Tuesday, October 27, 2009

What Nannies Should do During a Recession

There are TONS of professionals nannies without work, and some have been without work for months. Job orders are coming in, but what make one nanny get the job over another? Here are a few tips (aka feedback from families) as to why they hired one nanny over another:

1. Make or update your resume. I cannot stress this enough. If you don't have a resume MAKE ONE and if you have a resume UPDATE it, and make sure it looks professional.
There are many website that can help you create a professional resume, but here are a few tips:
  • Have an easy to read resume. Use bullet points instead of long paragraphs, make sure it is not over crowded, has white space, 12 point fonts, two pages, and does not have a lot of abbreviations, functional or industry jargon.
  • Make sure vital information used for screening stands out such as,company description and industry, title, dates, organization, number of people managed, scope of responsibility, etc.
  • Pleasing to the eye.
  • Well organized and laid out.

2. Stay active and healthy. If you are not working, don't sit around waiting, STAY PHYSICALLY ACTIVE by taking walks, going for a run, riding your bike, going to the gym, swimming at the local pool, try to get in a little exercise everyday. I'm not saying spend money by getting a gym membership, there are plenty of ways to stay active without spending a dime. Remember, you're a nanny- you chance after little children, parents value a physically active nanny.

3. The market is competitive. Salaries are not what they used to be and many qualified professional nannies have lowered there rates, not drastically but in order to compete for a job. Yes, the high profile, high paying nanny position do exists but the number of professional nannies being considered for these positions are double, if not triple, what they were 1-2 years ago. Stay competitive, but if you are able to be flexible- this is just a suggestion.

These are just a few tips, more to come...

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