What does a stay at home mom put on her resume?

CNN recently published results of research done at Salary.com. It stated that "The typical mother puts in a 92-hour work week, the company concluded, and works at least 10 jobs. In order of hours spent on them per week, these are: housekeeper, day-care center teacher, cook, computer operator, laundry machine operator, janitor, facilities manager, van driver, chief executive officer and psychologist. By figuring out the median salaries for each position, and calculating the average number of hours worked at each, the firm came up with $138,095 -- three percent higher than last year's results."

That alone should make any stay at home mom feel valued. Unfortunately not all potential employers see it that way. Instead of seeing a fantastic candidate who is more than capable of multitasking, problem solving and having impeccable organization skills, they see a mom who hasn't worked in years. The dilemma -- how can SAHMs create a resume which offers the opportunity to receive an interview?

Concentrate on your skills. There is no hard rule that says a resume is merely job history. Rather use bullets which annotate results achieved. For example:

Instead of: Mom's Taxi Driver

Try: Possess reliable transportation.

Instead of: Getting kids to and from school, practice and lessons

Try: 100% attendance. Over the past eight years I have not called in sick once nor been tardy to scheduled appointments.

Instead of: Laundry slave

Try: Able to multitask multiple projects at one time, resulting in a smoothly run operation.

Instead of: Sibling referee

Try: Calm under pressure.

You get the idea. The biggest challenge moms have getting back into the workforce is that lack confidence or sense of accomplishments. Staying home to manage the household and care for the family is one of the most difficult occupations around. If you don't believe me -- ask any stay at home mom. Most would agree that they had it much easier collecting a paycheck from someone else; however there is no comparison as to the rewards of working at home.

Have fun with your resume; don't get stuck in the quagmire worrying about lack of job history. Concentrate on your transferable skills and you'll be fine. If you're still at a loss on how to best display your skills, considering hiring someone to help you put together a professional resume and cover letter. You have what it takes. Employers will be fortunate to have you on their team! You can do it!

 

 

 

 

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