, who (according to their book titles) let their children run with scissors, and embrace their perfect imperfection.

Like any other media-created divide, it's a fiction, but I can't fault the fiction for having ill will. These Slacker Moms have a kind-and-gentler message: that how a child turns out isn't entirely his mom's fault -- and it certainly won't make a lasting difference if mama forgets to buy candles for his birthday cake or sends him to playgroup with a storebought snack.

If media is going to embrace the not-so-Alpha Moms, I say, hear hear! Up with the Slackers! Here's to moms who don't apologize for neglecting the goodie bags, who accept their inability to sit through Music Together class, who let their kids watch SpongeBob and who don't sweat it if little Braden can't kick a soccer ball to save his life. Here's to discovering the wonder in a piece of trash your two-year-old picks up; here's to enjoying your five-year-old's astonishing tricks with his toy shotgun.

Whoever you are, Alpha, Slacker or in between, here's to holding the awesome task of being nurturer, protector, kisser-of-tears in your hands and not letting go.

Slacker Moms vs. Alpha Moms: Media-brewed battle or real cultural divide? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 May 2007 22:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I am a 'Yoga Mama': We kick soccer moms' tushies

Sarah Gilbert — Mon, 27 Nov 2006 08:11:00 EST

Filed under: Consumer Experience, Wal-Mart (WMT), Marketing and Advertising, Walt Disney (DIS), Kellogg Co (K)

I love labels. I especially love labels when they're devised by 'savvy' marketing analysts or pollsters. And the newest target for the corporate marketing dollar? 'Yoga Moms.'

I love this one particularly, not least because I'm totally a Yoga Mama (I prefer the "mama" moniker to "mom," as do most Yoga Mamas; you all may want to make a note of this). In fact, I registered the domain "spa mama.com" years ago and still receive email to some variant of "zen@" said dotcom. And yes, I do a lot of yoga. Yoga Mamas are said to be very particular about eating organic and feeding it to their kids; buying natural products; and we'll pay top dollar for it.

Whoa! Hold on. Maybe I'm not a Yoga Mama after all. Or maybe y'all have it wrong (still taking notes?) In fact, in my market analysis (done among my friends, many of whom I met at prenatal yoga, or at new mama knitting circles, or at the organic foods market, or as kindred spirits on some mama-centric web site), Yoga Mamas aren't willing to pay top dollar for anything organic or natural; in fact, our choices are much more shrewd than that.

My friends are, in fact, always talking about how they're on a budget, or they don't have money for this luxury or that luxury. Most of us don't spend much on our own clothes, for instance, and we're savvy resale shoppers -- often picking up expensive labels, to be sure, but for a fraction of the retail price. While we'll occasionally splurge on treats for ourselves (heck, someone's keeping those manicurists in business, and we love a good glass of Pinot Noir) we're also fanatic 'unit price' comparers and we won't go back to a place that doesn't fit in with a raft of values, from "respectful" to "green" to "treats its employees well." None of us shop at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT). All of us shop at Trader Joe's.

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I am a 'Yoga Mama': We kick soccer moms' tushies originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Nov 2006 08:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The 'WOW Principal' of Investing: Find winners like MRK, Petro-China

Sheldon Liber — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 12:11:00 EST

Filed under: Rants and Raves, Google (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Yahoo! (YHOO), Apple Inc (AAPL), eBay (EBAY), General Electric (GE), Time Warner (TWX), Wal-Mart (WMT), Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)

Contrarian (noun), pronounced con.trar.i.an. : A person who takes a contrary position or attitude; specifically : an investor who buys shares of stock when most others are selling and sells when others are buying.

Turning things inside out, and upside down is basic to contrarian and value investing. In this article I will share my WOW Principal of investing.

WOW Principal origin: Observing how my wife manages our family I have been in awe. It's true: "a mother's work is never done." To express my amazement, I have exclaimed WOW often. MOM upside down spells WOW! There are many times that Mom's world is upside down, juggling three kids and an ever increasing number of commitments with spectacular efficiency. She is also an architect and my partner in our architecture practice. In my bio, I referred to my relationship with my wife as my best investment, and since we met many years ago, I have been collecting dividends.

So, it is with my wife in mind that the WOW Principal of investing came to be. It is a perfect fit with my investing style. Simply stated: If, after thorough analysis of an investment, you are not in awe of your findings (company data, news, trends and surprises) and you do cannot exclaim WOW! (double WOW is even better!), then it is not a worthy investment.

If however, the investment does reach WOW status, you are in business. I do not invest unless I think there is an amazing opportunity and any risk is understandable and acceptable. Good is not good enough, it must be a great opportunity, and the case must be very convincing.

When things are upside down or people's perspective is jaded, there may be a deep value opportunity and my interest is peaked. At the point of discovery is a moment that begins when I say "hmm," and stroke my beard. Then I spend time with my investigation and analysis. But I do not fork over any cash until I find the WOW factor(s). If you find yourself scratching your head and saying huh? instead of "Wow," move on!

Continue reading The 'WOW Principal' of Investing: Find winners like MRK, Petro-China

The 'WOW Principal' of Investing: Find winners like MRK, Petro-China originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 18 Sep 2006 12:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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