How working parents can balance ambition and guilt

A few years ago, I met a woman at a networking event who whispered her confession over a plastic cup of chardonnay: “I love my job. I’m proud of what I’ve built. But every time I miss a school play or forget to sign a field trip form, I feel like I failed them.” She didn’t say who “them” referred to. Perhaps her kids, society, herself. Maybe all three.

That moment stuck with me because it symbolized the tension so many ambitious parents live with every day: The drive to achieve versus...