Dear Nanny, So You Were Fired? Now What?

Nanny job turnover is the nature of the beast - childcare needs by definition are constantly evolving. Often job terminations are planned, pleasant, and accompanied by a letter of recommendation. Sometimes, a nanny is simply fired. Maybe she was at fault, maybe not. Personality clashes, unexpected changes to a family's circumstances and even simple immaturity on the family's part or the nanny's part (or both!) can all result in an abrupt job termination.

So how is a nanny to find a new nanny job after being fired?

Prepare a resume. Make sure you indicate the start and stop dates for your prior employment. Hopefully this will show that most of your previous employment was longer term (2 - 4 years is long term in the nanny world) and your most recent 4 month position was an aberration.

Contact former references and clue them in positively. It wasn't a good match. You have learned to interview more carefully. Make sure they know you are looking for work (they may have contacts) and ask if you may use them as a reference again.

Take the time to center yourself before you begin interviewing. Prayer, meditation, exercise - you usually know what works for you! You want to begin this job search with positive energy flowing. Losing a job - even a job you hated - creates a lot of anxiety. You need to find your personal, positive way of relieving the stress so it doesn't follow you on the job interview.

When interviewing, deal with the firing in a positive, or at least neutral, manner. Completely avoid the blame game. Accept responsibility where appropriate.

Be the first to bring up your termination; don't wait until the interviewing parents ask "so, why did you leave your last job?" Keep it brief and upbeat. It may have been a bad match. You may have made a mistake. The family's needs may have changed. You know you left on poor terms; however you do have several glowing references from families that you worked for long term.

Turn lemons into lemonade, looking forward. You are delighted to have this opportunity to find a family that is a good match for your talents. You are looking forward to contributing positively to this family.

Don't jump from the frying pan into the fire. Interview carefully. Know yourself, your talents, your likes and dislikes, and evaluate them carefully against the jobs you are interviewing for. One bad match is a learning opportunity. A second bad match means you didn't learn!

HomeWork Solutions' has several free tip sheets addressing interviewing and negotiating a work agreement. Educate yourself. When you view yourself and your services in a professional light, others will too!