My professional story

How did I end up where I am?

In 2001 I graduated from Missouri State University (then it was Southwest Missouri State) with a degree in Hospitality and Restaurant Administration. I moved to Charlotte, NC to start my life with my fiancé, while all my other friends got their first-rung jobs in big companies within the 2 largest cities in Missouri. Then, on Sept 11, 2001, our world changed forever, and almost immediately, the bottom fell out of the hospitality world, and no one was hiring. I needed an income, and I researched what a nanny was, how it was different than an au pair, and got to work trying to find a job listing that was not teaching in a day care, and something a little more than what I did as 14yr old in my childhood neighborhood.

Once I was hired, the first job turned into more a chauffeur for 3 young teens, then moved to a job where my charge and I were not allowed to leave the house, until finally I settled in a family that had a 14 month, and a 4 day old. I spent 2.5 years with this family, and at the end was pregnant with my first son. Life again adjusted, because I knew I did not want to put him in a daycare program, but could not afford to stay home. Craigslist had recently come onto the scene, and I found a family actively searching for a nanny to bring their child with them to work, so that their son and mine could play together. My son and their’s were 4 months apart, and played like 2 boys would, and they paid me half of what I had previously been paid. This was it, I figured, I get to make memories with my son while getting paid this menial wage. Suck it up and deal with it.

In 2010 we had the ability to move to Dallas, TX, to be closer to my parents. I was so excited about the possibility of working in profitable city like Dallas, and knew the jobs would come pouring in. Except, they didn’t. I found the culture very different here, and had to learn how to navigate this new city. I interviewed with a couple of agencies, and got 80% through with a large agency, and went to their course on “Nanny Portfolio’s” where I was taught about how to make a scrapbook about my career, and use that to get a new job. Two interviews later, a family I found on my own, offered me a position.

Mid-2011 we found out we were expecting, and when I told my work family, they were so happy, and wanted me to bring my son with me to work. It was going to work out wonderfully. Although, when I did, it really got under work-from-home-Mb’s skin, and she began to get passive aggressive towards me, resentful of the division of attention, and made it an all-around uncomfortable work place.

At this point, there was injection of some stress in my home life, and I made the decision to divorce my husband. I quit working, and spent some time re-evaluating my career, and establishing a new life for myself. When I emerged, I had 3 new part-time jobs, and knew that it would be a bit a grind, but it was a necessary first step.

It’s now 2016, and I’m still managing my schedule, managing my 2 sons, and am fed up with driving here and there, trying to find ways to spend random hours of time where my shift doesn’t start, but don’t have enough time to go home. During this time I have found the nanny network in Dallas, and have begun making friends, and co-workers. I am connected with a woman who has a thriving company of nannies, and she connects me a family of 2 young girls, who offer me a full-time job. This was a wonderful move for me, as it allowed me to work for one family, and home in time to be with my boys after school.

After two and a half years, this job ended, and I fell into a valley of vast emptiness of nanny jobs. I interviewed, and interviewed, and talked with people, over and over. I saw more nannies join the job search, and knew that I had even more competition. My (new) husband was struggling to support me, all while wondering how much longer this would continue as we needed my income for the house we recently bought. I lowered my rate, and kept interviewing, and finally after 5 months, had a new family to work for. This would have been a relief, except that 6 weeks into this job, I knew it wasn’t the right fit for me.

So, what did I do? Start the whole process over while keeping a pleasant face during the day while working, and applying to every job that became available. It took me even more interviews, a lot of self-reflection, but I found another family needing a loving nanny and a parental coach, which is what I specialize in. After 9 months, I moved on, and have now found a place where I am appreciated, respected, and an active member of their team.