There’s a familiar expression people like to offer working moms who travel:

“It must be so hard to be away.”

Sometimes it’s followed by, “Do they miss you?” or the classic, “Isn’t it tough to leave?”

The implication: Do you feel guilty for being gone?

Here’s my honest answer: I don’t feel guilty.

And I’d really love it if the world stopped assuming I do.

Because here’s the truth—I miss my daughter deeply. But guilt? That’s not part of my baggage.

I’m a mom. I’m also an entrepreneur. A thinker. A traveler. And all of those sides of me are important. I’ve worked hard to build who I am, and I don’t feel guilty about nurturing all my selves.

When I travel for work, I do it with intention, not just for professional progress, but personal fulfillment. These trips are not escapes from motherhood. They are opportunities to reconnect with the parts of myself that fuel the mom I want to be.

Too often, working mothers are made to feel that ambition and motherhood are at odds. That one must somehow subtract from the other. But the equation is far more generous than that. The more fully I live in all of my identities—mother, founder, writer, traveler—the better I am at all of them.

Similarly, I don’t feel guilty for taking the day off when my daughter is sick, has a dance recital, or has a school holiday. It’s all important.

I travel often. And I don’t hide the joy I find in it.

I fill every trip to the brim.

Client meetings and brand brainstorms. Dinner with old friends in dimly lit bistros. Matcha worth standing in line for. A spa moment, if time allows. I’ve attended sound baths with a side of contrast therapy at 8 a.m., and written my newsletter fireside in hotel lobbies. I’ve worn impractical heels I loved, walked 20,000 steps in a day, and squeezed in both morning and evening workouts under candlelight and good playlists.

It’s not about indulgence—it’s about intention. When I travel, I make space to feel like me. Not just a mom, or just a founder, but the full-spectrum version of myself. Reignited. Realigned.

When I return home, I might be tired, but I’m never drained. In fact, I come home more energized, more grounded, and more connected to myself and what I value. And yes, I come back a better mom.

So if you meet a mom who’s traveling for work, try asking something new:

“Are you getting a lot out of the trip?”

Recognize her wholeness. Trust she knows how to hold space for both career and motherhood without shame. Acknowledge that great moms are multi-dimensional, curious, and alive beings.

To the moms out there who travel, who work late, who lead, who build: I hope you see yourselves not as torn between roles—but lit up by them.

You don’t have to feel guilty. Go nurture all the parts of you. You’re worth it. And your kids will thank you later.