As happy as I am with my SAHM life, it was never meant to be a permanent arrangement. I am staying home while I go to school. Eventually, I will be returning to the workforce. Sad face. However, I have some interview tips for the SAHM going back to work.
For most of the past ten years, I was a front line manager for an entry level call center department. I interviewed and hired hundreds of people. Ten years of interviewing, hiring, and coaching new entry level sales people left me with a little bit of experience and wisdom that I don’t want to forget in the two years I plan to stay home.
1) Don’t be ashamed of being out of the work force whether it has been 10 years or 10 months! You have been taking care of your family. There’s no shame in that. Never never never apologize for putting your family first.
2) Sure you may not be familiar with the latest database software but what skills have you honed while at home? How about multi-tasking, conflict management, planning/prioritizing, negotiating, organization? Though you might not want to tie it directly to children, you have those skills.
- Instead of, “My children have taught me to blah blah blah.” Try, “I have excellent multi-tasking skills.”
- Instead of, “I have been out of the workforce for 10 years, but…” try, “in my previous experience I blah blah blah.”
3) Sell yourself. Know that you can do this job because you have handled all sorts of crises so working for someone else should be a cakewalk. Do you blog? Doesn’t that count as work experience? Sure, I only get a few free products and a buck a month from ads but I write regularly, analyze my traffic, run reports, plan my posts, etc. All of these things translate to experience.
4) Don’t go to an interview in yoga pants. Nobody loves yoga pants more than I do but just don’t. (Yes, this has happened.) What’s even worse than yoga pants? Wearing shorts, while carrying an infant in a carrier, with a toddler walking beside you, while you are talking on your cell phone during a job fair tour of the office. (This really happened, too!)
5) The job market hasn’t changed so much in the last decade that old fashioned interview dos and don’ts no longer apply. Employers are looking for emotionally intelligent, trainable, accomplished, ambitious employees.
Really, all it boils down to is Mom confidence. What I have learned since I started blogging was that many, many SAHM moms were accomplished professionals who decided to stay home. I know doctors who left practicing to stay home and raise their children. I know executives that have done the same. Don’t listen to the voices that say, “Oh you are a full-time mommy? or you just stay home?” Listen to the one that says, “You rock whether you are at home or not.” The question isn’t whether you are ready to go back to work. It’s whether they are ready for you!
Did you like this post? Check out my next post containing interview tips for the SAHM going back into the workforce. Click here to read about strengths and weaknesses.
Interview Tips for SAHM continued
Raquel says
Great tips! I came back to the workforce after being out a few years so I can relate. I also sit on interview panels and so many people say they took time off with their kids and do not add any of the skills it takes to run a household, etc. Already following on Twitter and now following you FB page too! Happy SITS Day!
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Herchel says
Thank you Raquel! I sat on interview panels too and noticed the same thing.
Katy Blevins says
Great post!! Pinned to my shared parenting board. Going back to work after being at home is scary. We often forget how qualified we are! This post knocks that extra boost of confidence into high gear. Thank you!
Katy Blevins recently posted…Bloggers Brags Weekly Pinterest Party – Featured Blogger
Herchel says
Thanks Katy! Reminding moms that staying at home can be harder than working and pointing out the skills they’ve mastered was my goal :).
Katelyn F says
And your last paragraph says it all. 🙂 Great tips! I should be doing a temp job starting in about a month and a half… and it’s a little overwhelming just thinking about working again outside the home. Thankfully I already have the job landed. Thanks for the tips for the future!
Katelyn F recently posted…Child Car Seat BeltLock – No more undone seatbelts!
Herchel says
Congrats on lining up the job 🙂 I am beginning to think the whole Mommy wars thing–which is more portrayed in the media than I have actually seen happening in the day to day world, just erodes EVERY mom’s confidence. Working moms feel are made to feel insecure about their homemaking and parenting skills. Stay at home moms are made to feel insecure about how they fit in with the working world and whether or not they contribute… It all boils down to doing what’s best for your family’s circumstances. By the way, katelyn, I loved the breastfeeding hurts post.
Gracielle says
These are great tips! I totally agree that confidence comes into play when returning back into the work force. Also, as a former social media professional and a blogger, I can say that blogging demands all the competencies needed for a career in social media – writing, content management, engagement, and analytics.
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Herchel says
I use many of the analytical and writing skills I used as an Internet sales manager just blogging from home. I don’t have to manage people face to face anymore but relationships are relationships, whether in person or online. I really believe that many of the women that are successful as mom bloggers are probably the same ones that were or would be successful in other fields as well.