PLYMPTON, MA You can be a mom, and ambitious too! You do not need to pick one over the other.
That is the message of Dr. Amber Bartlett’s new book, “Balance is a Scam”. As the owner of two businesses, and single mom to four-year old son Asher, she understands the challenges and the doubts that mothers in the business world face when feeling pulled in two directions. “This book, based on my life experiences and my research and extensive conversations with many ‘Mom-preneurs,’ reaffirms to readers that you don’t have to pick between motherhood and having ambition – that you can have both,” the author says.
Dr. Bartlett, who holds a Doctorate of Psychology, wears several different “business hats.” She coaches and advises business owners on how to grow their businesses and work through issues that may be holding them back; she also helps businesses with organizational and operational issues. She is additionally the owner of The Barker House, a premier dog care business, providing day programs, overnight boarding, and grooming. This entrepreneur thrives in both businesses, while raising her four-year-old son, Asher, and finding the time to write this latest book.
As for “balance,” she does a deep dive into what that means, and what it does not.
“Balance is a Scam” is a candid, psychology-based, “laugh-so-you-don’t-cry” account of what it actually means to be an ambitious mother in a culture obsessed with the myth of balance. Dr. Bartlett recalls that she did everything “right”. She worked hard, chased big goals, poured herself into her family, and still wondered how that standard she was trying so hard to meet could possibly be the one she was expected to live by. That moment was the genesis for the book.
“My goal in writing this book is to share the message of ambition and motherhood because it just isn’t talked about,” she said. “So many moms are sitting with the same emotions and same struggles that I discovered after becoming a mom late in life after multiple careers,” Dr. Bartlett added. “It is shocking that, in the century we are in, there is still an underlying standard that you cannot be ambitious and a mom. Do not believe it!”
With candor, humor, and a knack for storytelling, Dr. Bartlett addresses the impossible expectations that are placed on modern mothers: be present but also financially stable; be nurturing but not too ambitious; be ambitious but not so ambitious that someone questions your love for your kids. She explores why mothers are drowning in guilt that was never theirs to carry.
“Balance is a Scam” explains:
· Why “mom guilt” is neurological, not a moral failing.
· How chronic stress rewires the body and why breakdowns often precede breakthroughs.
· Why kids don’t need perfect mothers; they need emotionally present ones.
· How ambition and motherhood are not opposites but partners.
· Why balance is a trap built on the wrong scorecard.
· How resilience is built in ordinary, messy micro-moments.
· Why connection, not isolation, is the real medicine for an overwhelmed mother
“Balance is a Scam” dismantles the toxic idea that women must split themselves in half to be successful at home and at work. Instead, the author offers a new and different lens: prioritizing over balancing, wholeness over perfection, and presence over performance.
One reader of the book describes it this way: “This isn’t a productivity manual or a motivational pep talk―it’s a manifesto for women who refuse to shrink, women who want to build, mother, lead, laugh, grieve, rebuild again, and live a life big enough for all of it.”
The lack of research on the topic is in part what prompted Dr. Bartlett to write this book, which is now available on Amazon and in selected bookstores. “There is a lot of information about both ambition and motherhood, but not how they intersect. I believe that moms can excel at both. Some days work will be a priority, and other days motherhood takes center stage. It is about defining and understanding priorities.”
The author will be speaking at a number of events in the coming months to help promote the book. Anyone who would like to learn more about the book or would like Dr. Bartlett to address any group of women business owners, please visit www.dramberbartlett.com or contact Dr. Bartlett by email, amber@barkerhouseconsulting.com