This Ask Savvy question comes ShelleyHFan who wants to drop her current job to become a nanny. I reached out to Wendy Sachs, Editor-in-Chief of Care.com, a website that matches nannies up with families, to share her expertise in the field with us. For those interested in taking care of children, Care.com has a great babysitter pay calculator , which shows you the estimated pay for a nanny by zip code.
I hate my job and I have wracked my brain to figure out why I'm continually unhappy at most places. I think I've finally figured it out, much of my work has been in sales and/or customer service and I'm kind of an introvert (people confuse introversion with shyness but I know that it really refers energy output when dealing with people and for how long). Anyhow, I think sales jobs are hit or miss for me.
I was thinking that I really like kids and maybe I should try and look for a job as a nanny. I plan to get certified in CPR and First Aid. My issue is that I don't have much formal experience with kids. Most of my jobs have been sales/customer service and my resume is tailored to that. I've got a little over 10 first cousins on one side of the family and I'm the oldest of four so I'm not a stranger to kids and big families, but I never babysat anyone else's kids. I wanted some advice on how to write up a new resume or if I should at all? What should I write down in my email to this preschool/daycare center? Does anyone have any advice on how to apply for nanny jobs? What do you wear to nanny interviews? And what do I do about my resume? I also never finished my college degree do I need to mention or explain that?
To hear Wendy's response, read on.
