Surprise Video Collaboration: How Comma Supports Motherhood and Life-First Work
In May 2025, Nectar collaborated with Comma Copywriters to produce an emotional short film honoring working mothers and highlighting the immeasurable value of life-first work. The project, released just before Mother’s Day, shed light on some of the challenges moms face in the workplace.
The film shares a detailed look at three vulnerable stories of women navigating motherhood and challenging work situations. Their circumstances were more than a matter of juggling or prioritizing — these were heavy times in their lives that were met with little understanding or support at work.
In the video, they each share how Comma has been a solution for them in a system that often overlooks people’s most human selves. All employees experience highs and lows of real life weaving through their workday; that’s why Nectar and Comma came together to recognize the value of caring about motherhood and providing life-first work.
And yes, there were tears.
What Nectar Saw in Comma’s Values
Nate Bagley, the Head of Content at Nectar, aims to use social platforms to highlight individuals who are doing the right things. He wants to recognize leaders who take care of their teams, and people who do the right thing — the caring thing — simply because that’s who they are. He hopes that intentionally recognizing this type of character will inspire others by example, and more leaders will treat their teams and run their businesses with genuine care.
“On LinkedIn, we tend to celebrate acquisitions and big deals. A person’s success is often measured in dollars,” Bagley said. “But I believe we can (and should) celebrate more than just financial wins. I want to put character, integrity, and everyday goodness in the spotlight, too.”
He saw exactly that kind of character in the way Comma’s founder and CEO, Crystalee Beck, compassionately runs her copywriting agency. So, he went behind the scenes at Comma to make this video spotlight happen, and the final product took Crystalee completely by surprise.
“Comma isn’t a client of ours. They’re not a partner. But Crystalee is consistently doing the right thing with life-work balance, and that deserves recognition,” Bagley said. “She’s doing this consistently, humbly, and without any expectation of recognition.”
Crystalee built Comma on values like freedom and accountability — putting life first and acknowledging a person’s whole self in their professional space, all while trusting them to have the accountability to make that freedom work.
In Nectar’s video, three Comma employees share their stories of hitting walls professionally when employers didn’t prioritize motherhood or recognize family needs. Comma’s values were a turning point in their careers. They shared experiences about navigating a preemie baby’s hospital stay with limited understanding from work, a remote-work option taken off the table directly after maternity leave, and a resumé gap from taking time to raise a family. These were the harsh realities they each faced, and unfortunately, they’re far from alone.
As Crystalee watched these women share their experiences and gratitude in a video filmed entirely without her knowing, she was overcome with emotion. What started as a vision is now a reality at Comma — a business built on life first.
What Life-First Work Looks Like in the Real World
Comma opens doors that are closed all too casually in the professional space.
“I feel so passionately about life-first work. Moms always make it work. It’s time we make work *WORK* for moms,” Beck said. “Nothing can stop a determined mother — or even better, a team of mothers! I let my team know they can be a parent, they can be a professional, and they are welcome to bring their whole self to the table.”
This is why Comma was built on life-first values that support writers as a whole person, not just an employee. Comma’s core values include:
Freedom: Life first!
Accountability: Show up, own your work (which is what makes freedom possible!)
Humility: Work as a team, no egos.
Curiosity: Learning and growing, always.
Care: Good content built with words and heart.
These aren’t just lip-service values. Comma has ways of bringing these values to life for team members in tangible ways.
“We put life first with flexible remote schedules, part-time options, and minimal meetings. I want to give our writers as much freedom and flexibility as possible,” Beck said.
Some of those life-first work systems she has implemented look like:
Winter and summer breaks: A full week taken twice a year when the Comma team can fully unplug, relax, and rejuvenate, then come back more than ready to write.
Bucket List Grants: Every team member writes a required Bucket List when joining Comma, to keep eyes on the life-first prize. After three years, a Bucket List Grant of $1,000 is awarded to team members to help them bring something on their bucket list to life.
Care mindset: Comma cares about celebrating the wins and supporting the lows that team members experience. Whether it’s providing flexible schedules, confidence-building support, or just understanding unique circumstances, Comma shows what care looks like instead of just talking about it.
Short meetings: Comma offers monthly professional development. These, and other as-needed meetings, are short and scheduled times are respected.
How More Companies Can Support Moms and Families
Life-first values at Comma have created a culture that lets professional parents thrive. Flexible work arrangements and remote work opportunities might seem like second thoughts to employers, but they can be groundbreaking career-builders for caretakers deep in parenthood. The simple default of “it’s always been done this way” is an empty approach that can miss top talent and shut daunting doors.
If companies want to make a difference for families and tap into an expanded talent pool, they can prioritize policies that immeasurably support working parents. Some of these include:
Remote work positions: Allowing location flexibility can help with productivity and retention, providing a win for both employees and companies.
Flexible scheduling: When deadlines are prioritized over scheduled hours, people can do their best work while balancing life in a way that works for them.
Compressed workweeks: Thinking outside the box with workweeks helps professional parents build their weeks around life, while still achieving their work goals.
Childcare stipends: A fixed amount to support childcare costs can open doors for parents and help relieve their most significant stressors.
Parental leave: Supporting families during weeks of both stressful and special times allows employees to adjust to parenthood intentionally.
Lactation support: Resources that help with the transition from maternity leave to scheduled work are shown to help lower healthcare costs and raise retention.
Communicative company culture: A company that communicates support and values fosters productivity and morale in ways that can’t be measured.
These are just a few of the ways companies can support parents and invest in their success, rather than just talking about the concept. Companies should remember these policies aren’t just acts of kindness. They’re the path to help people be their best selves.
Some favorite advice that has always stuck with Cryrstalee is, “You take care of your team. Your team takes care of your clients. Then your clients take care of you.”
A Big Thank You to Nectar
Through Nectar — and visionaries like Nate Bagley — experiences like those shared in the video are no longer left in the shadows. Conversations like these don’t just raise awareness about the importance of life-first work — they spark the kind of empathy that drives real, lasting change.
Comma wants to sincerely thank Nectar for this collaboration and for helping move the conversation about supporting professional parents forward. If the video resonates with you, be sure to share it with someone who might need the reminder: many of us are carrying a real-life load behind the title on our resumés.
