It pays to find your voice

The National, November 17, 2012

I learnt a valuable lesson last weekend, but didn’t realise it at the time. Thinking about it now, it wasn’t my proudest moment – either as a supporter of women in the workplace or as the mother of a young girl.

Let me rewind.

Last weekend, my nine-year-old daughter came to me with an idea.

“If I do my chores, can you pay me Dh10 in pocket money for each one?” she asked.

“So if I do five chores a week, then you have to give me Dh50.”

I thought it was amusing. Not that she’d finally remembered her five times tables, but because she was negotiating a “pay rise” and yet avoids her chores like the plague. And then wonders why she’s not getting any pocket money.