A love letter to women raising children and bottom lines

Mail & Guardian

09-05-2025

Trailblazer: Buli Ndlovu celebrates those raising children and bottom lines – working mothers. Photo: Supplied
To the women raising children and bottom lines — this is for you.
You are the early risers, making sandwiches with one hand and sending calendar invites with the other. You are the ones who carry tiny humans on your hips and entire departments on your shoulders. You are the soft place to land after a hard day, and the fierce negotiator in the boardroom before it even begins. You are the heartbeat of your homes and the bottom line of this economy.
I write this not just as a woman or a marketing executive but as a mother. A mother who has wrestled with guilt and ambition in equal measure. A mother who has said no to promotions because the timing wasn't right and said no to another child — not because the heart wasn't willing, but because the system isn't always kind to women who want both growth and grace.
I am raising a five-year-old boy named Lereko. To the world, he's just a little boy learning to swim — just cannon bombs, playful splashes and awkward strokes. But to me?
I see a 2042 Olympic champion. I see gold medals. I see purpose. That's what vision is: seeing beyond the now, beyond obstacles, into a future that hasn't yet materialised but will, because of the work we do today.
That's why, no matter how big the meeting, I never miss his swimming lessons. Because, even though I'm building brands and shaping strategy from 9 to 5, I'm also building character, teaching discipline and teaching my boy to show up even when it's hard. I'm teaching him that greatness isn't about talent alone, it's about consistency, teamwork and putting in the work even when no one is clapping.
(John McCann/M&G)
This is the rhythm of our lives as mothers and professionals. We are constantly choosing, balancing, giving. Sometimes stretching so far that we're not sure we'll snap back. And yet, we do. We rise. We lead. We nurture. And we execute.
I grew up watching women turn scarcity into stability. Women who made R10 feel like a full fridge. Women who delayed their own dreams so we could have a shot at fulfilling our own. Women who budgeted with precision, planned with hope and gave with abandon. These were our first CFOs — chief family officers, long before they had titles or LinkedIn profiles. These women taught me that money is more than numbers. It's values. It's legacy.
Today, I work at a bank that fully understands this. At Nedbank, we see mothers as more than caregivers. We see them as economic architects. Our policies on maternity, flexible work and inclusive leadership are not just about ticking boxes or compliance. They're about shifting culture. About seeing mothers differently and enabling women to rise without asking them to choose between purpose and parenthood.
Because when women lead, economies grow.
So this Mother's Day, I salute you.
The entrepreneurs closing deals with toddlers on their laps. The executives squeezing in homework in-between Teams calls. The teachers, the nurses, the cleaners, the creatives, showing up every single day and still making dinner.
You are not invisible. You are invaluable.
And to my son, when you read this someday I hope you'll understand that every missed bedtime, every early morning flight, every difficult choice, I made them so you could inherit a world where your dreams aren't limited by your gender, your race, your background or your circumstances. I hope that you will understand that every sacrifice made was for every little boy or girl being raised by a powerful woman. So they can see that it's possible to lead with heart. That love and ambition can coexist. That strength sometimes sounds like a lullaby.
And to the women raising children and bottom lines — this is your love letter.Happy Mother's Day!
Buli Ndlovu is the executive head of retail and business banking marketing at Nedbank.