How to Work As a Nanny for Pay
If you have a knack for working with children, working as a nanny for pay may be a good career choice. With more and more families needing both parents to work full time in order to pay the bills, nanny opportunities are plentiful. However, many people are unsure of how exactly to go about becoming a nanny.
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Instructions
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Get the necessary experience. Chances are that your available options and the amount you will be able to charge will dramatically increase with your level of experience and skills. You can get this experience by babysitting or volunteering at schools or child care centers in your area
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Decide if you would like to look for nanny positions on your own, use an online nanny service or go through a local nanny referral agency. The advantages of using an agency or referral service is that they will typically do most of the grunt work for you in terms of hooking you up with potential families. Instead of spending hours searching for jobs, you can trust them to provide you with all the leads you need. However, the biggest disadvantage is that you may have little control over which jobs the agency or referral service send your application to. Since there are advantages and disadvantages for each option, it really just is a matter of personal preference as to which will suit your specific situation the best. If you are just starting out in the industry, an agency or referral service may be useful to guide you through the job hunting process. If you already feel comfortable finding and applying for jobs yourself, you may choose to go on your own instead.
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Begin job hunting. If you decided to work through an agency or referral service, the most important part of this step is to follow their specific instructions to obtain job interviews. However, if you chose to work on your own, you will need to spend a good amount of time responding to classified ads and marketing your own services.
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Interview to the best of your abilities. Family interviews are always very important, and it is essential that you do your best to connect with the children while there. Also, make sure to prepare for potential interview questions and practice beforehand to calm your nerves and feel more prepared. Some interview questions may be about the types of activities you plan to do with the children, your discipline methodology, and your specific strengths and weaknesses.
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Communicate clearly. Remember that the interviewing process should not just be to make sure the family wants you to work for them, but should be about you deciding if they are a good fit for you as well. Clearly communicate your child-rearing philosophies and expectations, and establish the sort of extra household duties you would or would not be willing to do.
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Pass a background check. No matter if you are working for yourself or through an agency, a background check will most likely be conducted. Try to make sure your record is as clean as possible, but if you do happen to have any past transgression be sure to be able to honest and thoroughly explain about the situation to try to relieve any concerns.
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Negotiate a fair work agreement and salary. If you opted to work through an agency or referral service, they may do this for you. However, if this is not the case, be strong and confident in your bargaining abilities in order to get the type of schedule and pay you are worth.
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Always be professional. As you begin working, make sure you do everything in your power to uphold your end of the agreement. Always be on time and be sure to communicate effectively with all members of the family.
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Tips & Warnings
Try to find local classes, workshops, or other professional development opportunities to make sure you are always up-to-date on the latest trends in child care and development.
Although some nannies try to work "under the table" and not have the family they work for withhold taxes, this is not recommended and may get you in serious legal trouble.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit AD-Passion: SXC.hu
