Everyone seems to be talking about Emma Grede being a “3 hour mum”.
And honestly, I think the conversation is happening in the wrong place.
Because what she actually said was this.
In her book Start With Yourself, she explained that on weekends she spends time with her children in the morning, then uses the rest of the day to take care of herself and everything else that did not get space during the week.
And for that, she is being torn apart.
Media commentary has called her selfish. People have questioned her parenting. Others have used it as another opportunity to criticise ambitious working mothers.
But there is something important missing from the conversation.
This post is for the entrepreneurs.
Because when you are building a business you love, you already know something most people do not want to admit.
It takes sacrifice.
And it also comes with opinions from people who are not building what you are building.
The double standard no one wants to name
Let’s be honest for a second.
When fathers work long weekends, travel for business, or spend large chunks of time outside the house pursuing their careers or interests, it is rarely controversial.
In fact, it is often praised.
It gets framed as commitment. Dedication. Providing for their families. Leadership.
But when an ambitious mother openly acknowledges that she also needs time for herself, the reaction is very different.
Suddenly it becomes selfish.
Suddenly it becomes neglect.
Suddenly it becomes something to debate publicly.
That is not a coincidence.
Ambitious women, especially ambitious mothers, are still held to a completely different standard than their male counterparts.
And that is exactly why this conversation matters.
The reality of modern motherhood and ambition
In 2026, most mothers are working just as hard and just as long as fathers.
Often they are doing it in roles they do not even enjoy.
So when a woman who is building companies, raising children, supporting a family and managing a public career says she also needs time for herself, why is that controversial?
Why is it acceptable for everyone else to need space, but not her?
Why is the expectation still that mothers must be endlessly available in ways that no one expects from fathers?
That is the real question here.
Entrepreneurship always involves trade offs
Personally, I want to spend more than three hours a day with my daughter.
And I also want to build a life where my daughter, my family, myself and my business all get what they need to flourish.
That means there will be trade offs.
That means there will be seasons of intensity.
That means there will be decisions that other people would not make the same way.
That is not failure.
That is reality.
Because being an entrepreneur who is also a parent and a partner and a friend is not about perfection.
It is about balance.
And balance is something we are all figuring out in real time.
The internet wants certainty. Real life does not work like that
One of the hardest parts of building anything meaningful is accepting that there is no single correct way to do it.
There is no universally approved version of motherhood.
There is no universally approved version of entrepreneurship.
There is no version of building a life that avoids criticism.
Emma Grede is building billion dollar companies.
Ninety nine percent of people commenting on her decisions have no idea what that level of responsibility actually requires.
And yet they still feel qualified to judge how she structures her weekends.
That says more about the internet than it does about her.
You can never be completely right in someone else’s eyes
Whether you agree with her or not.
Whether you would make the same choices or not.
Whether your life looks similar to hers or completely different.
There is something useful to take from this moment.
You can never be completely right in everyone else’s eyes.
Someone will always think you should be doing more.
Someone else will think you should be doing less.
Someone will think you are too ambitious.
Someone else will think you are not ambitious enough.
At some point you have to stop trying to win approval and start building the version of life that works for you.
And honestly, that is one of the most freeing realisations you can have as an entrepreneur.
