15 August 2017

When you feel like you are failing...don't give up

Why do I feel as though the past 8 1/2 years haven't accounted for much? Is it because they don't hand out degrees for parenting? There's no shiny award handed out once you have passed the newborn/baby years, toddler tantrum years, preschooler years.

Hubby and I joked the other day that if parenting was a university course, you would start off with your Bachelor's degree over 4 years part-time for the newborn-toddler years, then you move on to the Graduate Certificate for the Preschool to Kindergarten years, then a Masters for primary, then PhD for the high school/teenage years, cause by the time they are teenagers, and you know teenagers, they know everything!

With Cherub starting Kindergarten this year, I had it on my "to-do" list to get back to the workforce once she's settled in at school. Well it's now halfway through Term 3, and I still haven't found a job.


After spending the past 8 1/2 years as a stay-at-home Mum, I have been questioning my abilities and procrastinating (such a time waster!) about whether to start my own business. My confidence levels have been quite low, and I had been feeling frustrated and confused with what I should do with returning to work.

I have been told, "Oh you just need to upskill yourself ", "Do a course", "Become a VA", "Just go for it!"

I know it sounds like I am making up excuses, but it's a terrible feeling to think that you used to be bloody good at your job before having kids, then wham 8 years later you are unsure if you can do that job again and you doubt your abilities. I am sure the knowledge is locked away in my brain somewhere!

While there's been heaps of jobs I could have applied for, most were full-time and far from home. I want to have the flexibility of being able to still help out at the girl's school, be there in the mornings and afternoons for them, and have the ability to attend special events, so with that in mind I have decided to start up my own home business. The fear of not knowing if I can do it or not, is still their in the back of my mind, but I know if I don't give it a go, I'll be kicking myself for it. I also know, that I won't be happy if I just settle on any job, and find that I don't enjoy it and could be doing something else.



So I guess what I am trying to say is if you are finding yourself doubting yourself or abilities or worried that you can't do something like start your own business or setup an Etsy shop (another thing I am working on) because you've been told "there's no money in it", or "my friend tried that and it didn't work", stop it. Don't give up too easily on your ideas or yourself, if you don't give your idea a go, you will never know if you can make something out of it.

3 comments:

  1. Hugs. Substitute 14 years for 8 and we are soul sisters! I did the business thing and am still left at the point of "did I waste all these years". I am searching for a part time day job and so far nothing fits (really I am no longer qualified to do anything and no entry level jobs come up which I find shocking). I am hopefully about to volunteer as a teacher's aide at a local primary school to double check my gut that this is the right next job for me (a TAFE course starts October 3 and is not cheap so hubby wants me to get practical exposure to see if I DO like the role). My kids are in high school but I still feel like I need to be around and I definitely still want to be able to spend school holidays with them. So little out there for part timers. Good luck- here if you want to chat at all- email me anytime xxx

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    1. Hi Deb, Thanks sister ;) Yeah it's so hard deciding what to do. I felt the same with not being qualified or have the right amount of experience...even for a job in a shop I'd need some sort of retail training or studying a retail course. I didn't want to have to start from the bottom and work my way up again either. I thought of being a teacher's aide too! The hours and time off during the school holidays would be great. Take care Deb, will talk to you soon xxx

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  2. I hope you find the notion of paid work where you love what you do. Not all people can or do and you have done a marvellous job raising your girls. Where do you fee; comfortable? Is it around little kids or big ones? Or not anywhere near them. I would suggest, if you wanted a little idea, is to get some career guidance from a professional who may steer you in a direction you may not have considered. Oh, and by the way, do not think you HAVE to get a job to make a difference..it is about you liking or loving what it is! Best wishes, Denyse x

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