How to Find a Job When You're a Single Mom
Being a working single mother calls for maintaining a steady balance between work life and home life. Finding an employer that takes a single mother's responsibilities at home into consideration is crucial. Single mothers in the job market must zone in on careers that are flexible. Health care, real estate, sales, and public relations are amongst the fields that offer this flexibility and offer the competitive wages that working mothers require.
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Determine your child care needs based upon the age of your children. Consider companies or employers that have on-site day care facilities if you have infants or toddlers. Look for fields where employees keep hours similar to school hours, if your children are in school. School bus drivers, teacher's assistants, and librarians are some examples of jobs that can be kept during normal school hours.
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Research companies that are known to take the needs of working mothers into consideration--"Working Mother" magazine annually publishes a list of companies that meet that criterion. Consider jobs within fields that keep flexible hours or where you can create your own schedule. Some fields that allow flexibility are retail sales, per-diem nurse, substitute teacher, and waitress. Visit employment agencies and be up front about your situation so that career counselors can better help pinpoint a job that matches your needs. Consider part-time training or educational opportunities to prepare for a career in a more flexible field like real estate where you are an independent contractor and can show houses on your schedule. Consider enrolling in training courses to run a business of your own.
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Have a conversation with your potential employer about your child care situation before accepting a position. Make a discussion about the company's work atmosphere and attitude toward working mothers a priority sometime during the hiring process, perhaps after the initial interview. Ask whether you can plan work hours or a work schedule around school hours or schedule a break on each weekday in order to pick children up from school.
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Consider starting your own home business. "Mompreneurs" have emerged out of a new generation of working mothers, striving to meet the demands of caring for their children while forging ahead with personal career aspirations. Sell your baked goods or start designing handbags. Be your own boss and create a schedule around your kids when when you operate your own business from home.
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- Photo Credit Mother image by Mat Hayward from Fotolia.com
