I recently found myself in need of a resume.
Not a surprising thing, right? Resumes are certainly the standard when it comes to entering the workforce. It's just been a very very VERY long time since I've actually needed to have one for myself. Admittedly, I kind of enjoy writing resumes. I've helped a few family members tweak a resume or two over the years. Yet, when I sat down to hammer out my own, there was a moment of perfect nothingness (something no writer/resume writer ever likes to experience). My mind was blank. I was momentarily certain I had absolutely nothing to write. Translation: nothing to offer!!
It's okay, though. After a few deep breaths (and maybea piece two pieces of dark chocolate), I convinced myself that there was plenty I could include, and I was gonna kill this resume thing.
I'm big on brainstorming, so before even giving a moment of thought to the structure of my resume, or dates or titles or any of those little details that would have to be filled in eventually, I tried to bring to mind all the things I'd been doing over the past 14 years. Of course, when I say all the things, I don't really mean ALL. Or even most actually. I didn't even think about including the tasks I'd been completely as a soccer (more like wrestling) mom, SAHM, domestic goddess or whatever other title could be included for motherhood.
Not that all those tasks aren't valid and amazing and ridiculously important (I could lecture on that for days). But they're not, how to explain it, measurable or maybe verifiable. It would be ridiculous for someone to review my children to see how I'd performed as a mother, or do an inspection of my house to see how I've managed my home, or request a copy of my checkbook to see how I regulated the family budget. Certainly no one is going to use my teenagers as a reference and ask them leading questions like "what are your mother's strengths and weaknesses?" Although, that would be extremely interesting! And actuallya bit terribly frightening.
No, I knew that it would be best to leave out the myriad of responsibilities that are simply required of a full-time mother (or father) and look beyond that to roles I had filled for outside organizations. For me, that meant volunteer work. I realized that I had filled roles and led programs for the PTA, HOA, and BSA, as well as local church youth groups. That was quantifiable work requiring and strengthening specific skill, and I quickly got to work analyzing all the functions and tasks I had performed in those roles--noting down the most important and applicable.
I did have to give a moments thought over how to arrange my list of experience; ultimately opting for chronological order under the title of "Highlights of Volunteer & Professional Experience" (professional as well, since I was including some of the professional work I had performed pre-motherhood). I also included my education (as I do have a bachelors degree), as well as a "Personal Interests" section where I was sure to mention family/kids, just in case it wasn't already super obvious the reason why all of my experience in the past 12+ years had been volunteer based. I didn't use it this time, but a section including strengths (be specific as possible) and technical skills (systems/programs you know, etc.) is also usually a great idea.
Before I knew it, I had prepared a very nice resume that would serve my purposes quite well and was ready to move on to the next task on my crazy mom list!
So, what if you haven't done a lot of volunteer work? Is there anything else you've been doing on the side? Working in a shop on occasion, selling on eBay, writing a blog (even if you have almost no readership), etc. You can work with that! Be honest, but definitely also be creative. I think oftentimes as women we tend to downplay our strengths/talents/skills/abilities, but a resume is not the time to do that. When brainstorming for your resume, be your own advocate and remember that it's okay to toot your own horn once in a while (although arrogance is also tacky so make sure and keep an objective tone).
Still concerned that you have nothing to write? Well, if you aren't in urgent need of a career/resume, sign up for a volunteer position or two to gain some experience--there's plenty of opportunities out there!! Or, consider signing up for a class or two to learn a specific technical skill and highlight that/those skills on your resume.
Okay, so what are you waiting for? Go write your resume! You have plenty to offer!!
And if you're interested in a few articles with some good information on writing a resume after being a full-time parent, check out the links below ...
https://resumegenius.com/resume-samples/stay-at-home-mom-resume-example
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dailymuse/2013/07/08/stay-at-home-parent-how-to-kill-it-on-your-comeback-resume/#1a9276a25872
Not a surprising thing, right? Resumes are certainly the standard when it comes to entering the workforce. It's just been a very very VERY long time since I've actually needed to have one for myself. Admittedly, I kind of enjoy writing resumes. I've helped a few family members tweak a resume or two over the years. Yet, when I sat down to hammer out my own, there was a moment of perfect nothingness (something no writer/resume writer ever likes to experience). My mind was blank. I was momentarily certain I had absolutely nothing to write. Translation: nothing to offer!!
It's okay, though. After a few deep breaths (and maybe
I'm big on brainstorming, so before even giving a moment of thought to the structure of my resume, or dates or titles or any of those little details that would have to be filled in eventually, I tried to bring to mind all the things I'd been doing over the past 14 years. Of course, when I say all the things, I don't really mean ALL. Or even most actually. I didn't even think about including the tasks I'd been completely as a soccer (more like wrestling) mom, SAHM, domestic goddess or whatever other title could be included for motherhood.
Not that all those tasks aren't valid and amazing and ridiculously important (I could lecture on that for days). But they're not, how to explain it, measurable or maybe verifiable. It would be ridiculous for someone to review my children to see how I'd performed as a mother, or do an inspection of my house to see how I've managed my home, or request a copy of my checkbook to see how I regulated the family budget. Certainly no one is going to use my teenagers as a reference and ask them leading questions like "what are your mother's strengths and weaknesses?" Although, that would be extremely interesting! And actually
No, I knew that it would be best to leave out the myriad of responsibilities that are simply required of a full-time mother (or father) and look beyond that to roles I had filled for outside organizations. For me, that meant volunteer work. I realized that I had filled roles and led programs for the PTA, HOA, and BSA, as well as local church youth groups. That was quantifiable work requiring and strengthening specific skill, and I quickly got to work analyzing all the functions and tasks I had performed in those roles--noting down the most important and applicable.
I did have to give a moments thought over how to arrange my list of experience; ultimately opting for chronological order under the title of "Highlights of Volunteer & Professional Experience" (professional as well, since I was including some of the professional work I had performed pre-motherhood). I also included my education (as I do have a bachelors degree), as well as a "Personal Interests" section where I was sure to mention family/kids, just in case it wasn't already super obvious the reason why all of my experience in the past 12+ years had been volunteer based. I didn't use it this time, but a section including strengths (be specific as possible) and technical skills (systems/programs you know, etc.) is also usually a great idea.
Before I knew it, I had prepared a very nice resume that would serve my purposes quite well and was ready to move on to the next task on my crazy mom list!
So, what if you haven't done a lot of volunteer work? Is there anything else you've been doing on the side? Working in a shop on occasion, selling on eBay, writing a blog (even if you have almost no readership), etc. You can work with that! Be honest, but definitely also be creative. I think oftentimes as women we tend to downplay our strengths/talents/skills/abilities, but a resume is not the time to do that. When brainstorming for your resume, be your own advocate and remember that it's okay to toot your own horn once in a while (although arrogance is also tacky so make sure and keep an objective tone).
Still concerned that you have nothing to write? Well, if you aren't in urgent need of a career/resume, sign up for a volunteer position or two to gain some experience--there's plenty of opportunities out there!! Or, consider signing up for a class or two to learn a specific technical skill and highlight that/those skills on your resume.
Okay, so what are you waiting for? Go write your resume! You have plenty to offer!!
And if you're interested in a few articles with some good information on writing a resume after being a full-time parent, check out the links below ...
https://resumegenius.com/resume-samples/stay-at-home-mom-resume-example
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dailymuse/2013/07/08/stay-at-home-parent-how-to-kill-it-on-your-comeback-resume/#1a9276a25872
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