Finding Your Professional Value and More as a SAHM
When I quit my job a year ago, I had no plan as to how I was going to help take care of my family.
My husband worked, but we were by no means ‘rolling in the dough.’ So leaving my career with no plan, a family and a new home, was one of the most difficult decisions I’ve ever had to make. But it also pushed me to find new ways to earn money and to market myself as a professional.
As a stay-at-home mom, on several occasions I’ve felt like I do a whole lot of nothing. Things can become so routine and it was difficult for me to find the value in cleaning, cooking and wiping butts all day. But there is not only value in being a SAHM, there is definite, tangible professional value in what we do every day. So much so that I’m adding it to my resume.
Caretaker/Home Manager/Teacher
Yawson Family Home
July 2017 - Current
Responsible for the cleaning and daily upkeep of a large, multi-level, single family home
Managed, prepped, and cooked a variety of meals for multiple people with strict and varying diets
Successfully trained toddlers to use the toilet and execute personal hygiene practices independently
Planned engaging and educational activities for preschool aged students
That sounds pretty legit to me! Think about what you do every day.
It’s impossible to not find value in raising and caring for a family. There’s just too much involved to not to.
Not having a job, it was important for me to use any possible time I had to learn a new skill or brush-up on a skill that I hadn’t used in a while. I developed an interest in photography after the birth of my first son. I wanted professional pictures taken of him, but I was not willing to pay the professional price. So I figured I could do it myself. And I did, using my iPhone, some items I had around the house and a few dollar store decorations.
After this shoot I was gifted a more professional camera, took advantage of a $10 photography course deal on Udemy and started taking pictures of family and friends. Once I was confident enough to start taking pictures of strangers for money, I created a website and became a photographer. Boom! New skill — mastered. Now I earn extra money doing something I enjoy.
There are lots of free and inexpensive ways to learn a new skill without enrolling in school or spending a ton of money. Most online programs offer a certificate once you complete a course, which makes it a bit more official and is another nice thing you can add to your resume. Here are a few websites that offer a variety of relevant courses:
When searching for work, I knew I had to find something that allowed me to work-from-home, because I have two little ones and daycare is way too expensive.
What I found during my initial search was a bit discouraging, because it’s sometimes difficult to decipher which offers are legit and which ones are scams or simply a waste of time. But after several bad experiences, I found that the language you use in your search and where you find the information matters. For example, instead of searching “work-from-home jobs” try using the words “remote” or “virtual.” This isn’t guaranteed to give you scam-free results, but I found that it definitely filtered out some of the less favorable jobs. I also noticed a huge difference in the quality and legitimacy of an offer, depending on the website where I found it. For example, a legitimate company is more likely to share a job posting on LinkedIn or Career Builder than they would on Craigslist. Here are some sites I’ve relied on in my searches:
FlexJobs
Amazon
The Mom Project
Care.com
LinkedIn
Indeed
I’ve come across lots of different opportunities to work from home, but when you have small children your options are limited.
That’s because many remote jobs require you to have a quiet workspace because the work involves speaking on the phone. Here are some jobs you may want to consider, that do NOT always require a quiet workspace:
Writer
Babysitter
In-Home Daycare Provider
Virtual Assistant
Editor
Artist
Transcriber
Social Media Manager or Strategist
Graphic Designer
There is definitely a way to market your skills as a mother. I had to decide that I was going to see the value in myself as a woman, as a mother and as a professional, even if I’m not clocking in-and-out of a 9-to-5 or in the career in which I earned my degree. Being a stay-at-home mom is work. It is challenging work that requires a great deal of skill and emotional intelligence. Be confident in yourself, mama! You are more than just a stay-at-home mom. You’re a (little) people manager, a chef, a caretaker, a counselor, a teacher. You are a WORKING mother who knows her worth and THAT is valuable.
Meet Devona
I'm a wife and mother of two boys, striving to live a life that's pleasing to God. I take pictures (and sometimes shoot videos), look after little people and spend way too much time on the internet. I was born and raised in Kansas City. I earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Missouri. Before becoming a SAHM I worked as a television news producer for more than 10 years and earned a regional Emmy nomination for my work. I'm blessed.