“The choices we make as women to do what’s right for ourselves and our families take bravery, clarity, and care,” Neha Ruch says on her website, The Power Pause. After stepping back from a high-powered tech career to raise her children, Neha founded Mother Untitled in 2017. Initially a blog and Instagram feed, she addressed the stigma of “unemployment” often faced by stay-at-home mothers, reframing the conversation to acknowledge the invaluable contributions they make to their families and communities. By 2022, Neha had grown Mother Untitled into a movement and a leading digital media platform supporting women taking a career break, or what Neha terms “the Untitled chapter — the vast gray area between the old titles of stay-at-home and working mother.”
Recently rebranded as The Power Pause, Neha’s platform offers resources, advocacy, and community, and shares insights and practical advice that help countless women navigate their journeys when they pause or shift their careers to focus on their families. Neha notes she has strived to create “the language, vision, and validation for women to see time at home not as a detour but as a powerful, enriching chapter in their arc.” Her first book, The Power Pause: How To Plan A Career Break After Kids—And Come Back Stronger Than Ever, was published by Putnam in January 2025.
Neha had previously founded the Yellurkar Foundation in 2004, a trust-based organization in India that sponsors young female students demonstrating potential, providing them with the means and resources to continue their secondary education. “Her commitment to uplifting women and girls is evident in all her endeavors,” says T.J. Duane, MBA ’14. “Her passion, resilience, and dedication to creating a supportive community for women make her an inspiring figure and a powerful catalyst for change.” By rebranding stay-at-home motherhood for current and future generations, Neha has helped society shed outdated perceptions of the role, empowering mothers to redefine success on their own terms.
