No Experience Necessary
It's been a long time since the last post but please forgive me I've been trying to find a job. After the postulation of previous posts the decision was reached, as well as bank overdrafts and credit card limits, that the stay at home dad should become a work dad. Hooray goes the bank balance, hooray goes my sanity, hooray goes the ......., but wait a minute, we've hit a snag. Not a small snag, not a "this requires a bit of effort" snag, but a massive, slap in your face, I didn't see that coming snag. Don't worry this isn't a repost over earnings but rather a new post about jobs that are available for this remarkable large group known as return to work parents (it used to be return to work mums but, hey, I'm a trend setter).
There are the normal problems that we who are returning to the workforce expect, such as child care costs, after school activities (and costs), holiday clubs (costs), finding something that loosely fits around family life and a job within, oh I don't know, 50 feckin miles of where you live. These we expect and we are not overly picky. We can even overcome the interviewer being younger than some jumpers we own, (and still wear we know they still look cool), even patronising looks and questions can be ignored with a withering look and clever(ish) reply. The job agencies love us. We're mature, sensible, not prone to duvet days, have a work ethic, are reliable, punctual, have a hard work ethic and are very unlikely to rock the boat wherever we may end up working. (Did I mention work ethic?) However, 8 years and counting as a proud house dad means I am apparently lacking in a very important, nay the most important, quality prospective employers are looking for. Experience.
I was very good at my old job, got promoted, received regular pay rises and always walked away with a monthly bonus. But that was a lifetime ago (apparently 8 years is a long time outside the cocoon of house husbandry) and I no longer seem to fit. I've had interviews, made it down to the final 2 in most, yet still I have time to sit here and type my inner most thoughts. The one sentence repeated again and again and again and ... well you get the idea....is that I'm "lacking experience". What the what. I'm a house dad, I have experience in fecking everything. No, honestly, everything. Take a moment out of your day and ask a stay at home parent, new or old, what they do on a daily basis. Go on I dare you. The answer may surprise you. Now once you've listened for 5 minutes and realised that the awesome soul talking hasn't reached lunchtime yet, try and figure out what they don't have experience in!
I know this isn't as light hearted as normal but I'm angry and frustrated. There are thousands and thousands of people like me, desperate to contribute, who keep getting blocked by this brick wall of a sentence. We were successful before and can be again. Employers, take a chance, you won't be disappointed. And when we work for you, that daring leader of innovation, we know you're doing something new, we won't judge, we know it's scary and you've never done it before but thankfully no previous experience is necessary.
It's been a long time since the last post but please forgive me I've been trying to find a job. After the postulation of previous posts the decision was reached, as well as bank overdrafts and credit card limits, that the stay at home dad should become a work dad. Hooray goes the bank balance, hooray goes my sanity, hooray goes the ......., but wait a minute, we've hit a snag. Not a small snag, not a "this requires a bit of effort" snag, but a massive, slap in your face, I didn't see that coming snag. Don't worry this isn't a repost over earnings but rather a new post about jobs that are available for this remarkable large group known as return to work parents (it used to be return to work mums but, hey, I'm a trend setter).
There are the normal problems that we who are returning to the workforce expect, such as child care costs, after school activities (and costs), holiday clubs (costs), finding something that loosely fits around family life and a job within, oh I don't know, 50 feckin miles of where you live. These we expect and we are not overly picky. We can even overcome the interviewer being younger than some jumpers we own, (and still wear we know they still look cool), even patronising looks and questions can be ignored with a withering look and clever(ish) reply. The job agencies love us. We're mature, sensible, not prone to duvet days, have a work ethic, are reliable, punctual, have a hard work ethic and are very unlikely to rock the boat wherever we may end up working. (Did I mention work ethic?) However, 8 years and counting as a proud house dad means I am apparently lacking in a very important, nay the most important, quality prospective employers are looking for. Experience.
I was very good at my old job, got promoted, received regular pay rises and always walked away with a monthly bonus. But that was a lifetime ago (apparently 8 years is a long time outside the cocoon of house husbandry) and I no longer seem to fit. I've had interviews, made it down to the final 2 in most, yet still I have time to sit here and type my inner most thoughts. The one sentence repeated again and again and again and ... well you get the idea....is that I'm "lacking experience". What the what. I'm a house dad, I have experience in fecking everything. No, honestly, everything. Take a moment out of your day and ask a stay at home parent, new or old, what they do on a daily basis. Go on I dare you. The answer may surprise you. Now once you've listened for 5 minutes and realised that the awesome soul talking hasn't reached lunchtime yet, try and figure out what they don't have experience in!
I know this isn't as light hearted as normal but I'm angry and frustrated. There are thousands and thousands of people like me, desperate to contribute, who keep getting blocked by this brick wall of a sentence. We were successful before and can be again. Employers, take a chance, you won't be disappointed. And when we work for you, that daring leader of innovation, we know you're doing something new, we won't judge, we know it's scary and you've never done it before but thankfully no previous experience is necessary.
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