This paper examines how motherhood limits women's progression in academic leadership roles and argues for the importance of gender equity in addressing this issue. Motherhood represents a significant shift in a woman’s life, requiring goal restructuring and personal development, which can affect their pursuit of leadership in academia. Although women can enter academic research, cultural, structural, social, and economic factors often hinder their rise to leadership positions. Previous literature has explored women’s underrepresentation in various sectors, but few studies have focused on the potential benefits of equity over equality in academic leadership. The study aimed to investigate the challenges female lecturers face in attaining leadership roles, the strategies they use to overcome these challenges, and how gender equity, rather than equality, can improve women's representation in higher education leadership. Equity simply means being fair or fairness. Advocates of gender have focused more on equality than equity, but in spite of their advocacies, the quality and the population of women in higher education leadership roles is still predominantly low. Using a qualitative case study approach, the study applied Gender Role, Work-Life Balance, and Life Preference theories. Semi-structured online interviews were conducted with thirty (30) female lecturers holding leadership positions in two Nigerian universities: Lead City University and the University of Ibadan. Findings revealed that motherhood significantly impacts time management, particularly in writing research papers required for promotion, and leads to exhaustion from multitasking. The study concludes that equitable policies are essential for improving women’s representation in academic leadership, suggesting that equality alone may be insufficient to address these challenges effectively.