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 Data Strategy

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  2. Managing Overthinking

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  3. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Managing Projects and Initiatives

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  4. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Managing Across Cultures

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Jeanne Brett, Yves L. Doz, Erin Meyer, Hal Gregersen

    audiobook
  5. Speak Up, Speak Out

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  6. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Reinventing HR

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Marcus Buckingham, Reid Hoffman, Ram Charan, Peter Cappelli

    audiobook
  7. HBR's 10 Must Reads for New Managers

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Linda A. Hill, Herminia Ibarra, Robert B. Cialdini, Daniel Goleman

    audiobook
  8. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Negotiation

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Daniel Kahneman, Deepak Malhotra, Erin Meyer, Max H. Bazerman

    audiobook
  9. HBR Guide to Managing Up and Across

    Harvard Harvard Business Review

    audiobook
  10. The Year in Tech, 2026 : The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Scott D. Anthony, Amy Webb, José Parra-Moyano, Christina Shim

    audiobook
  11. 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
  12. HBR's 10 Must Reads on Managing Yourself, Updated and Expanded (featuring "How Will You Measure Your Life?" by Clayton M. Christensen)

    Harvard Harvard Business Review, Peter F. Drucker, Amy Gallo, Amy Jen Sue, Clayton M. Christensen

    audiobook