How To Use Stay-At-Home-Parent Work Experience To Get A Job

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Being a stay-at-home mom is often misinterpreted as “I watch soap operas and play with my kids all day.”
This misconception can make it hard for moms to reenter the workforce. If you’re returning to work, you’ll need a resume that will prove your daily routine can help you rock it out in your new corporate gig. Here’s how you can build your resume to help highlight your skills and show employers you’re not just singing nursery rhymes and kissing babies.

Translate everyday tasks into work experience
It’s easy to imagine a stay at home mom as someone who makes forts and mud pies with her kids or kisses cute baby cheeks all day. This couldn’t be further from the truth. When returning to work, stay-at-home moms must educate employers about how they handle many of the same tasks as corporate professionals such as answering phones, processing paperwork, cleaning, managing budgets and providing customer service. Most moms will serve as tutors, mediators, accountants and relationship builders to ensure their families are equipped to thrive. It’s all in how you tell your story.
Use volunteer experience to fill the gaps
So you’re not clocking in at a 9-to-5 and getting paid, but you’re getting things done by supporting causes you believe in. Volunteering with community organizations or at a child’s school can quickly pack a stay-at-home mom’s schedule. Volunteer opportunities are great resume builders that offer the perfect way to fill employment gaps. This experience can be used to help stay-at-home moms stay up-to-date in their industries. Try registering for a free course with your local employment agency. Learning a new skill or networking while volunteering can help position stay-at-home moms for a job in the future.
Make money online
Those clothes and shoes your babies seem to grow out of overnight can be money makers if you play your cards right. Instead of trashing their personal items, try selling them online. This online business can easily fill any employment gaps stay-at-home moms experience after leaving the workplace. If others view you as the go-to person for all their questions about remedies or DIY projects, capitalize on this by creating a blog or advice column. There are many ways to monetize blogs these days and you’ll want to collect your coins to show employers you’re still capable of generating revenue.
You’re a lady boss and the glue that holds your family together – that’s a job! Opting to stay at home with your kids doesn’t have to be a death sentence for your career. Although returning to work will be an adjustment, you have the ability to change an employer’s perception by creating a compelling career story that communicates how you can help create success for any company.
Ashley Watkins, of Write Step Resumes, LLC, helps job seekers and career changers find the career of their dreams by creating the perfect resume, providing interview preparation and career coaching. She can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, or via www.WriteStepResumes.com.