The Six Big Mother Energies
The mental load is real work. Meet the Engine.
You did forty things before 8 AM. Lunches, forms, the shoe that went missing, the text to the coach. Nobody saw most of it, and nobody said thank you.
That's the mental load, friend, and it's not nothing. It's a skill. I call the people who carry it Engines, because without you, everything stops.
Sound like you?
- You've done 40 things before 8 AM.
- You know every number, size and deadline by heart.
- You restock before anyone notices it's low.
Your superpower
Steady, reliable work that keeps everything running.
Watch out for
Running until you break, and doing work nobody counts, including you.
Your move this week
Say out loud one thing you did that nobody saw.
- Pick one invisible task.
- Tell someone about it.
- Don't apologize for saying it.
Say it out loud
"I'm an Engine. I keep it all running, and I do the work nobody counts."
Questions
What is the mental load?
The mental load is the planning, tracking and remembering it takes to keep a home and a family running. It's the list in your head that never turns off: who needs what, when, and what's about to run out.
Is invisible labor really work?
Yes. It takes time, attention and skill, and things fall apart when nobody does it. The fact that nobody sees it doesn't make it any less real. Naming it is the first step to getting it counted.
How do I get my family to notice it?
Start small and say it out loud. Name one thing you did today that nobody saw. Then hand one task to someone else, all of it, from remembering to finishing, so they feel what it takes.
It's your story and your skills that will help us build our future. We all have a part to play.