Comments
This post focuses on EAs on the fence, since that is the group for whom this question will be most action-relevant. I specifically mean people who are generally interested in having children, but not to the point where not having children would entail an unfulfilling life, depression or similar. Likewise, I am not thinking about somebody who doesn't like or want children.
In your response, please detail your relevant experience, such as whether you have children yourself, have witnessed many careers or have researched the topic. All opinions are welcome!
I think it depends, I do not have kids, but I want to have kid(s). I am not sure on the amount of kid(s) tho, how many can be feasible, plus huge part for me is adopted or own.
- Adopted can be quite hard to raise cause of early psychological traumas of being separated, as well as there can be physical challenges.
- Own can be less hard to raise, especially if parents and birth was healthy.
I mostly view parenting as a "life-school" that makes person's better team player I would say, much more productive in the sense of need to prioritise time to highest leveraging activities. This is not objective of course, but at least what I see in some parents around me, ex-colleagues, they much more capable in managing their emotions and be less interested in empty drama, at meetings they try to focus on those topics that are most important, they try to do their work without much procrastination compared to me at least, as they just need to do this, and go home to their family/child(ren).
It also means that person can bring into this world new human(s) that can potentially also bring their own positive impact in their lifetimes, which might be contributed in a way to own parent's positive impact too. But financial resources needed to raise healthy child well-educated or at least one that capable for impacting further is quite significant, which could have been partially at least donated, if person didn't have kid(s).
But if we talk only about direct person's impact, then decrease might depend also on the health, wellbeing effects that could hinder productivity and energy - i.e. lack of sleep can be avoided, female's health during pregnancy, child birth and postpartum would be well maintained.
Female's income can decrease of course, if she is the one who is taking parental leave paid and unpaid for longer periods to spend more time with child(ren). Not sure there is a significant reduction if male goes to the parental leave, but I read aticle depicting study on females income with parental leave. Income is not impact of course, but if we consider this for donations decrease that can be factored in.
Child(ren) can increase satisfation from life, happiness levels which might increase productivity, mental health. And it can motivate to increase income too, people can ask for raise, if person now need to consider raising kid(s), which can increase income in such way, that with more frugal life can mean extra donations.
Of course if person doesn't live in country with better childcare, or doesn't have a lot of help from partner, family and friends early into raising child means less time to work. Even childcare can mean kindergartens that increase child sick days and less working days, if person directly positively impacting.
So yeah roughly my thoughts running around productivity/time availability to continue working on direct impact, or amont of income that person can donate toward more positive impact.
Which not necessarily can be a trade off, but can also be an offset of sorts perhaps? - like person have less time, but can have more income potentially - increase of "soft" parenting skills - increase of responsibilities and seniority - increase of income, which can be donated?