Mentally I’ve finally made the shift to mobile first as a product manager. It’s taken me a while since in my own life I was always in front of a laptop.

Oh how things have changed. As a new mother to twins, my phone is my lifeline. I rarely have both hands free to type on a laptop. And even a tablet requires more space and dexterity than I can afford with two babies.

Motherhood has managed to bring me closer to the average digital consumer…and its been a painful and frustrating experience. Most companies /brands continue to be desktop focused. Not having a mobile site or even a mobile optimized site is an immediate barrier and unacceptable given that mobile traffic (apps + web) now accounts for over 50% of internet traffic (Techcrunch 8/14). As a consumer, if your site doesn’t work on mobile, I abandon all attempts to proceed immediately unless I absolutely need your company or service. 

As I write this I realize I’m not saying anything revolutionary. Most intelligent people would agree there is a huge shift to mobile taking place and that many companies are behind in this shift. A potentially new way to look at the mobile “technology gap” is that it is a result of business professionals like me who hadn’t made the shift to mobile and are likely out of touch with how their digital properties are consumed. 

So perhaps motherhood will be good for my career. Also I’ve returned to blogging after a long hiatus. Note this post was written at 3am and on the WordPress mobile app. Another nod to early motherhood. Thanks babies.