Monday, June 23, 2008

To Rejoin the Workforce or not

As a parent of five children, as you can imagine, money is of the utmost important goals. We have to provide for them. I've spent 13 years working/staying home with the kids. I've babysat, typed transcripts, sold candles, made doll clothes and other hand crafted items all from home. I've decided to retire from the whole babysitting deal. In the fall all five of my children will be in school full time/all day.

My husband wants me to get a job. I can't decide if I want to work outside the home, or get something going here, at home. Of course, I'd love to stay home. But we do have to have some income or we just won't make it. I need to replace an $800 a month income...and soon. I've been browsing Monster and Yahoo Hotjobs for jobs, and actually found one for my father. He started last week with an opportunity that should take him through the rest of his working life.

As for myself, I've seen some postings that have had potential. I guess I'm not sure where to start. I started working on a resume today. That's a joke. Let me tell you. When it comes to experience, I don't feel like I have enough in any one area to get a job that I might enjoy making a living at. I can't even imagine what employers are looking for at this stage in my life.

Top my lack of experience with a lack of education and I can certainly tell you that I feel like my options in the traditional workforce are extremely limited. I graduated high school. That's the extent of my education. It doesn't seem like much, especially when you put it down on paper (or computer screen...)

Now for the big question. What do I want to do with the rest of my life? And how can it make me enough money to get by as a contributing member of society--as well as my household? Grrr....it's frustrating and freeing at the same time. I'm enjoying not 'having' to work right now, just managing my kids and household, the usual stuff--laundry, meals, shopping, organizing, entertaining, kid extra curricular activities and such.

All that's fine, but it seems as though if I'm to stay home in the fall when the kids go off to school, I'll need to have something in place to have an immediate income. It feels like my spouse is really pushing me out the door to get a job, even though I'm not sure the perfect job is out there. I'm not ready to leave the kids completely on their own. A job will have to fit into their schedules as well, not to mention the spouses schedule. Is there really a job out there with the hours of 9-3 so that I can get the kids to school and home again without feeling like I'm abandoning them before or after school?

There are things I'm working on, that I really need to focus on and get going. There's my seamstress 'career'. I make quilts, blankets and bibs for The Storks Cradle. I also have lots of ideas for an online store for handmade items made by me and my mom. My spouse would LOVE it if I could finish just one of the many 'books' that I've started writing and sell it. I feel so unprofessional though, to become an author, though, wouldn't that be cool!?!

I love to take photos, but again, feel like such an amateur. I would love to purchase a couple of backdrops and a small lighting kid to just start taking portraits. I'm not sure if I'm good enough though. I lack self confidence in a bad way to be able to do so many of the things I enjoy as hobbies. Maybe it's focus that I lack. I can't seem to focus on just one thing and make a go of it.

This is my dilemma. Am I ready for the working world? The professional world sounds so scary. My resume is on hold right now as just the bones of it. I need to get creative and focus on what it is that I can get going before school starts. I hate feeling rushed...but time is already running out!

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