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Decide on your priorities and live by them: Mother's Day tip from Pei Theng

We speak to our Asia Pacific Commercial Manager for Aromatics and Glycols, who shares her journey as a working mum of three.
News May 9, 2025

Q: How does your family celebrate Mother’s Day?

We keep it simple, with a family lunch or dinner, and sometimes a small card or gift. 

We believe in appreciating the person through the year and not just on Mother’s Day. 😊

This tradition has continued from both my husband and my family into ours now.

 

Q: How has becoming a mum changed you?

It’s made me more aware of the preciousness of life, and not to take things for granted.

Motherhood also made me deeply appreciate the importance of having clear priorities in life, and making choices which are aligned with those priorities.

The decisions we make each day have a lasting impact and you will never get back time that you’ve lost with your children in the various stages of their lives.

So decide on what’s most important to you and let that guide your priorities.

Sometimes, we worry too much about things that don't matter in the long run. We can all do a better job at embracing imperfection. I'm a work-in-progress, and need reminders too!

Q: How do you manage work and parenthood responsibilities?

It’s driven by the unique needs of each family member, and trying to get to the best overall “General Interest” outcome for the family.

I’ve taken a total of about five years off from work at ExxonMobil, largely driven by family needs. I took a few years of unpaid leave, and managed to work part-time (2.5 days a week) while at our manufacturing complex.

This happened when my three children were younger, and going through transitions that needed more of my support.

It wasn’t an easy decision to slow down in my career, but knowing what my priority was at that stage of life helped me make those conscious choices and I have never regretted those decisions.

For any working parent, remember that the work-life balance shifts at different stages and seasons.

 

Q: Any other tips for working mums?

Seek excellence, not perfection, and make sure you put in the 'big rocks' first.

Sometimes, we worry too much about things that don’t matter in the long run. We can all do a better job at embracing imperfection. I'm a work-in-progress, and need reminders too!

For my husband and I, our focus was to nurture and raise our children to be people of good character, grounded in strong moral values.

So we decided to spend our time on that, rather than join the “rat race” and chasing after things that the Singapore system can pressure us to do.

For example, we did not send our children for endless tuition for every subject (except Chinese), as we valued more family time and wanted them to enjoy their childhood. We spent that time building routines and traditions which have brought us closer as a family.

Looking back, it’s very rewarding to see our children enjoy each other’s company, want to hang out with each other, and find pockets of time to relax.

Q: What does Mother’s Day mean to you?

It reminds me to thank and encourage the mums around me.

It sometimes feels like a thankless job and you don’t always see the difference you make day after day.

But when you look back over a period of time, I think every mum can feel proud of how our kids have grown and bloomed under our care and love!