Stay at home mums have no workplace experience? I beg to differ!

In my previous post on this subject, we were thinking about possible alternatives to writing ‘full time mum’ on our CV. So far we have considered Child Minder, Private Tutor, and Accountant. Now we will explore a few more possibilities.

CV of a Stay At Home Mum

Personal Secretary

From play dates to parties to doctor’s appointments, all activities are booked through me. I am in charge of accurately recording the details of each engagement and ensuring that any prior planning (be that assembling an appropriate dressing up costume or purchasing a suitable gift) is attended to. Each time we leave the house, I reel off a list of items so that the ‘boss’ can check she has everything: water bottle, p.e. kit, book bag, homework, etc.

Customer Services

I am great at resolving conflict and turning the ‘customers’ complaints into positive experiences, usually by distracting them with something more appealing. I speak calmly and politely to the customers (even when they scream in my face and occasionally resort to hair-pulling and calling me ‘smelly pumpkin’). I know that the customer is always right. For example last week one of my customers was desperate for Cheese Strings so I bought 24 (they were on offer). After thoroughly enjoying 4 of them, the customer has now declared that Cheese Strings are ‘yukky’. I won’t buy them again.

Nurse

Nursing is hard – we work long hours and are on-call right through the night. I have to administer medicine which the patient often doesn’t want to take. If anyone is having bouts of vomitting, I generally end up wearing said vomit by the end of the day. I don’t get sick leave.

Travel Agent

I have extensive knowledge of all the local attractions and guarantee I can find something to meet any time-frame or budget. Each day I mentally tot up the pros and cons of each playground, soft play gym, and museum before selecting the most fitting activity. Where is the nearest toilet? Is food available? Is there time to get there and back before the afternoon school run? Will there be something to engage each of my clients? Is the activity weather-dependent?
If my client gets bored, what is the back up option?

To view Part 1 of this post, click here

Curriculum Vitae of a Stay At Home Mum PART1