Succeeding as a First-Time Parent

Navigate work successfully as a first-time parent

Just when you're starting to figure out this parent thing, wham, your leave is over.

Take a deep breath, you'll get through it. The first few weeks and months as a working parent are hard, but they can be truly affirming, too. People want to see you succeed, they'll support you if you ask, and you'll find you have energy stores and resources you didn't know existed. You can make great strides forward in your career as a new parent. Succeeding as a First-Time Parent can help.

This volume will help you: understand all your options for childcare; have essential conversations with your spouse or partner; stay connected during leave and hit the ground running; get the support you need at work; stay on the career track you want to be on; set reasonable expectations for yourself; carry on amid inevitable exhaustion and emotional upheaval; and set your family up for success.

The HBR Working Parents series with Daisy Dowling, series editor, supports you as you anticipate challenges, learn how to advocate for yourself more effectively, juggle your impossible schedule, and find fulfillment at home and at work. Whether you're up with a newborn or planning the future with your teen, you'll find the practical tips, strategies, and research you need to make working parenthood work for you.


  1. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Strategy, Updated and Expanded (featuring "The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy" by Michael E. Porter)

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  2. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Mental Toughness, Updated and Expanded (featuring "How to Stop Worrying About What Other People Think of You" by Michael Gervais)

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Michael Gervais, Angela L. Duckworth, Martin E. P. Seligman, Herminia Ibarra

    audiobook
  3. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Managing People, Updated and Expanded (featuring "Are You a Good Boss--or a Great One?" by Linda A. Hill and Kent Lineback)

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Daniel Goleman, Linda A. Hill, Tsedal Neeley, Marcus Buckingham

    audiobook
  4. HBR Guide to Performance Management

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  5. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Leadership Lessons from Sports : (featuring interviews with Sir Alex Ferguson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Andre Agassi)

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Alex Ferguson, Bill Parcells, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Joe Girardi

    audiobook
  6. HBR Guide to Thinking Strategically

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  7. HBR Guide to Motivating People

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  8. Reskilling and Upskilling : The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  9. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Leadership for Healthcare : (with bonus article by Thomas H. Lee, MD, and Toby Cosgrove, MD)

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Thomas H. Lee, Daniel Goleman, Peter F. Drucker, John P. Kotter

    audiobook
  10. HBR's 10 Must Reads 2025

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  11. HBR Guide to Emotional Intelligence

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  12. Boundaries, Priorities, and Finding Work-Life Balance

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook