Work-at-Home Moms: How to Survive in a Brutal Economy

The economy is in crisis. Families are struggling to stay afloat, and things aren't getting any easier. With this in mind, we've put together some practical tips that moms can realistically follow while balancing the huge workload that comes with managing a family. You may not strike it rich, but you can earn a little extra money or boost your savings.

Here are some great opportunities for work-at-home moms:

Opportunities for the Organized Mom

A recent eBay/Nielsen survey revealed that the average household has 52 items worth over $3,000 just lying around! Post your unneeded items on Craigslist, eBay, eFleaa or Hoobly and watch them turn from "clutter" to "cash." Everyone has unused stuff in their house; furniture, baby equipment, and antiques are bought on these sites every day. A minimum asking price ensures you won't sell too low.

Many moms have built a small business by hunting for bargains to resell in their spare time. Once you have a good seller's profile, expand by hitting local garage sales, or clearance and end of season sales for low priced items that can be resold for a tidy profit.

If you have a baby or toddler, take them with you and go undercover as a mystery shopper. Mystery shoppers visit restaurants, stores, and other businesses to report on their service from a customer's perspective. You'll need to fill out a detailed questionnaire and make a small purchase as proof of your visit to complete the job.

Start by searching for assignments online and register with several agencies (this should always be free). The average fee per visit is about $20. Visiting several places in a row will maximize your earning potential! Check out Shoppers View, Service Excellence Group, and Service Intelligence.

Organized moms should also try becoming virtual assistants. As small businesses across the country are crunched by the economy, they must make cutbacks. However, they still need help running their business on the day-to-day. VAs work a few hours a week on tasks such as customer service, travel arrangements, or bill paying.

This work is easily available on freelance sites like Elance, or virtual recruiting firms such as Virtual Office Temps, Team Double Click, or Alpine Access, and usually pays about $20 an hour.

Opportunities for the Creative Mom

Moms skilled with crafts can turn those talents into real cash. Websites such as Etsy and Silkfair are dedicated connecting your handmade toys or vintage clothes to thousands of potential buyers. Etsy charges a percentage on each sale (3.5%), while Silkfair charges 3% but allows you to sign up and list items for free - or run your own custom store for 24.99 a month. Etsy posted $88 million in sales in 2008!

Shutterbug moms can use photography to create residual income through sites like Bigstockphoto, Shutterstock, and Fotolia, which provide corporations your images for use in their advertising and on their websites. Pay can be anywhere from 25 cents per download to a percentage of the commission on a photograph, so upload a bunch!

Try profiting off things you're passionate about by selling eBooks. Many sites offer master rights to eBooks; just find ones that interest you and create a website to sell them (and keep 100% of the profits!). The best thing about this is that it doesn't take a lot of time or technical skill; you can use the website builder Wordpress to create simple sales pages.

Opportunities for the Expert Mom

Most moms had a different life before their kids. Skills and knowledge developed during this time are valuable to many potential clients who may find planning a wedding, solving computer problems, or decorating a house difficult. If these things come naturally to you, use your abilities for extra income!

Using knowledge you already have easily fits around a busy family schedule and doesn't cost a dime. Print some flyers and spread the word around your neighborhood; if you're good at what you do your clients will pass your reputation on to others. Submit a free ad to the community paper for extra publicity, or ask a local store to post your flyer. You can also use your skills from home on sites such as LivePerson or JustAnswer, which pay people per minute to answer topical questions.

If your specialty is something you can put on paper, making extra cash will be even easier. You'll just need a basic website with great content. Are you great with newborns or helping other parents? Have a collection of family recipes? These passions can translate into profit with your own web page.

Do some research on driving traffic to your website, then place some affiliate marketing links and advertisements. You can start with no technical knowledge or investment by using a free website builder program. These give you the software, support, and training you'll need.

You can also turn your expertise into articles. Many companies pay amateur writers to produce their content because of how much cheaper it is than carrying a writing staff. The Internet is full of articles and blogs where people are paid to put their knowledge into words, why not use some of yours?

Figure out where your expertise lies and put together a few sample articles to use in a portfolio on Elance, GetaFreelancer, or ODesk, then earn anywhere from a few dollars to $50 per article. Make sure you only use original material! With Elance showing a staggering 4,000 new jobs and $2 million in fees each week, the sky's the limit.

If you have a college degree, try tutoring students from across the globe. Tutor.com pays for hourly mentoring, essay reviews, and has an interactive board to work through problems together. Another site, Transwebtutors, provides live homework help on a variety of disciplines. If you are bilingual or have expertise in math or social sciences, this could be an excellent earner!

With the boom of home-based businesses brought on by the Internet, busy moms have more options than ever for generating a decent income from home. All it takes it a little research, a little skill, and the desire to make it happen. Just find what interests you and make it work!

About the author: Melanie Citron is a freelance author who wants the web to be open to everyone. She regularly researches and writes about great free or low cost resources to help all have a great presence on the web. See more of her writing at BuildMySiteforFree.com.

 

Mom Corps Seattle Shares 5 Tips for Moms Returning to Work

Jamie Flynn, Mom Corps franchise owner for the Greater Seattle area, shares her own experience with juggling the twin demands of kids and career.  Here are Jamie's 5 tips for getting back to work - or watch the full video below.

• Get your families support.
• Get current. Update your resume, skills, and wardrobe.
• Get childcare - and a backup.
• Be confident.
• Be happy with your decision to go back to work.

Meet Mom Corps' Franchise Owners - Nicole Torsella Harris, Philadelphia

Name: Nicole Torsella Harris

Education: Boston University, B.S., Sociology, 1992

Professional Experience: 10 years as a retained executive recruiter (Diversified Search), 6 years with Boston University School of Law Career Planning and Placement, 4 years not-for-profit management – Philadelphia Reads and Focus Philadelphia

What specifically drew you to Mom Corps? The idea of working with a largely untapped pool of talent, it’s a real competitive advantage.  I love having the ability to own and grow my own business within an existing/proven structure and to have the support of everybody at the corporate level.

What industries do you feel have the most potential for flexibility in Philadelphia? Any industry have potential, small and mid-size organizations are more able to make it work more quickly. Larger organizations can benefit but the process to put something in place is usually longer.

What’s your favorite Philadelphia activity to do with your family? A spur of the moment mini-vacation is our favorite!  If we wake up on a May morning and it’s 70+ degrees, we pile into the car, drive to the beach and spend the night. We come back happy and refreshed and feeling like we’ve been gone for days!

What’s your go-to stress reliever after a hard day on the new job? My days end late so usually a few pages of a good book, a glass of wine and bed. My real stress reliever is a crack of dawn run or spin, it always gets my day off to a good start.

Where Are the Jobs for Working Moms Now?

In a recent artilce on MarketWatch featuring Mom Corps' own COO, Maria Goldsholl, the author interviews her own mother, an economist and mother of three, to figure out where the jobs are now?

Nancy Mantell suggests to focus on transferrable skill sets you have from your experience over the years and how you can apply those different skill sets across a number of industries - from finance to healthcare to marketing.  Goldsholl suggests to work contracts and "keep your toes in the water" while you are taking time away in order to keep your experience current and maintain your economic power when you do return full-time.  

Click here for the full article or view a video segment of the interview below.

Meet Mom Corps' Franchise Owners - Bonnie Ceran, Charlotte

Name: Bonnie Ceran

Education: University of Phoenix: 2009, BS – Business Management, graduated with Honors

Professional Experience:
Wachovia Corporation – VP –  Manager, Professional and Staffing Services
Adecco/Olsten – Regional Manager, Staffing Services

What specifically drew you to Mom Corps?
The opportunity to remain in my field of expertise while becoming an entrepreneur. The ability to control my earnings, the brand, and model.

What industries do you feel have the most potential for flexibility in Charlotte?
Financial, healthcare, marketing

What’s your favorite Charlotte activity to do with your family?
Play tennis, swim or go to the movies

What’s your go-to stress reliever after a hard day on the new job?
A long run

Meet Mom Corps' Franchise Owners - Gretchen Rost, Charlotte

Name: Gretchen Rost, PHR

Education: University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Brookstone Business College

Professional Experience: 20 years in Human Resources with the last 16 years helping run Wachovia's internal staffing division, FirstPlace

What specifically drew you to Mom Corps?
Mom Corps' unique brand and strong community. I knew that after being displaced from my previous position, I wanted to continue my passion in the staffing industry – after considering other opportunities, Mom Corps' national presence, strong leadership and customer loyalty locked me in.

What industries do you feel have the most potential for flexibility in Charlotte?
The recession has impacted almost every industry forcing companies to do more with fewer resources. As the economy strengthens companies aren't going to rush into adding to their core workforce making temporary and flexible hiring practices a smarter and more attractive option. Companies will want to ensure a consistency in the economic recovery before adding to their full-time resources – supplementing their workforce with flexible resources.

What's your favorite Charlotte activity to do with your family?
I love to travel. We are typically planning our next trip before arriving home from the last.

What's your go-to stress reliever after a hard day on the new job?
I unwind after a long day by running to the sound of my favorite tunes on my iPod. My dogs get so excited when my running shoes are pulled out of the closet as they know once I return they will get a long, brisk walk before the shoes are put away.

Meet Mom Corps' Franchise Owners - Stacy Keefer, Charlotte

Name: Stacy Keefer

Education: University of North Carolina, Charlotte, 1985, BA Business Administration

Professional Experience: 22 years staffing and recruiting experience, with 16 years running Wachovia's internal contract staffing division, FirstPlace.

What specifically drew you to Mom Corps?
The strong brand and an industry that I love. When my division was phased out due to a merger, Mom Corps presented a wonderful opportunity to continue in the staffing industry and with a brand and niche that has strong appeal with candidates and resonates with companies.

What industries do you feel have the most potential for flexibility in Charlotte?
We feel that the recession has truly impacted the way companies view and will manage their human capital now and in the future. Currently, many industries are beginning to think about hiring, but most are considering contracting and/or flexible employment as a lower risk way to get work done. As the economy continues to recover and the shortage of talent resumes, companies will have to become more strategic and flexible in their approach to hiring to remain competitive.

What's your favorite Charlotte activity to do with your family?
Though outside of Charlotte, we definitely love the beach and consider the quick travel time one of the key benefits of living in this great city.

What's your go-to stress reliever after a hard day on the new job?
Going for a run with my dog. She's very happy when I put my running shoes on :)

Meet Mom Corps' Franchise Owners - Jamie Flynn, Seattle

Name: Jamie Flynn

Market: Greater Seattle Area

Education: Georgetown University Law Center – Juris Doctor 1996, Duke University – Bachelor of Arts 1993

Professional Experience:
Most recently, I was a Regional Development Partner for Campus Crest Development, an owner and operator of university student housing, during which time I developed projects in a number of western states. Prior to that, I practiced international finance law in London, both at a Japanese investment bank and in a law firm. I started my career as an environmental lawyer in Washington, D.C.

What specifically drew you to Mom Corps?
I was on a business trip a couple of years ago when I saw Allison O'Kelly, CEO and founder of Mom Corps, interviewed on NBC's Today Show. I found the Mom Corps concept so powerful, because I had been struggling for years to balance the twin demands of family and career. Once I found out that Mom Corps had started franchising its operations, I immediately jumped on board, knowing that both Seattle area companies and candidates would greatly benefit from Mom Corps' services.

What industries do you feel have the most potential for flexibility in the greater Seattle area?
Because the greater Seattle area is such a progressive region, I am confident that employers across a broad spectrum of industries will recognize the value in hiring contract workers.

What's your favorite Seattle activity to do with your family?
We love getting outside as a family – either going to a park, beach or swimming pool.

What's your go-to stress reliever after a hard day on the new job?
Going for a run.

Transition From A Full or Part-Time Job to Stay-At-Home?

Contributed by Ronkisha Terrazas. Ronkisha is a finance consultant and freelance writer residing in Northern Virginia. From 2003-2006, she worked in the home full-time caring for two young children.

Slaving at your 9-to-5, dreaming about what it would be like to be home with your kids, dreaming about not worrying about the balance of home and work that is never met? Decided you are going to take the plunge - quit your job to stay-at-home. Stop!!! Think before you sink. There are lots of wonderful advantages to being at home full-time. However, you need to make sure that your finances and your ego can withstand the tolls of being home before you leave the security of your job. Have you considered other options in lieu of unemployment that may allow you more time at home, such as telecommuting jobs, searching for a part-time job, job sharing opportunities, flex-time arrangements, or obtaining in-home care? After considering these options, if you still think that staying at home full-time is the best option for your family, make sure you are prepared before turning in your pink slip.

Losing a full-income can strain even the most financially astute. To prepare yourself for this financial challenge, you need to know the answers to these questions. How long do you plan to be at home? What are you willing to cut in your finances to make it work for the timeframe you want to be at home? To answer these questions, you first need to ask what are your core values--what is most important to you? Categorically, what areas are you willing to cut and not cut from your current lifestyle. For example, when I decided to stay home, for my family, education advancement and maintaining good health/nutrition were two top values. Although our finances were thinned from losing my income, ensuring we still strived to take educational courses and spending money on holistic nutritional products remained a financial priority. However, we did cut back significantly in household luxury choices - we drove older cars, downsized in home maintenance, got rid of cable. Know where you must keep your money and where you can cut yet still maintain your core values.

Once you know what you want to maintain and what you can cut, then create a realistic, workable budget and start to stick to it before you need it. Make sure your budget includes all your expenses, including non-routine items such as minor repairs and discretionary spending for non-essential items such as going to the movies. Test and revise this budget before it has to be active.

Next, set aside a larger dollar amount for emergencies and larger repairs. This emergency fund should cover between 3-6 months of your monthly expenses. If you do not have this amount of money saved, then create a list of your assets. Know what liquid assets you can sell if needed for an emergency without going into debt. These liquid assets are assets that you can turn into cash within a couple of weeks. Have a realistic worth of the asset that is conservative on the low-end.

After you see financially you can make at home for the timeframe you want work from assets you can sell, monies saved, and areas you can cut in your finances, then go for it.

Now that you are own your pathway to staying home, make sure you prep your work benefits. Inventory all the company benefits you have and get a plan of how those needs will be covered after you leave. These benefits may include health insurance, life insurance, disability coverage, dental insurance, or other supplemental policies. Ensure whatever benefits you are losing will either be okay to forego, covered by your spouse's employer, or you have a supplemental plan to maintain them. For instance, you do not want to suddenly discover after you have left your employer, that you no longer have dental coverage or life insurance. Watch out for timing of coverage as well. You do not want to find out after-the-fact that you cannot be covered for health insurance under your spouse's work plan until open season. If you have invested into a retirement account at work, make a wise decision about what you will do with your 401k/403b or other employer retirement plan. When you leave, you will need to make a decision to cash-out of your retirement, transfer into another retirement account, or let the funds sit in the employer account without additional contributions. Cashing out to help cover at-home costs may sound appealing, but remember the IRS will charge you a 10% penalty for early withdrawal if you are under the allowable retirement age which is currently 59.5, and for any age, the amount you withdraw will be taxed as ordinary income. (There may be some hardship exceptions to the 10% penalty, yet the funds are still taxed as ordinary income. Check with the IRS or your tax advisor.) Plus more importantly, if you cash out early, you are losing the opportunity to have that money available for when you retire and the potential exponential growth from earning compound interest.

Settle any anticipated loans before you leave. If you are planning to refinance your mortgage, get a loan, or any financial issues that would need to have your income secured for approval, settle these securities before you quit your job. It is more difficult to get financing without full-time employment.

Stay in good contact with work colleagues--network while away. You may need them as a reference at a later time and good to nurture those relationships to help you stay abreast of your field. If you are able to do contracting projects on the side for your employer, this is good for networking and helping your income. By starting a self-employment/contractor venture, you may gain several tax benefits by being able to write-off expenses that are not allowed as an employee.

If after being at home, you find yourself struggling financially and will soon run out of saved resources, start a part-time or self-employment venture well before you run out of funds. It takes time to get a self-employment venture going. Get it started and profitable before you are in a situation in which you feel forced to go back to work full-time because you have to in order to survive financially. Give time for your venture to succeed or to save the additional income from a part-time job to keep you at home longer.

These are financial considerations; however, there are mental challenges you need to consider as well before leaving the job-security nest.

Don't forget about yourself. With children and home demanding 100% of your attention with no pressure to look or perform at a business level, you can easily lose focus on yourself and slowly lose your personal identity. You have to fight to maintain a high sense of self value. Take time to care for yourself and your own goals. Do not feel guilty getting good part-time babysitting when needed. You can only give your best to others from the overflow of you being fulfilled and energized.

Being at home is a good time to increase your credentials--take college courses, obtain certifications, start a small business venture, pursue a career change that is closer inline with your passion, get in shape. This is the time to take risks. Go for goals you really could not have focused on while working full-time. Keep your identity of who you are growing.

Also, you must be confident in yourself and decision to stay at home to dodge the arrows of misconstrued family members and friends. Expect that some family/friends will not be supportive, will criticize you for giving up your wonderful career, wasting your education to settle for being a full-time babysitter (in their opinion). Be confident in yourself and your decision. Be ready to justify this attitude--"well you must just sit around all day and have it easy. You should have time for everything now that you are home." Before you stay-at-home, you may have these same misconceptions which are far from the truth. Staying-at-home will be very demanding on your time if you are caring for young children. There is more work, higher household appearance expectations, and overall it is more mentally taxing. There are no dependable lunchbreaks, unless you create them which can still be taxing with young children on your heels. You must organize your time. Just because you are home does not mean you have to do all the little projects. Prioritize what is important to you. Create a daily or weekly routines list that helps you stay on track to achieve your goals and maintain balance. Be realistic about what you can do given your situational limitations. Reward yourself for achieving your goals and keeping pace with your routines list.

ENJOY this time. Remember why you want to stay at home. Focus on making your dreams of what this time can be a reality. Document this time with your family; it passes quickly. Remain balanced. Don't get so focused on kids, to the point that you lose yourself. Yet don't go the other direction and get so caught up into creating a fulfilling career, participating in events, or completing chores to the point that you start to lose focus on your family. Either extreme is easy to do.

If planned wisely, this could be the best time of your life to gain balance, discover what you truly want in life, and nurture your kids all at the same time. Good luck!!!

How She Did It? Mom Corps Helped Lily Pabian Own Her Life

Featured Candidate Success Story: Lily Pabian

Life is full of ups and downs; mine was a roller coaster with 2 consecutive years of "the first drop." In November 2006, my mother-in-law then 59; suffered a major stroke. She stayed in the ICU for several weeks with a very poor diagnosis. The hospital was an hour from my husband's midtown office so many long lunched were needed to fill out paper work and actually sit by her side. The journey brought her to a nursing home followed by a stay within a senior assisted living facility the following year - the year my husband was laid off and when Mom Corps entered my life.

My husband was sending his resume and fixing his mother's house to sell during the last couple of months of 2007. When 2008 rolled around and he was still jobless, I knew that I had to consider looking as well. I began sending my resume out through job sites and finally received a call back for an interview. A before my first interview in over 5 years, I was invited to attend Mom Corps Own Your Life seminar. I remember walking into the seminar surrounded by business dressed corporate woman; I wore a $10 dress purchased from Target the night before. I sat down not knowing what to expect and then the guest speaker, Leslie Bennetts got me thinking about my career - - something I hadn't done in years. She talked about the importance of staying in the work force (reasons ranging from divorces, death of a spouse and job loss). At the end of her speech she asked for questions. Without hesitation, I raised my hand, received the mic and said "my husband lost his job and I have an interview next week, what do I say if they ask what have you done for the past 5 years?"

Sure enough the question came up in my interview and sure enough I used the answer I received that day. In the end, I turned down the job because it required me to travel and work between Beijing and EST time zones. I signed up with Mom Corps as a candidate and have worked several consulting jobs. Through Mom Corps I am able to own my life as a stay at home mother, be a financial contributor for my family and am able to focus and build my own career patch, what more can I ask for.

 Lily Pabian is a mother of 3; an 8 year old son and 4 ½ year old twins. She currently works through Mom Corps as a Marketing Services consultant. She lives in Mableton GA with her husband of 12 years. During 2007, she was the PTO President of her son's school, devoting 30 hours a week in building up their local charter school. Life is still a juggle; through Mom Corps, it's nice to know that there are work options that can support it.

5 Tips for Aspiring Entrepreneurs and Business Owners

More and more, women are using the economic downturn as an opportunity to start their own businesses. In fact, the National Association of Women Business Owners is reporting a surge in membership in some parts of the country. Experts predict that within the next decade, female-owned small businesses will grow from creating 16% of the US economy's jobs to creating more than one-third of jobs.

What is driving this increase in women entrepreneurs? Some women may be using the event of a layoff or buyout package to pursue an entrepreneurial dream. Others could be re-entering the workforce by starting their own venture. Many believe, as I do, that if you have a great idea and some capital, a recession is the perfect time to launch a new business.

This past fall, I took the plunge and became an entrepreneur after a more than decade-long career with a business research company. I purchased a franchise of Mom Corps, a staffing firm that places top-tier professionals in flexible work arrangements. Although I am still early in my new career as an entrepreneur, I would advise other aspiring entrepreneurs to do the following:

1. Talk to other entrepreneurs to get a sense of all of the different options that are out there for you to launch and structure a successful business. Plus, being an entrepreneur can be lonely and it will be very helpful for you to build a network of other entrepreneurs to bounce ideas off of. I found the book 50 Entrepreneurs useful in helping me understand what the life of an entrepreneur is like.

2. Research your market. Take the time to assess market demand for your product, to understand who the competition is, and to decide if your market is growing or shrinking. You'll want to do enough research to answer those questions, but don't succumb to "analysis-paralysis," either. At the end of the day, you'll need to make a gut decision on whether to launch a new venture. In my case, I saw a great market opportunity for the Mom Corps concept – more professionals need flexibility and more companies need a flexible workforce. Plus, in my market research I discovered that the staffing industry tends to be one of the first to recover in a recession.

3. Manage the risk. Opening a new business is always risky, so think of creative ways to gain access to capital and to keep your costs low and/or variable. One of the best ways to manage the risk of a new business is to launch it while still keeping your day job. I am managing the risk of my new business by having plenty of capital on hand (courtesy of diligent savings and a buyout package) and by purchasing a franchise of a proven business that comes along with a support system of the Mom Corps founders and other franchise owners. In addition, I have started this business from my home, which helps me keep my overhead costs down and frees up more capital to invest in marketing. Apparently, I am not alone. There has been an explosion of successful home-based companies the past few years.

4. Have passion for your product. Starting a new business is hard. It can take long (and lonely) hours and requires a leap of faith that you will be successful. If you are passionate about your product or service, that passion will fuel you through times of uncertainty and will make you a much better representative of your company.

5. Have a plan. I don't believe you need to create a full business plan (unless you will be applying for credit or seeking investors). But you should at least have some idea of who you will market your product to, how you will create the product, what investment is required, and how much you need to sell and at what price in order to make money. Your business plan will constantly change as you learn more about the market and uncover new opportunities, but it's good to have some sense of what you need to do to be successful. I am a fan of a having a six-week operating plan (with success metrics), a one-year revenue and market penetration goal, and a five-year dream for your business.

Of course, every entrepreneur's story and advice is going to be different, which is what makes opening your own business so exciting. Some other resources that you should consult are:

• SCORE – Get free advice on running a small business from volunteer business professionals
• National Association of Women Business Owners - Members can network with other women business owners, access resources and training to help grow their businesses, and stay abreast of trends affecting small business owners. 
• Small Business Administration - Access tools and services to develop your business plan, seek capital and grow your business.

Eisha Armstrong is the Regional Owner of Mom Corps for Cincinnati, Ohio. You can follow her business at www.momcorpscincy.com.

Find Professional-Level Part-Time Jobs or Flex-Time Positions

There are many terms for women who choose to take a detour from traditional full-time employment--my favorite is "sequencing". There are also various reasons women give for this move: taking care of children, taking care of a sick spouse or parent, changing careers, going back to school, or devoting more time to personal investing. But what is common among most of these women is that finding a part-time, professional level position presents considerable challenges. Here we will discuss how to stay in the workforce on a part or flex-time basis and still find challenging, gratifying, high-paying positions.

If you feel your current full-time position is not conducive to your personal life right now for whatever reason, ask yourself some of these questions:

• Have I established myself in my job as a high-performer?
• Have my performance reviews been exemplary?
• Have I been given increasing responsibilities over time?
• Have I demonstrated commitment to this company?
• Have I always focused on solutions rather than problems?

If you answered YES to all of these questions, then you are in a good position to make a proposal. Notice I did not say, "ask permission," or "ask for part-time or flex-time." You can make a proposal that includes some of the following points: Exploit current gaps in your functional area – for example, projects that do not get enough attention, results that always fall short, etc. Convince your supervisors that you, on a part-time basis, can specialize in these much-needed but neglected areas and allow your current job to be filled, demonstrating to your employer that all business-critical needs will be met without hiring another full-time "head".

Additionally, you can train the new person (include exactly how in your proposal) so productivity is not lost during your transition. It is important to emphasize your commitment to the company, to your career and to your reputation. Also stress that you are not falling off the career path, but remain focused on continuing to learn and improve your skills so that you will be prepared when a full-time opportunity becomes an option again.

If you are faced with finding a part or fl ex-time position out in the open job market, first, ask yourself the following questions:

• What are my top 3 transferable skills?
• What measurable accomplishments can I demonstrate?
• What's in it for them if they hire me?
• Do I have credible references?
• Did I help friends or colleagues while I was not on a payroll?
• Do I know what I'm worth?

Once you have answered these questions, you are ready to start your job search. Here are some tips and strategies that worked well for me.

Look for jobs posted as regular or full-time (or non-specific). Why? First, you are creating more opportunities for yourself. Second, you never know what can happen and you might find a perfect position with a person or company thrilled to have you on any terms (if you sell yourself right!). Focus on small companies who are in a growth atmosphere. They might be more open to alternative schedules, especially in exchange for a high-performer who will cost less than a full-time employee.

The most important thing to remember is that you do not have to mention part-time work until you are offered the job. This is not deceptive because you might actually work full-time on a flexible schedule. Or, you might tell them you want the position but would prefer to limit your in-office time to 30 hours/week. The key here is to use your leverage – they want to hire you. Focus on a solution that works for both parties. You might accept a lower salary than offered in exchange for fewer hours. You can also build in a performance-based bonus system to prove you are going to be a significant addition to the company, and offer assurance that part-time hours don't equate to part-time effort!

Kristin Scott owns and operates her own marketing consulting firm, Monday Morning Marketing. She has two children and lives near Philadelphia, PA. This article originally printed in Wise Women Investor.

Meet the Mom Corps Charlotte Team at Their First Open House in 2010

The Charlotte Mom Corps team is excited to start the New Year off with you! Come in from the cold and meet your new Charlotte Mom Corps team - Bonnie Ceran, Gretchen Rost, and Stacy Keefer - enjoy some hot coffee and great networking with other local professionals just like you.

While we spent last quarter building our client contacts and focusing on business development, we are now looking to familiarize ourselves with our candidate base, as well as expand our growing network of Charlotte professionals. The staffing industry has seen recent gains in a number of areas, and in Charlotte especially, we have seen an increase in both temporary and contract hiring. Please join us to discuss the current work opportunities we have available and to learn more about how Mom Corps can help you find a flexible, contract, or full-time work arrangement that works best for you.

Thursday, January 21, 2010
Drop-In: 7:30 am - 10:30 am
FABO Gallery & Cafe: 1523 Elizabeth Avenue, Suite 120, Charlotte, NC
FREE to attend, FREE parking behind Carpe Diem

Don't miss this chance to meet our team and to spend time with some of Charlotte's premiere merchants offering products and services geared towards busy professionals. PLUS - register to win a number of fabulous giveaways!

Feel free to forward to other moms, friends, or colleagues! Please RSVP to momcorpscharlotte@momcorps.com to let us know you will attend. We look forward to meeting you!

Support Mom Corps' CEO, Team in Training, and LLS

Eight years ago, I ran a marathon with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) Team in Training and I raised over $3000 for the organization. I am now training to run a 1/2 Marathon in New Jersey in May. I hope to raise twice that much this time! Anyone want to join me?

I would love to have Mom Corps be recognized for bringing in a huge donation. The first five people who support me with a donation of $100 or more will earn a 30 minute call with me for you or a friend. We can talk about your career, entrepreneurship, our jobs, our franchises or whatever else you'd like, within reason :)

Please use this link donate online quickly and securely. You will receive an email confirmation of your donation and I will be notified as soon as you make your donation.

http://pages.teamintraining.org/ct/nj10/aokelly

Thanks and I hope we can all make a difference in the world together!

Twitter: What You Need to Know and How to Use Twitter to Find a Job

You didn't think you needed another social network to propel your job search? You're on LinkedIn – isn't that enough? I'm here to share information about my favorite social network...You could say I'm a bit of a Twitter evangelist!

Let's face it, when Time Magazine devotes a cover story, Oprah is a fan, you can't watch late-night TV without hearing references to Twitter and various media outlets are sharing stories about people who landed job opportunities as a result of their effective tweets – you need to know about Twitter.

Briefly, what is Twitter?

Technically, Twitter is an online "microblogging" platform that allows participants to send brief, 140-character messages to a group of people who choose to "follow" them. Think of it as a service that facilitates information sharing between people with common interests.

Maybe you have heard that people hop on Twitter to share what they had for lunch, that their flight has been delayed or what cute thing their kids said that day. I'm not going to lie to you – people share all of that on Twitter. However, there is so much more to this social network that makes it a terrific choice for job seekers and careerists hoping to expand their networks of helpful and useful job search connections.

Unique Aspects of Twitter

1. It is casual, immediate and a great place to "meet" informally.

2. You may be surprised by how easy it is to connect with all types of people via Twitter. It's one-stop shopping for your networking needs. You'll be surprised to find that stars in your field may follow you if you reach out to them!

3. Unlike Facebook, where it is kind of creepy if you start trying to "friend" people who are connected to your contacts, it is acceptable (and expected) to follow people on Twitter because another friend or colleague does.

4. Unlike LinkedIn, where you are admonished not to connect with anyone you don't "know," Twitter is a place specifically to connect with people you do not know.

5. It forces you to be brief. Many people, even writers, comment that using Twitter really forces them to get to the point quickly. When writing a "tweet," there is not much space, so you need to be brutal in editing. It helps you focus and gain clarity about what is important in what you are trying to share and to think about how to communicate it in a way that is interesting and makes sense.

6. For job seeking clients, coming up with a "Twit-Pitch" - what you have to offer in 140 characters or less - will help you clarify your value proposition. Remember: less is more!

Why should you spend time incorporating it into your daily routine? What Can Twitter Do For You?

1. The numbers – best estimates are more than 44 million users.

2. Twitter is a democratic gathering place to share ideas and helps create a level playing field that helps you communicate with people of interest for your job hunt. From celebrities to CEOs to your colleagues, recruiters (more and more recruiters are turning directly to Twitter to source candidates) and potential clients,

3. Affords access to other professionals in your field. When you follow industry leaders, you'll know who spends time with them, what conferences they attend (and what they think of the speakers!), what they're reading and what is on their minds.

4. Allows you to demonstrate your expertise to a broad audience in order to gain credibility and job opportunities. Twitter is the easiest and quickest way that I know for someone to share ideas, insights and information. It offers you a venue to demonstrate your expertise and share information in quick, pithy bursts of wisdom. This is perfect if you don't have the time or energy to create a blog.

5. Provides exposure and credibility as well as personal and professional relationships when you connect to others in your industry.

6. If you want to have your finger on the pulse of your industry, using Twitter is a cutting-edge approach. Your colleagues will share blog posts and news items of interest – it's like having a slew of personal librarians, anxious to share knowledge that appeals to you or helps you land a job! Becoming a part of a strong Twitter community will actually save you time and help cull down the informational overload we all face on a daily basis. Let your "tweeps" (Twitter friends) tell you what's worth reading!

Using Twitter

You do not need to be a rocket scientist to learn how to use Twitter, but there are a lot of ins and outs, lingo, resources and etiquette that, when used properly, will make your time on Twitter more productive, useful and fun!

We know that you do not have the time to ramp up your learning curve to the point where you can be an expert tweeter. Having used Twitter successfully to help fuel my business and make a name for Keppie Careers (I have even been listed on CNN's "top 10 job tweeters to follow"), I can help you get up-to-speed in no time at all. For starters (and a few additional tips), CLICK HERE to read my intro to Twitter for the job search on my blog at Keppie Careers.

Miriam Salpeter, owner of Keppie Careers, is a job search coach and resume writer with a Master's degree and over 12 years of experience encouraging, enlightening and empowering job seekers. She offers her clients and readers confidence, clarity and job search know-how and authors a highly regarded blog at www.keppiecareers.com. Miriam is well known as a top resource for job seekers on Twitter. You can follow her tweets @keppie_careers.

You may also read Miriam's advice on the nationally known Examiner.com site, where she serves as the National Career Coach Examiner and on GreatPlaceJobs, where she is both the in-house career advisor and serves as the Networking and Social Media Strategy Coordinator.

Strategies for Working Moms to Balance Their Lives This Year

"Work-Life Balance" -- Everyone wants the secret formula, the magic number of hours they should be spending on their various work and personal activities, but the truth is that the definition of balance is different for everyone, and it will vary over time as the demands on each person's time change. This year make it a point to find your own balance niche, rethink your approach to work, and make smarter choices based on your priorities.

There is a lot of debate about the word "balance" and the concepts of "having it all," but what it really comes down to is the freedom to be where you need to be, doing what you need to be doing, at any given time. There is no "balance," only your unique work-life "fit." Everyone has obligations - career, family, friends, community, health and personal goals/pursuits. It is important to note that work life balance is not just a working mother's issue. In fact, there is a wider number of generations in our workforce today than ever before, and each generation has different priorities. In many ways, Generation Y employees are paving the way to flexibility for the generations of workers before them.

Mark Holland, the CEO of Ascend HR Solutions, sets a strong example. Inspired by a Stephen Covey seminar, Holland wrote a personal mission statement to help him stop sacrificing his family and his health for work. This statement has grown into a life plan for Holland and his wife with a 30-year itinerary on spreadsheets that covers the couple's finances (including retirement and college savings), vacations (planned a year and a half out), exercise regimens, spiritual activities, work goals, personal relationships and personal growth. They asked "What are the important things? What do we want to have happen before we die?' "

Creating balance in your life is not a one-shot deal, but a continuous process. Figure out what is important to you, recognize your power to make choices, and be firm in what you can and cannot do. Above all, don't measure balance in hours, but in achievement and enjoyment.

Here are some work-life balance tips, that we have found very helpful at Mom Corps:

• Merge your personal and work calendar: Prioritize your work and non-work items on the same page. Fill up on personal dates/activities and treat them as serious business meetings. Treat "life" as a firm appointment on the calendar, not merely something you do when work is done.
• Do what you love: Don't persist in jobs that you are no good at. Set clear expectations at the ones you are good at. Enjoy what you do and incorporate it into your life so that you don't waste time and energy trying to force a separation between work and life.
• Focus your energy: Do one thing at a time. Rather than multitasking, think channel changing. Focusing on being fully present will lead you to be more effective and more satisfied.
• Don't overbook: Prioritize ruthlessly and say no to non-essential tasks. Delegate where you can. Find backup.
• Don't apologize: do what you need to do without excuses and rid yourself of guilt.

Make 2010 the year to find "your" balance!

Nadia McKay is Regional Vice President of Mom Corps, a staffing firm that serves the flexible employment market. McKay joined Mom Corps in 2007 with 20 years of agency and client-side experience in staffing, advertising and client service. Prior to Mom Corps, she spent 14 years at Digitas, a global marketing services firm. In her most recent role as Vice President/Director of Staffing, she served as a key business partner and advisor to the EVP of the Strategy & Analysis capability. Prior to that, McKay held various account management roles at Digitas, AT&T New Media Services, and Ingalls, Quinn and Johnson. She runs the Boston region for Mom Corps, where she serves a wide range of companies, matching their non-traditional staffing needs with top-tier talent. She is a frequent speaker at educational forums and working mother networking groups, and has appeared on Cable TV speaking on topics such as returning to the workplace during a difficult economic climate. McKay has a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the University of Vermont. She lives in Milton with her husband Jim and their two young boys who appreciate her flexible schedule.

Meet with Mom Corps and MA's Best Companies for Working Moms!

Don't Miss Mom Corps' Nadia McKay, VP Sales, as the panel moderator at the MA Conference for Women in Boston today!

How They Do It: Executives Discuss their Balance Strategies-MR 157

"Work/Life Balance". It's a phrase that has been elevated to mythical proportions, and everyone wants the secret formula. But the truth is that the definition of 'balance' is different for everyone. This is your opportunity to hear tried and true strategies from top executives and other working moms. You will be inspired to:

• Find your own balance niche
• Rethink your approach to work
• Make smarter decisions with your time

Panelists:

• Renee Connolly, VP of Communications, EMD Serono
• Kip Hollister, Founder and CEO of Hollister Staffing
• Heather Campion, Co-Founder, Chief Administrative Officer, BALANCE

Are You Ready to Go Back to Work? Advice on Career Re-Entry for Moms

With kids back in school, this is the time of year that many mothers think about going back to work, or "relaunching" their careers as we call it; this year perhaps more than ever before. Although the job market is tight, we've heard from relaunchers all over the country who have found (or created) opportunities in this market, despite the difficult economy.

I've been wondering . . . what distinguishes these women from other stay-at-home moms seeking to return to work? Are they extremely brilliant or well-connected? Although some of the women we've heard from do fall into these categories, the majority are regular folks whose qualifications are not particularly extraordinary. But they all shared one important trait: a strong desire to return to paid work, not just a need, not just a whim, but a deep, compelling drive to "get back in the game." How can you tell if you have that kind of commitment?

Take Part I of our Relaunch Readiness Quiz to measure your motivation:

I miss working . . .

Not at all             Somewhat                 A lot

1     2     3     4     5     6     7     8     9     10

For the time being, I am very happy being a stay-at-home mother.

Agree strongly         Agree somewhat        Disagree strongly

  1       2       3       4       5       6       7       8       9       10

I have a hobby or volunteer work that substantively engages me.

Agree strongly         Agree somewhat        Disagree strongly

  1       2       3       4       5       6       7       8       9       10

I could see myself going back to work in _______ years

10       9       8       7       6       5       4       3       2        1

  1       2       3       4       5       6       7       8       9       10

(Circle the number in the second row below the answer you choose in the first row.)

The average number of hours per week that I would be willing and able to spend working is . . .

 0       5      10      15     20     25     30     35     40       40+

 1       2       3       4       5       6       7       8       9       10

(Circle the number in the second row below the answer you choose in the first row.)

Our family could materially benefit from my earning money.

Agree strongly         Agree somewhat        Disagree strongly

  1       2       3       4       5       6       7       8       9       10

 Add up all the numbers you circled. This is your score _______________

Interpretation of Scoring

If you score 45 or above, you have a strong desire to relaunch. Your family's financial need may be a major factor, but you also genuinely enjoy working and/or you're bored at home. With this level of drive, you should be willing to invest the time and energy to conduct a strategic and methodical job search or take steps toward securing consulting work or start your own business.

If your score falls between 30 and 45, you currently have a moderate appetite for work. You may get lucky and fall into an opportunity, depending on your experience and contacts; or you may develop a passion for something (whether volunteer or paid) that eventually leads to earning an income, but to secure employment in a competitive corporate environment you'll need to kick up your ambition a notch to communicate the necessary energy and drive.

If you score less than 30, you're not very motivated to return to work at this time. Consider investing more time in your hobbies and volunteer work, particularly those that might open up career options for you later. Also, use this time to explore what might interest you when you're ready to go back to work in the future. If you scored high on question 6 but low on everything else, you need to try to develop a more positive view of work or pursue only those positions that do not demand much intellectual or emotional commitment.

For parts II and III of the Relaunch Readiness Quiz, visit www.iRelaunchcom.

Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin are the co-authors of the acclaimed career reentry book Back on the Career Track: A Guide for Stay-at-Home Moms Who Want to Return to Work , and the co-founders of iRelaunch, the nation's leading provider of career reentry programming. Carol and Vivian can be reached at info@iRelaunch.com or follow us on twitter www.twitter.com/iRelaunch.

Enthusiasm Abounds at Career Re-Entry for Moms Workshop

GUEST POST by NY Working Moms Examiner Amy Impellizzeri.

At iRelaunch's "Career Relaunch Forum" held at Seton Hall University last week, co-founders, Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin, delivered one powerful message to the nearly sold-out crowd of 150+ attendees: YOU can relaunch your professional career after a hiatus at home.

No matter if headhunters dismiss you.

No matter why you left in the first place.

No matter how long the hiatus.

The Career Relaunch Forum was an intensive day jam-packed with presentations from actual relaunchers, Q&A sessions, as well as networking opportunities and presentations by employer sponsors (including Accenture, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, Goldman Sachs, MomCorps, Bloomberg, MIT Professional Education, Hooray For Books, Deutsche Bank, Tyco, Credit Suisse, and MyWorkButterfly.com). (For a complete list of event sponsors, click here.)

The presentations and break-out sessions left attendees that I spoke with feeling "motivated" "encouraged" and "optimistic."

Cohen and Rabin are passionate about the subject of relaunching and, having relaunched their own careers after 11 and 7 year hiatuses, respectively, bring tremendous credibility to the subject. The authors of Back on the Career Track have made the study of relaunchers an art form, focusing on, and in their words, "trumpeting success stories", in order to both encourage would-be relaunchers and also to educate potential employers about the benefits of hiring relaunchers. (Reduced probability of maternity leaves, reduced spousal re-locations, and the benefits of mature perspective, being just a few of the advantages touted by Cohen and Rabin that separate relaunchers from the rest of the candidate pool.)

But according to Cohen and Rabin - presenting on the issue for the 82nd time last week - the single most important character trait that separates would-be relaunchers from the rest of the workforce is the trait that was palpable in the room at the Career Relaunch Forum: enthusiasm. Would-be relaunchers are anxious and eager to get back to the workforce once they make that decision. As one attendee told me, "I had lunch with a former colleague recently and he told me, 'you know why you're going to be successful now? Because you WANT to work. We [all of us that have stayed in the industry continuously while you've been gone] are tired and looking to get OUT."

Of course, relaunching is not just for moms, and neither is iRelaunch. About 10% of the attendees at last week's Career Relaunch Forum were male, and one male attendee pointed out, "This information is just as relevant for me as it is for all the moms here. I'm so glad I came."

For FOX NEWS television coverage of the October 29 Career Relaunch Forum, click here. For more about iRelaunch, check out their website here. Direct Link to Amy Impellizzeri's examiner.com article, click here.  See what attendees had to say, below.

5 Lessons from My Father and Advice on Career Change for Moms

Several weeks ago, my iRelaunch co-founder Carol Cohen wrote a blog about nurses returning to work after a career break. For some reason, the blog unleashed a torrent of comments, mostly from young nurses complaining about old nurses or old nurses complaining about young nurses. While reading the comments trashing "the older generation," I couldn't help but reflect on the wisdom I have gained from my father, an 84--year-old businessman who is still working and thriving. So, without further ado, I present five lessons from my father.

1. They can't pay you enough to do something you hate doing. Don't get me wrong. My father enjoys making money and has been quite successful at it, but whenever I was trying to make decisions about my career, he always encouraged me to choose the option most in line with my interests, strengths and values.

2. When negotiating with a person or an institution, don't feel you've got to get it all resolved NOW. You'll often do better if you let the talks run their course. I remember my first real negotiation. I was trying to get a major lender to extend financing for an acquisition. The lender was one of those real "tough guys" who loved making people squirm. He would keep threatening me saying "if you guys don't put this provision in, we're walking." I'd call my father and say "Dad, what do I do?" And my father would say, "you don't have to answer him right now. Just keep moving along. Don't feel like you have to address this particular point today. Talk about other provisions on which you can agree." This was difficult but important advice for me to accept. By nature, I hate waiting and uncertainty. But this strategy has proved so powerful in so many situations that I simply put myself into "Dad negotiating mode" whenever necessary and prepare myself to hunker down and wait it out.

3. To be successful in business, sometimes it's a matter of outlasting the competition. Again, this advice ran counter to my nature. I was used to quick results and quick success. And earlier in my life I often bailed out of promising ventures a year or two too soon. Now I see that it takes years to build a name and a reputation, and if you take the time to do so you could end up outshining your flash-in-the-pan competitors.

4. Be open but focused. My father has taught me this more by example than by word. I've seen him seize on opportunities that he came across almost randomly, but they always built upon the core of his business. So while he was opportunistic, he never seemed to be "all over the place." I keep this in mind as Carol and I bump into potential ideas and business partners. We ask ourselves: does this person or organization fit with our general direction and goals or is it more peripheral?

5. At the end of the day, all you've really got is your reputation. My father learned this himself--the hard way. He was definitely cocky and overconfident early in his career. He occasionally burned bridges and let his pride get in the way. But as he aged he mellowed. He learned to fully value developing and preserving relationships. He's grown from being a "young buck" into an elder statesman, with all the diplomatic skills that implies. I only hope I'll have at least half the name he has.

 

Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin are the co-authors of the acclaimed career reentry book Back on the Career Track: A Guide for Stay-at-Home Moms Who Want to Return to Work, and the co-founders of iRelaunch, a company that produces career reentry programs, events, and content for employers, universities, organizations and individuals. Download our webinar on LinkedInfor Beginners. If you're on career break in the Tri-State area, register for our Career Relaunch Forum October 29, 2009 at Seton Hall University in South Orange, NJ. Carol and Vivian can be reached at info@iRelaunch.com or follow us on twitter www.twitter.com/iRelaunch.

Things NOT to Include on Your Resume

Q: What things should I NOT include on my resume?

A: A good resume needs to be crafted with great consideration, and should be a strong representation of the candidate that you are. YOU are the expert on YOU and a resume is your opportunity to highlight your professional strengths for a prospective employer. A strong resume is an enticing synopsis of the professional experience and related qualifications that you bring to the table. It should tell just enough to make the reader want to learn more and thus call you for an interview. There are several items, however, that your resume should NOT include:

(1) Personal details and photographs - Do not include any information about your height, weight, age, marital status, children or other detail that might elicit subconscious discrimination from the person reading your resume. Do not ever include a photograph of yourself unless it is a mandatory qualification for the job, like at a modeling agency.

(2) Hobbies - What you do for fun outside of work is your business. It should have no bearing on your perceived ability to do a job. Do not waste valuable space on your resume with this information.

(3) Clubs, organizations and volunteer work NOT related to your industry or profession - These activities, if not work-related, should have no bearing on your abilities to do the job, so don't mention them. The only exception might be for very recent graduates who may have held leadership roles in college clubs or organizations. This information may be more applicable for them considering the absence of more extensive work experience. If you are more than a few years out of school, leave it off.

(4) Religious and Political affiliations - Although your religious and political involvement outside of work may be an enormously important part of your life, it has nothing to do with your ability to successfully fulfill the expectations of a job. It may not be fair, but if you share it on the resume, you are leaving yourself open to be prejudged and possibly eliminated from the candidate pool based on someone else's bias. Unless you are applying for a job at a campaign headquarters or a religious organization, do not include this very personal information.

(5) Your "Objective" - It may seem counter-intuitive to leave this off, but the statement of a specific Objective can be very limiting. A better use of space is to write a 5-8 sentence "Summary of Qualifications" that highlights your professional assets. Summarize your best qualities as a candidate right at the top of the resume and entice the hiring manager to read on.

When in doubt, the best way to determine what information to share with a potential employer is to ask yourself this question, "Does this information have anything to do with my professional background or my ability to do this job?" If not, then leave it off and save the room for something that will distinguish you professionally from another candidate. After you get the job, based on the merits of your professional background, there will be plenty of time to get to know the people in your office and to share more about your interests outside of work. Let your resume sell why you are a great candidate you are for the position. Market only your professional strengths and leave the personal information out.

 

Hannah Morris is the owner of HBM Human Resources & Career Consulting based in Charleston, SC. She has 15 years of experience in Human Resources management, recruiting and career counseling. Additionally she is the owner of Pots & Petals, a gardening business that she has started while being a stay-at-home mom.

How Can Stay-At-Home Moms Returning to Work Stay Sharp?

Q: What can stay-at-home moms do to keep their skills and experience relevant and up-to-date?

A: If you have made the choice to stay at home with your children for an extended period but you plan to eventually return to regular, full-time work, then there are several things you might consider doing to keep your skills, knowledge and credentials updated. Here are ten suggestions:

(1) Read! - Continue subscribing to industry magazines or newsletters that will provide you with the latest information and updates about what is going on in your field. Additionally, consider starting a book club in which your group reads and discusses books about business-related topics.

(2) Maintain your memberships in industry or business-related organizations - By continuing to attend meetings you will stay connected to people in the business community. Once you begin looking for a job again, these networking contacts will be essential. Your active membership in such an organization is something you can definitely include on your resume.

(3) Join (or start) a networking club/meeting with other moms who are taking a break from their careers - Without a doubt there are other women who have made the same choice to stay home with children, but ultimately plan to go back to work. Seek out women in your neighborhood, children's school, or other community group who are also interested in networking and mentoring one another.

(4) Attend continuing education seminars and educational programs - Take advantage of classes and programs related to your area of expertise or other business-related topic. Also check with industry organizations and local colleges and universities to find out when and where they will offer training or continuing education classes in your area.

(5) Volunteer in your field - Use what you know to benefit those who may not be able to pay for your services. Although a paycheck is great, volunteering still allows you an opportunity to utilize your knowledge as an expert in your field and could be a nice addition to your resume.

(6) Manage a community, school or non-profit project or event - Even if it is not specifically related to your career, taking a major role in the planning and execution of this type of event will allow you to use the same organization, prioritization and management skills needed in a work environment.

(7) Look for consulting opportunities in your field - Taking on an occasional project for a client is a great way to keep your skills fresh, to build your resume, and earn a little extra money. The best way to find this kind of opportunity is through networking. Utilize your business contacts and pursue connections through family, friends, and neighbors.

(8) Keep your resume updated and your interview skills polished - You never know when you might be asked for a resume. A great consulting opportunity may arise and you want to have your resume read to send out upon request. Additionally, if you have not interviewed for a while, make sure you have a nice suit that fits well and makes you feel confident. Take time to practice selling yourself as the best candidate for the job.

(9) Keep your licenses and/or certifications up-to-date - Stay on top of what training or coursework you need to complete to maintain your credentials even if you are out of the workforce. If it is important to have certifications in your field, be sure that you are keeping yours up-to-date in preparation for when you return to work.

(10) Have a mentor - Contact a former boss, co-worker or other professional whom you respect and ask them to be a mentor to you. Get together every couple of months for coffee or lunch to catch up on business-related news and to get advice on what else you can be doing to keep yourself prepared to re-enter the workforce.

If you are staying at home to be with your children, enjoy this time. It won't last forever. Little children grow up and they older they get, the more time you will have for your own pursuits. You will have a chance to get back to your career. For now, make an effort to keep your skills, knowledge and connections in tact to help smooth your transition back into the workforce when the time comes.

 

Hannah Morris is the owner of HBM Human Resources & Career Consulting based in Charleston, SC. She has 15 years of experience in Human Resources management, recruiting and career counseling. Additionally she is the owner of Pots & Petals, a gardening business that she has started while being a stay-at-home mom.

5 Exercises Working Moms Can Do at Their Desk

You want to get in shape but it's not a priority? I understand! It's hard to juggle work, kids, PTA, football schedules, cheerleading, etc.. the list goes on and on. We tend to put exercising at the bottom or close to the bottom of the list at this time in our lives. I have 3 small kids myself, I KNOW how hard it is! I want to offer some useful suggestions on how to squeeze in a quick workout here and there.

The key is to wake up & think, "How can I get my workout in today". It can also help to put it on your calendar on Sunday when you are planning your week. It doesn't have to be one and a half hours at the gym, 5 days a week. You can start with 3 - 30 minute workouts and build up to more. Plan to take the kids to a park where you can walk while they are playing, the East Cobb Park is perfect for that! There are also a lot of benches there to do tricep dips or step-ups on the bench! You can do walking lunges as you are walking! Bring a set of weights & do some bicep curls. The sky is the limit!

There is another way you can workout throughout the day - exercising at your desk. Here are 5 exercises that I would recommend doing at your desk a few times a week - in addition to the 3 - 30 minute workouts!!

1. The Wooden Leg: For lower-body strength: Sit in your chair, extend one leg out straight in front of you and hold for two seconds. Then raise it up as high as you can, and hold it again for two seconds. Repeat with each leg 15 times.

2. Invisible Chair Sit: Stand in front of your chair with your feet a hip's width apart. They work best if you lower your seat as far as it will go. Place your hands on your hips and lower your butt until it's just above the seat. Then sit down as slowly as possible. Do 20 repetitions. To make it harder, reach your hands overhead as if you were holding a beach ball. If you're really feeling steady, try it on one leg.

3. The Magic Carpet Ride: This works your core and arms. Sit in your chair with your legs crossed and your feet on the seat. Then place your hands on the armrests, suck in your gut and raise yourself a few inches above the seat, using your belly muscles and hands. Hold for 10 to 20 seconds. Rest for 30 seconds. Repeat five times.

4. Desk Push Ups: Stand a yard or more away from your desk, with your feet together. Place your palms on the edge of the desk a shoulder's width apart. Lower your chest to the edge of the desk, and push back up. Remember to exhale on the way up. Do 20 times.

5. Seated Crunches: Put your feet flat on the floor and sit up straight. Put your hands and arms folded in your lap. Breathe in through your nose, "crunching" your upper and lower abs by pulling your legs up. Push your back against the chair. Hold for 3 seconds and relax, breathing out through your mouth. Do about 100 if you have the time, otherwise do 2 sets of 50 or 4 sets of 25!! You can do this!!

The word exercise comes from the Latin exercere, meaning to keep busy or at work. You are at work and you have to keep busy!!!

Good luck girls! The idea is to feel good and these things will all help you feel good, I promise!! Please call me if you have any questions or would like to try a FREE boot camp at the park! 

 

Heidi Morris
Certified Personal Trainer
Owner, Boot Camp in the Park, LLC
www.BootCampInThePark.org
heidi@bootcampinthepark.org
678-938-7262

50 Best Cities for Working Moms - Is Yours on the List?

Forbes Magazine recently took a look at how the largest 50 cities in the U.S. rank on what's important for working moms, including jobs, cost of living, health care, education, crime and public parks. Is your city on the list?

Click here to view the list!

Two Working Mom Job Hunt Success Stories, Two Great Strategies

My iRelaunch co-founder and I recently heard from two acquaintances who landed jobs using some of our favorite strategies. Although their stories are unique, their strategies can be used by almost anyone. Here are their stories and strategies:

Erica's story (Erica is a 15-year Wall Street veteran who had taken a long career break):

"After 9 years out of the corporate world raising my family, I interviewed intensely for months with several financial services firms, only to have each job filled by an internal person who was about to lose his/her job. So I decided to switch angles. I volunteered for Resources for Children with Special Needs as a Parent Educator (I have a special needs child myself, and they had been extremely helpful to me in the past), and after the agency received additional funding they offered me the choice of a full-time or part-time job as a Parent Educator. I opted for a part-time position, since my youngest still requires homework attention and transportation to after-school activities, and the agency was willing to accommodate me. At Resources, I work with parents and conduct workshops. Recently, I've been busy giving presentations about the agency at Department of Education fairs and conferences. I never thought I would end up in this field. However, I find it extremely rewarding and love the flexibility."

Strategy: Volunteer for an organization you like. When a paid position opens up, you'll be well-positioned to get hired.

Martine's story (Martine worked in the financial services industry for almost 10 years prior to becoming a career counselor and career coach five years ago)

"After running my own career counseling and coaching business, I have accepted a position with a university career office focusing on MBA students as a career consultant and program director. I'll work four days a week during the fall and winter recruiting seasons and 2-3 days a week during late spring, summer and holidays. It's pretty flexible and fits my needs at this time. I got the job by simply emailing the director my resume. I wasn't responding to an ad or posting. I just researched them and thought I would be a good match. It turns out, they were actually expanding the office without advertising, called me a week later for a phone interview, invited me in for a face-to-face, and then offered me a job right then and there. It was a unique situation, but I'm certainly glad I took the initiative to contact them."

Strategy: Research organizations you're interested in. Pinpoint the department where you think you're a fit, and email the department head a brief cover letter, along with your resume. This strategy works more often than you might think, but is best suited to targeting smaller companies, nonprofits and educational institutions.

Note: The names and university mentioned have been changed for privacy reasons.

Originally posted on Yahoo Shine.

Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin are the co-authors of the acclaimed career reentry book Back on the Career Track: A Guide for Stay-at-Home Moms Who Want to Return to Work, and the co-founders of iRelaunch, a company that produced career reentry programming, events, and content for employers, universities, organizations and individuals. Download our webinar on LinkedIn. If you're on career break in the Tri-State area, register for our Career Relaunch Forum October 29, 2009 at Seton Hall University in South Orange, NJ. Carol and Vivian can be reached at info@iRelaunch.com.

Who Would Hire Me? 5 Reasons Working Moms Make the Best Employees

"But who would want to hire me? I'm not worth anything, am I? Really?"

This is a question I hear over and over from women who have chosen to stay at home to raise their families. They've made big contributions to our society, often unrecognized and unpaid, and are now ready to become significant contributors in our workforce.

Here are 5 specific reasons why returning Moms make the best employees:

1. Professionalism: She will not distract your clients from the business at hand by showing her cleavage, tattoos, body piercings, flip flops, by flipping her hair, or saying "UM" or "LIKE..."

2. Schedule Coordination: You will never meet a professional better equipped to manage multiple schedules than a Mom. Conflicting sports and activities, travel schedules along with the huge amounts of paperwork associated with each, make them pros at this. As a matter of fact, they are so adept at this that they know how to face complete chaos in a calm and professional manner.

3. Organizational Ability: None of the above happens without keen planning. Uniforms must be washed; bags must be packed- water bottles, completed homework, snacks and sunscreen, permission slips and bathing, including checking/ clipping 20 finger/toenails per person must happen in advance. If one detail is missed, the entire schedule can fall apart and they will be called on the carpet- either by a disappointed child (much more painful than a disapproving boss), or by a school and/or coach (too embarrassing to mention). The level of accountability far surpasses any business environment I have ever worked in, which includes Fortune 100 companies.

4. Loyalty: If any one demographic knows and understands the importance of loyalty and "giving back", this is it. These women know how to appreciate a job and flexibility. As an employer, if you can offer what this employee needs, you will get it back four-fold. They will treat your business as though it is theirs. And they will tell all their friends about you- so you see? Free marketing built right in!

5. People Management: Anyone who has ever managed people knows that one of the most difficult groups to manage has to be volunteers. The variety of personalities and agendas among people who are not being paid and are emotionally involved could drive a person nuts. The volunteer leader's intuitive ability to "see all sides" and maintain harmony within a group like this is definitely worthy of international acclaim. And, they know how to manage their own demographic, in addition to understanding how the minds of the Millennials and Gen Y-s tick!

Here's some more good news: There are companies out there looking for our demographic. They are not opposed to flexibility, and they do recognize our value. So when you're out there, be sure to find the right "fit"- a company or organization that understands and appreciates your value, and respects your experience. That's where you'll be the happiest, and you deserve that!

 

Linda Waters is a wife, mother, career coach, and the founder of Back to Business LLC. Located in Franklin, Massachusetts, Back to Business provides a full range of services for women returning to the workforce or seeking a better professional "fit" and more fulfilling career. By providing powerful self-assessments, career exploration and coaching, resume and interview preparation, and professional image development, Back to Business helps women reach their goals with clarity and confidence.

For more information, check out www.backtobusiness.org or call 508-520-4100.

© Copyright 2009 Back to Business LLC, All rights reserved.

Emotional Wellness for Mothers and Working Women

To all Mothers, Moms, Mama's, Ma's, Me-maw's and any other titles given to you as the caregivers, and nurturer's in life. It's Your Day! Let's begin by saying hands down that motherhood alone is by far the most difficult and demanding job in the world. We often think that being the president of the United States may come close. But mothers even have the president beat. I mean after all, he has a cabinet of people around him that will take the fall for him if necessary. He has veto power, 24-hour security, maids, cooks, advisors, speechwriters, informants, a mansion, and he doesn't even have to walk his own dog if he doesn't want to. He not only has one driver, but there are several cars in the motorcade, just in case his driver were to get weary.

On the other hand, we have to begin by sharing our body with another human being, who can never appreciate that until they have to share their body. So forget telling your pregnancy stories to your kids. They can't possibly comprehend it. We are completely responsible for their life, food, clothing, and shelter. We have to cook, clean, wash, iron, shop, groom, clean up poop, wash walls, sign permission slips, coordinate schedules, taxi every child to every event, and oh did I mention wash. The tips below are to help you achieve emotional wellness and balance.

1. Organize Your Day
There is something to be said for organization. Things that are organized can flow more naturally and save a tremendous amount of time. Know what things that you have scheduled at work and home so that you won't find yourself being overwhelmed by time eaters.

2. Lose the Guilt
This emotion alone can weigh you down. It is like an invisible weight that tugs at your heart. Some working mothers feel guilty leaving their children because they have to work, while others feel guilty leaving their kids because they want to work. In either case, you wrestle with the fact that you may miss your babies first steps or you miss the school play because of a late night meeting, and heaven forbid you miss tip off at the basketball game. Understand that guilt comes along with being a mother. We can't be everywhere, do it all, and control all situations.

3. Plan Quality Family Time.
Quality family time has become a lost art. We think about family time when we plan our family vacations. That is the epitome of family time. Okay, but the vacation usually only last for a week or two. What happens with the other 50 weeks of the year? If you don't plan it, it won't just happen. Here two suggestions to get you started. 1) Plan at least 2-3 days a week where you can sit down and enjoy dinner together. That may mean the weekends but I recommend time during the week. It's a great time to keep in touch with your kids. 2) Schedule at least one day a month for family game night.

4. Set up Chores for the Family
In my last book, If I Have to Tell You One More Time, 6 Keys to Motivating Your Kids, I discuss how get kids to love to do their chores. Assigning chores and teaching your children how to clean up will not only save you money and time from having to hire someone or doing it yourself, but it also teaches them how to be responsible and prepares them for the future.

5. Don't Try to Be "Super Mom"
It's official; I give you permission to take your cape off. Somewhere in the early 80's after the commercial, I can bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan and never, never, never let you forget you're a man, cause I'm a woman broke onto the scene, gave us this indelible notion that we can "do it all." Well, I am here to say, we can't. There are only so many hours in the day and we only so much energy to accomplish before we run out of steam. We are not like the super heroes who have been given extraordinary powers to conquer the world. So stop comparing yourself to other mom's who you may think have it all together. Just focus on what you can do and let the rest go.

Copyright- Dr. Lawana S. Gladney 2009
Excerpts from 50 Tips to Emotional Wellness For Working Mothers
For more information or to purchase a copy of You Can't Be Sick... I Have to Work – 50 Tips to Emotional Wellness for Working Mothers go to www.emotionalwellnessinc.com.

Working Moms Stay Connected While Out on Maternity Leave

Here I sit – my one-month old sleeping peacefully beside me, my three-year-old napping in the next room - as a giant pile of laundry waits to be folded. Rather than tackle the apparel threatening to overtake my bed, I flip open my laptop and catch up on blogging.

I vowed at the beginning of my maternity leave that I wouldn't let my creative juices run dry just because I wasn't at the office. If anything, I decided to use this time to branch out into new areas of creativity, making connections with new publications, blogs and websites, and hopefully jazzing up my resume in the process.

Don't get me wrong – between two kids, I am finding it a bit more difficult than I anticipated to devote time each day to writing projects. So I pride myself on even just 15 minutes spent writing or connecting with new people about writing.

In the time I've enjoyed at home, I've come across a number of websites that I highly recommend. They keep me entertained; connected to people in my profession; and abreast of the latest events in my area, as well as the world. Here they are in no particular order - the ways I've kept in touch as a working mom:

Mamasource

This site, affiliated with Mamapedia.com, is a great go-to space for any question you can think of regarding just about anything you can think of. Simply create an account, post a query based on your zip code, and watch the responses/recommendations flood in. Most queries are parenting-related, but I have also found my lawn service via Mamasource, as well as gotten advice on a number of pregnancy-related topics.

Mamasource.com is currently looking for bloggers to be featured on Mamapedia.com, on Twitter, and via its daily e-newsletter – a great way to get some blogging under your belt and help other moms in the process. Follow @mamasource on Twitter for more info, or contact Mary McBride at blog@corp.mamasource.com for more information.

Twitter

And speaking of Twitter, it is now my (@SmyrnaGirl) favorite social networking website, hands down. My time is limited, so 140 characters worth of communication is just right for my attention span. There are definitely some things to know about how to use the site, but you can easily pick them up once you start following people, and gain followers yourself. Connections begin to snowball once you start sending out updates. A few of my favorite people to follow, in terms of staying connected to like-minded professionals, are @StephanieALlyod, @RachelWriter, @swfrost, and @Keppie_Careers. This is based on the fact that they tweet useful information often.

It was through Twitter that I found out about my very first tweetup – the Atlanta Chicks Tweetup, a networking event hosted by the first three ladies mentioned above, taking place July 16th in Buckhead. Click here for more info.

There are also some great people/organizations to follow that will help keep you informed of family friendly activities in the metro area, such as @AtlantaParent, @centennial_park, @downtown_atl, @PopRadar, and @ATLINtownPaper.

Of course there are also LinkedIn, Facebook and MySpace – though some techies are quick to relegate it to the same bin that contains NetScape and AOL. All three are great tools for keeping in touch with professional and personal acquaintances.

You might find yourself becoming addicted to any of these sites if the only person you've got to talk to all day is your newborn!

Contributed by Jenn Dennard, http://jenniferdennard.blogspot.com and http://www.twitter.com/SmyrnaGirl.

Summer Shape Up For Your Family's Finances

Personal finances used to be a very private matter - something we rarely discussed in detail with anyone but our spouses and financial advisors. Today, however, personal finance is on everyone's minds – especially those of moms. With the country deep in recession and unemployment at record levels, moms are no longer thinking about long-term financial goals. Our minds are now on how do we feed a family of 4 on an ever-tighter budget? How do we tell our friends that going out to eat just isn't an option this week? And how do we tell our kids that we've had to cancel the trip to Monkey Joe's just to make sure we can fill our gas tanks this week?

So how can we avoid smashing open that piggy bank and cut back in the short-term, while still preparing for the long-term?

Galia Gichon, founder of Down-To-Earth Finance, offers these helpful tips in a recent JobsandMoms.com article:

1. Take a financial snapshot.
2. Deal with your debt and credit report head on.
3. Create a spending plan.
4. Make saving for retirement a priority.
5. Set up automatic savings.
6. Take a look at how you plan to save for your children's college education.
7. Examine your insurance.
8. Change a money habit.

Citi Smith Barney Vice President of Wealth Management Lisa Boone and Clearbridge Advisors Product Specialist Director Caroline Smith brought the disparity between short-term and long-term financial planning into sharp focus at a recent Atlanta Woman Magazine event, Personal Finance 101. The overall theme was that just because times are tough doesn't mean we should completely ignore the future.

This theme was summed up best by Smith's quote from Warren Buffet: "Bad news can be an investor's friend." The core message being that despite current volatility in the markets, there is still opportunity.

To take advantage of that opportunity, it is important to find a financial advisor you can trust, someone who can guide you through the process of identifying:

• Your specific investment needs
• How your assets are allocated
• Your short-term and long-term goals and priorities, and
• Investment strategies that will help you meet your goals.

When looking for an advisor, Boone recommends seeking out money managers with consistent track records who can take the emotion out of the market. Ask for referrals from friends, look for credentials such as financial planning certification, and understand how they get paid on your investments so that there are no conflicts of interest.

Personal finance doesn't have to be an overwhelming, confusing thing. There are plenty of resources out there for women looking to fully take control of their wealth:

• AtlantaWomanMag.com's Financially Sound section
• Newspapers - Boone recommends staying up on the latest investment events so you don't have to totally rely on other people's advice. Check out "Seven Questions to Ask When Picking a Financial Advisor," recently posted at  WSJ.com. 
• Self-help books such as "A Woman's Guide to Financial Planning: The Seven Essential Ingredients for Your Best Financial Recipe," by Shak Hill, founder of Lantern Wealth Management LLC. (Yes, it's written by a man, but one who was inspired by his mother's financial hardship to write this book.)
• Websites. Check out "You Can Find Easy Money Management" on CNN.com.

See how you stack up against other moms by taking the Top Money Wasters quiz at http://www.themomsbuzz.com/moms_buzz/personal-finance-tips/. I discovered my biggest spending blind spot was spending too much on groceries. Someone please show me how to master the art of clipping coupons!

 

Contributed by Jenn Dennard, http://jenniferdennard.blogspot.com and http://www.twitter.com/SmyrnaGirl.

Get Your Summer Projects Done - There's Still Time!

I couldn't believe it, I was in a store yesterday and they were busy marking down bathing suits and putting out sweaters. How dare they rush us through the seasons? According to my calendar we have two more months left of summer!

I have a lot of things I still want to get done this summer -- don't you? What is your plan to get it done?

Summer is a unique time of year. For a few short months everything changes. It's time to relax, enjoy picnics and barbecues with family and friends. There are so many people on vacation that phones stop ringing and offices are nearly empty.

With fewer people around to bug you at work and no homework to worry about, many people figure that the summer is the perfect time to get those long term lingering projects done -- but then September comes and those projects are still lingering.

The main ingredient for getting those projects done is not time -- although that helps! - It is to know what you want to do. With this in mind, here are a few steps to make your summer more productive. It's not too late!

1. Create a wish list. Allow yourself to dream big; imagine you had a magic wand, what would you like to accomplish this summer?

2. Review your wish list. It would be great if you could do it all, but it is probably unrealistic. So ask yourself -- If only a few of these projects can get done which would make the biggest difference in your day to day life?

3. Look at your SHORT list of high priority projects. Define what each project means. Get really specific. For instance, if "get organized" is on your list do you mean go through the paperwork on the desk? Get rid of the unnecessary papers? Find homes for what's left? If "redecorate" is on your list, what do you need to do? Pick a room to start in? Empty a room out first? Pick out furniture? Measure the room? The more specific you can get the better.

4. It's action time! What is one step you can take to move your well defined project ahead? When are you going to do it?

By creating a plan that prioritizes, defines and schedules what you want to do, you will enable yourself to get it done. Come September you'll be able to look back on your relaxing AND productive summer.

So before summer passes you by, go ahead and create that master plan.

 

Carrie Greene is a Coach and Professional Organizer. Work with Carrie to declutter, get organized, be on time and cross things off your lists. Break the hopelessness cycle! Carry through & get things done.

Go to www.CarrieThru.com for free resources & Carrie's 4-part ecourse to calm the overwhelm and get you organized today.

Female Entrepreneurs - How and Why Women Launch

It's been proven that women launch businesses much different from their male counterparts and oftentimes for very different reasons. Call it unconventional, but women across the country are proving that it's okay to launch in the feminine way. What's been discovered is that:

Women don't want to sacrifice their desires for financial success. Women launch businesses first and foremost to enjoy a better lifestyle. They also want to express their creativity and enjoy the process of launching in whatever manifestation that means.

Networking comes natural to women. They're constantly talking and meeting new people. They enjoy making connections. Relationships are a priority for women and they're great at using those relationships to help move their ideas forward. Women rely on their connections to get information, seek advice and to have social interaction.

Women become emotionally attached to their creative projects. In other words, they fall in love with their ideas and making them happen. Similar to caring for children, women nature and tenderly care for their projects. They are extremely careful and guarded and find it difficult to give away equity in their businesses. Women find passionate personal fulfillment in their ideas and define themselves through their ideas.

Women do not typically invest time and energy into a project unless they have passion. Likewise, they are not willing to climb the corporate ladder for the promise of money or prestige. Many times women do not want to grow their business because they want to maintain balance and happiness in their lives and extreme growth can negatively impact this balance. In fact, many women list money or financial gain last on their priorities for starting their own business.

Multi-tasking is a women's secret weapon. Because women tend to take on many things and are time constrained, they are completely comfortable and efficient at juggling the responsibilities of family, business and their personal interests. Have you ever seen a woman talking on the phone, cooking dinner and holding a baby in her arms (probably while also giving out tasks to the rest of the family)? Women want and crave everything in their lives and they are discovering (and gaining the confidence) that they can have it all. Women measure their success in these terms. Women also tend to have and enjoy multiple careers (all at once). With varied interests and that desire to "try everything life has to offer", women are learning that it's okay (and even good for them), to have multiple business interests and multiple business cards.

Women are oftentimes able to think in non-linear terms. Which means that they may not know exactly where they are headed when they start a project. At the same time, they are completely comfortable with that notion. Relying upon natural intuition, they move forward with a gut feel and see where it takes them.

And finally, women are unmistakably tenacious (think pregnancy and childbirth). Even if a woman has never given birth, those genetics are hard-coded into a women's body, mind and spirit. Women work hard when they are inspired and won't stop until a task is completed. Coupled with innate creative talents, a women business owner is a force to be reckoned with. For these and many other reasons, women are starting businesses at three times the rate of men. As a result, there are 11 million women-owned businesses in the United States and the number is growing. There's no wonder the term, "You go girl" resonates with women everywhere.

 

Lynn Toomey, a wife and mother of three children is the chief creativity officer of her own business called Let's Gogh Art, a mobile creative enrichment services company now offering a worldwide licensing program: (www.letsgoghart.com). She also offers marketing consulting services to small businesses under the name, Let's Gogh Marketing (www.letsgoghmarketing.com). If you would like to connect with Lynn, she can be reached while cooking dinner, helping with homework, cleaning the house, or checking emails from customers at: 978.833.6067 or 1.877.ART.GOGH.

Tips for Traveling Working Moms

10 Things I Learned While My Kids were Tugging at My Suitcase

Business trips are rough on kids. Yet they are an almost inevitable part of a professional woman's career. Whether you travel often or just once in awhile, you, your kids, and the caretaker left behind are put to the test as you head out for the airport.

The defining moment for me was when my oldest daughter was three. I had traveled for work since she was born, but for some reason, this day – this trip – was different. She wailed. She pounded her tiny fists on the floor. She braced her little body against the front door. She was very clear – I was leaving and she was mad. The worst part was that after many good-byes, when I finally had to leave or risked missing the plane, she followed me out the front door and onto the driveway, begging me not to leave. Standing on my front porch, with my daughter back inside the house and the door locked so she couldn't follow me out again, I could still hear her crying. It broke my heart. I thought to myself that no child, or parent, should have to go through this.

I am not alone, unfortunately. Since the launch of my children's book, My Mommy's on a Business Trip, working parents across the country have been telling me similar stories. The guilt is enormous. So is the stress of trying to balance what needs to happen while you're gone with the work responsibilities you're headed towards. Not to mention that in today's times, if your trip is important enough to take you away from the office, you can't afford to be worried about what's going on back home.

There is a better way – for kids and their parents. Make your next trip easier on everyone, including you, by following these easy, no-tears tips:

• Plan for Fun – For trips longer than two nights away, arrange with the caretaker a special night out while you're gone – a trip to the movies, a play date with a special friend, pizza for dinner, etc. Activities will depend on the age of the child, but you'll know what your child holds special in his or her heart.
• Take Flight – If someone can drop you off, have the kids come with you to the airport to say good-bye (this works especially well with Sunday departures and if you live relatively close to the airport). Many kids find airports exciting and it will help them to visualize what you're doing. Moms love it, too, because of the last minute hugs and kisses they get.
• Prepare Together – A simple, but important thing to do is create or decorate a calendar to show your departure and when you'll be back home. Try something new - glue Hershey Kisses to the calendar for a special treat each day you're away.
• Pack Together – let your child/ren pick out a special stuffed animal or token you can take with you. One mom I spoke with has her three-year old pick out a special hair ribbon to tie on the suitcase, and it changes with every trip. BFF bracelets, or other special things that both you and the child will have while you're gone, help them feel connected to you.
• Create a Ritual – if you're gone often, ask the caretaker to do something with your kids that's extra special and only happens when you're away. It could be going to a special place or as simple as getting to sleep in sleeping bags on the living room floor.
• Be on the Lookout – Place special notes or cards in the children's room, on their car seats, in the arms of their favorite stuffed animal, and other creative places they're sure to see.
• Get Some Lipstick – If you won't be gone long, put on bright red lipstick and give the kids a great big kiss on their tummies – no one will know it's there but them! A preferred method for most dads: let the kids pick out a temporary tattoo and put it on them as a special reminder of you.
• Be Silly with Skype – with videoconferencing, you can play peek-a-boo, I Spy, read stories, or look at the calendar you made together and talk about when you're coming home. Have fun!
• Call Early – So often it's hard to catch the kids in the evening, with meetings running late or business dinners. Kids are often already asleep before you can make the call. Instead, call when the kids are just getting up. That's when they're in that lovey, snuggly mindset and you can start their day off with a smile. Kids won't talk? Try reading them their favorite story (be sure to pack a copy of the book in your suitcase!)
• Capture Their Minds – Show the child/ren where you are going and tell them how you're going to get there. Your goal is to position the trip as an exciting adventure you can't wait to tell them about when you get home. Once back, don't forget to share the fun – spend time talking about the famous or typical things you did in the area of the country/world where you were. Go over the maps again, pull out your camera, or bring home some postcards and really capture their imaginations.

Once the kids feel better about you being away, you'll feel better. As you head out the door for your next trip, feeling more relaxed and focused (thanks to these tips) you'll also start to see a glint of business travel's silver lining. Whether it's the fact that you'll get an uninterrupted night's sleep for once, or that the kids and their caretaker get some important bonding time, or that you're modeling for your kids how to handle a busy, successful career, there are lots of benefits to being away for a few days. What's critically important is that parents remember to position work always in a positive light – not something that is taking you away from your kids – as these young hearts and minds will eventually enter the workforce themselves one day.

 

Phaedra Cucina is the author of the highly acclaimed children's book, My Mommy's on a Business Trip. Available exclusively at www.mommytrip.com.

How Do You Tell Your Children You Are Unemployed?

When it comes to the economy, lately it feels like nothing but a barrage of bad news. And because of this ominous reality, I feel this topic, issue No. 1 for many people, requires a blog post from me to you. In just about every industry I'm aware of, layoffs are happening left and right. And usually the first thing that comes to a working mom's mind is "How do I tell my family?" And more specifically, how do you communicate this news to children?

We all know that prolonged changes in a child's routine can stress them out. So, for the few weeks or months you are job-hunting, take your child's schedule into consideration as you plan how to get back on your feet. Revising resumes, scheduling and going on interviews, making follow up phone calls; these are activities necessary to re-employment, but ones that are out of the norm in your family's life. And as we all know, kids pick up on the littlest things - our moods, changes in our routine, etc. They will sense that something is different, and while spending more time with Mom is always a good thing, it will need some careful explanation in order to make your child feel safe and secure.

In a recent post on Kaboose.com, Scott Reeves relates this professional advice from Carolyn Spigel, a licensed clinical social worker and career coach at New York-based Partners in Human Resources International. "Children are watching how you handle the situation. To feel safe, children need to hear you say unemployment is something that happens to many people at one point or another in a career," she says. "Normalize the transition for them by helping them understand that unemployment is a temporary situation - not a major disaster or parental weakness. Children need to see you handle the situation with confidence. This will help them learn that they, too, will be able to manage life's challenges."

Cindy Krischer Goodman emphasized age-appropriate honesty when telling children what unemployment means for the family in a recent MomsMiami.com post: "Susan Dandes, a child psychologist on the faculty at the University of Miami, says kids worry most about how the loss of income affects them. She suggests talking openly and using age-appropriate language.

"Little ones are happier with basic information. They want to know that they are going to eat tonight.' Older kids might require more information, she says. "You might want to talk about the economy and global issues, as well as how it affects your family.'

It seems the running theme here is honesty, with a touch of simplification if necessary, and a whopping dollop of confidence and optimism that your family will get through this situation.

 

Contributed by Jenn Dennard, http://jenniferdennard.blogspot.com and http://www.twitter.com/SmyrnaGirl.

Networking Tips for Working Women in Today's Professional World

Does the thought of getting out there and networking leave you cold?

Networking scares most people. And, many people aren't even sure what it means...These days, networking can mean anything from meeting someone for an informal interview to asking for an introduction to someone you've never met on LinkedIn.

They say that "true" networking really only happens in person, and I agree. However, a solid networking strategy includes both in-person and online activity.

So let's take a look at some different forms of networking, and tips for success:

1. In-person networking:

One-on-One:

• Be clear on what you'd like to accomplish in your meeting before you ask for it.
• Research the person you'll be meeting with beforehand. You can use Google or LinkedIn to find out more about them. This will give you a good idea of their history, and time to develop a few "talking points" and questions.
• Remember that you've asked for their time, so use it wisely. When you sit down, ask how much time you'll have together. The speed of your conversation will vary greatly if they tell you that they only have ½ hour...
• Have a business card and/ or resume to hand to them. 
• Ask open-ended questions like "Tell me what you do?" or, "How did you get started"? "or "What new projects are you working on?" or "Who is your ideal client?" or, "How are you growing your business this year"?
• If you check your watch, be sure to let them know that it's because you want to respect their time.
• Begin with finding out more about them.
• Try to find points in common.
• Be professional and avoid "TMI" (too much information") in the first meeting. While they want to learn about you, they do not need to know your life story.
• If there are any follow- up items, be sure to recap them before the meeting ends.
• Be sure to thank them for their time, and follow up promptly with either with an email or hand- written note. Hand-written notes are the most impressive.

"Group" Networking: This can be anything from a meeting at BNI, a local Chamber of Commerce meeting, or Special Interest Group (a Mom's Club, a Committee, etc.)

• Research the group beforehand. Are they entrepreneurs? Stay-at-home Moms? Local Business people?
• What's the mission of the group?
• You can usually expect to be asked to stand up and introduce yourself. Most people hate this part for themselves, but we all like to hear what others have to say...
• Know what message you want to convey about yourself- be prepared with your "elevator pitch". This is the 30-60 second summary of what you're all about.
• Tailor your "elevator pitch" for the group, in terms of the value you can bring to the group.
• Prepare for this as you would prepare for a speech, because it really is a "micro-speech". So plan it and practice it. Your elevator pitch should include:
• Your name and business
• The type of resultsyou get for your clients
• Why your'e offering is different
• How what you offer could potentially benefit them and their clients 
• Don't be afraid to show your personality!

If you feel nervous about in- person networking:

• Try shifting your focus outward, to the other person or people. Think of ways you could help them. Sometimes, when you get down to it, you'll find that you can help them more than they can help you!
• Remember they have no intention of judging you; they simply want to learn more about you and in a networking group, they're trying to figure out how they can help you.
• As you're talking with someone, remember to be kind. You may not realize this, but just about everyone has something difficult going on in their lives- they could have a sick parent or child, they could have recently had their heart broken, their business could be in trouble - You just never know, and in a networking environment, you probably won't. But there is always something going on for them.

In-Person Networking Etiquette: It's all in the details!

• Dress professionally.
• Get there early.
• Check your appearance, both front and back using a hand mirror.
• Wash your hands to avoid a clammy handshake.
• Give a firm handshake.
• Make great eye contact.
• Pronounce your name clearly and repeat theirs.
• Smile.
• Wear your nametag on your right lapel.
• Respect their personal space.
• Listen, and think of ways you could help them.
• Turn your cell phone OFF before the meeting. Better yet, leave it in the car.

2. Online, or "Social" networking:

• Learn the online "thing". Explore LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.
• LinkedIn is considered the most professional of online networking tools.
• Be aware of, and be careful of whom you network with.
• Keep it clean!
• Do NOT use it as a sales tool. That's the fastest way to be removed from someone's list.
• Online networking should not be your sole networking "tool".

If online networking seems daunting to you:

• Take a class. There are many LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter classes available online. Back to Business will have our own online classes, soon!
• Some of the classes are better than others, and have different focuses, so take more than one.
• Play with it, and form a "buddy group" that can practice sending introductions, asking for introductions, etc. before you "go live".
• It's ok to start small, but do get started. Don't be self-conscious. Remember, everyone has to start somewhere...
• Keep your content professional, and never post anything that you wouldn't be proud to see on a billboard, with your picture attached!
• Learn about and use privacy settings.
• A professional picture helps, particularly when you're in job search "mode"

Linda Waters is a working Mom, career coach, and the founder of Back to Business, LLC. Located in Franklin, Massachusetts, Back to Business provides a full range of services for women returning to the workforce or seeking a better professional "fit" and more fulfilling career. By providing powerful self-assessments, career exploration and coaching, resume and interview preparation, and professional image development, Back to Business helps women reach their goals with clarity and confidence.

For more information on how you can get Back to Business, check out www.backtobusiness.org or call 508-520-4100.

©2009 Back to Business, LLC All rights reserved

White House Council on Women and Girls

Last month, Obama's administration announced the creation of the White House Council on Women and Girls. The Council's mission is to ensure that American women and girls are treated fairly in all matters of public policy, and that such issues as equal pay, family leave, child care and others are not treated just as women's issues, but also as family and economic issues.

What do you consider the most pressing issues facing today's working parents, women, and mothers? What effects do you think the Council will have or do you think it will be effective in enacting legislation change? We want to hear from you - post your response below and share your thoughts!

9 Tips for Full-Time, Stay At Home Moms Going Back to Work

Full-time moms have noble jobs: they're skilled protectors, counselors and comforters. Many moms also acquire skills that could prove valuable in the workplace, career experts say, but often go overlooked. Experts say moms re-entering the workforce should underscore such skills, which may include managing household budgets, serving in leadership positions in community and/or school groups, and multi-tasking.

If you're a mother re-entering the workforce, heed that advice and the following tips from Bonnie D. Monych, president of The New Workplace Inc., in Houston, and Allison O'Kelly, CEO of Mom Corps, an Atlanta-based staffing firm.

1. Mind your psyche-it needs to be right. Be clear before you begin and ask yourself, "Why am I doing this [re-entering the workforce]? What do I need in terms of flexibility and compensation? What will I do and what won't I do?" Monych said.

2. Be realistic. "If you can only work 30 hours a week, don't go to a company that doesn't have flexible opportunities. Maybe you'll have to look at different, more flexible companies," O'Kelly said.

3. Get up to speed on what's happening in your field and polish your skills. Educate yourself about the news, trends and regulations affecting your industry. For example, an accountant could get familiar with Sarbanes-Oxley regulations, while a graphic artist might learn the most current software programs. O'Kelly said employers can grow disinterested if you're not current with industry regulations or required skill-sets.

4. Re-enter the network world. Get yourself back out there doing networking, attending professional association meetings and talking to people.

5. Practice interviewing. Ask friends to help you with practice questions and role-playing.

6. Update your resume. Use a functional resume, not a chronological resume; this way, you're not emphasizing how long you've been away, you're emphasizing your skill-sets, according to Monych.

7. Don't apologize for taking time off to be with your children. Give it the emphasis it needs and don't underplay it. You should be proud of it and stress the skills that make you the right person for the position. Apologizing can make you an unattractive job candidate; it's not the way for a mom to re-enter the workforce.

8. Consider contracting. Instead of re-entering the workforce as a full-time employee, working on contract is an effective way to prove your skills and abilities and show you can get a job done, according to O'Kelly. It also goes on your resume as recent experience and could lead to permanent work.

9. Go shopping. "Don't pull a suit out of your closet you wore six years earlier. You want to make sure you present yourself as a current professional," O'Kelly said. Re-enter the shopping world.

Use these nine tips to prepare for getting back into the workplace, and you'll be prepared to re-enter with confidence and style.

Written originally for w2wlink.com by Kristina Cowan. Join us for more great articles like this!

www.w2wlink.com is the premier community dedicated to professional women, helping you get to where you're going - faster. We provide you expert knowledge, tools to overcome obstacles, and connection with others in our online groups.

Hot Topics: women in leadership, women entrepreneurs, work life balance, women owned business, conferences for women and networking.

I Am Tweeting - Are You? Follow @MomCorps and @AllisonOKelly

Follow us @ twitter.com/momcorps   and follow Allison directly @ twitter.com/allisonokelly

I promise, I won't tell you what I had for breakfast... I'm going to use it to let you know about hot job leads, mom corps news, as well as share some of the struggles that I too have as a working mom.

Come follow me! I'd love to get to know our candidates better... See you on Twitter!

Allison

Making Volunteer Work Count on Your Resume

Hiring Managers, HR professionals, and recruiters all agree- volunteer work absolutely does count! Stay at home moms returning to work simply have to present it in the right light.

These people really don't mind seeing a "gap" in employment, but they do want to know what you have been doing, and what skills you've been using in your volunteer work that are relevant and transferable to the job you're applying for.

The key is to present your relevant volunteer activities as things you've done to keep your skills sharp while out of the workforce, or to build/develop new skills.

1. If you're a Mom returning to work, do not hesitate to place current and relevant skills at the very top of your resume to make your change. According to hiring managers and resume screeners, one of the biggest mistakes career changers and Moms returning to work make is putting their current volunteer activities at the end of the resume.

2. If you're out of the workforce now, but your volunteer work isn't in a capacity that uses the skills you'll want to highlight when you re-enter, focus on your future and choose your volunteer work more strategically.

3. Research jobs you're interested in and take stock of the skills they're looking for; then, construct a volunteer strategy that aligns with using those skills.

4. Keep a file where you keep track of your numbers and results: how many people you managed, how many dollars you raised, number of hours you worked, the differences you/your group made, and the results you achieved. Include any other facts, figures, references, and information that might be useful.

5. Focus on presenting your volunteer activities in a "business light." For example, if you've been: The President of the PTO -- Cite your leadership and management skills, and related accomplishments. In any fundraising capacity -- Map to sales & marketing skills. This is where your file comes in handy. Give them dollars raised, organizations recruited to participate, etc. Running a school project -- Highlight project management, the number of people managed, and special skills you used to get the job done. Writing and delivering a newsletter -- Highlight creative writing and marketing skills along with any graphics or desktop publishing you might have used.

6. Finally, think about your volunteer work and how you made a difference: Did your contribution include:

- Making an organization more money?
- Helping an organization save money?
- Streamlining an organization's processes by operating more efficiently?
- Managing and organizing, such as an event or fundraising campaign?
- Creating written processes to smooth out transitions or future events?

7. Be prepared for an interview with a "story" about what you've done and how you helped an organization run more efficiently, make more money, or save time. Remember, the work you did was important, and made a difference. Don't undervalue it, or yourself!

Volunteer work is a great way to:

• Get out of the house
• Get involved in the community
• Build your network 
• Try on new skills 
• Showcase your talents 
• Build a "bridge" to a new career.

Never underestimate the value of unpaid work. It is still work, it has definite value in the business world, and it makes a difference!

Linda Waters is a working Mom, career coach, and the founder of Back to Business, LLC. Located in Franklin, Massachusetts, Back to Business provides a full range of services for women returning to the workforce or seeking a better professional "fit" and more fulfilling career. By providing powerful self-assessments, career exploration and coaching, resume and interview preparation, and professional image development, Back to Business helps women reach their goals with clarity and confidence.

For more information on how you can get Back to Business, check out www.backtobusiness.org or call 508-520-4100.

© 2009 Back to Business, LLC All rights reserved.

Flattering Styles for Working Women

When you begin to focus on the positives the negatives seem to melts away. Enhancement of your strongest qualities will happen automatically when you dress your body type accordingly. No matter what your body frame is the secret to looking and feeling fantastic is finding styles that flatter you!

1. Shirts & Sweaters:

• Shirts should not pull across the bust. If the buttons seem like they are ready to pop off or you have an urge to find a safety pin, put it back on the rack or go a size up.
• Pay attention to where the shoulder lay. If they are around your biceps again put it back on the rack. 
• If a t-shirt is exposing the infamous back ripple, opt for a larger size. 
• Necklines are such a simple element but the right one can make such a grand statement. 
• V-necks are attention-grabbing. The sexy neckline help draw attention upwards. 
• In dark colors, they can also make a larger busted woman look less so. 
• In contrast a wide scoop neck enhances the bust. 
• Boatneck broaden the shoulders, emphasize a swan neck and shows off the collarbones. Who doesn't have fabulous collarbones!! 
• Turtlenecks are in a class by themselves! They are face-framing (how could anyone forget the picture of Princess Diana and her two young sons – she was exquisite wearing the black turtleneck). Turtlenecks also add definition to the jaw line and look great on most women.

2. Skirts:

• You can not go wrong with an A-line shirt. A-line shirts are a solution to a multitude of problems and makes your waist appears smaller.
• It floats away from the body and worn with a pair of heels, extend the leg line. 
• It does need to fit the hips smoothly and flow gently over the derrière. 
• The pencil shirt is an all time favorite. You do not have to be pencil thin to wear it. However, you do have to get the right fit! 
• Fabrics: A-line skirts think cotton, suede or velvet. Fuller skirts require more fluidity so look for chiffon, silk or a blend. 
• Start with basic solid colors and build from there. Skirts are a great way to infuse pattern and prints into our wardrobe. 
• The most elegant hemline lands just below the knee.

3. Pants/Trousers:

• GOODBYE TO PLEATS – they add pounds especially with a tapered leg.
• Flat fronts minimize instantly and make you appear taller and slimmer. 
• Every woman needs at least one amazing pair of black pants, the kind that fit to perfection and make you look slim and shapely in all the right places. 
• A well-fitted jean is a must. The darker wash is the most classic, versatile & slimming. Be very weary of any type of fading! 
• Fuller pant legs can balance out a large torso and conceal an ample derrière and thigh area. 
• Slightly flared boot-cut pants trim wider hips. 
• Try pants on with the shoes you'll be wearing them with. The hem should graze the top of your instep.

4. Jackets:

• A jacket is an excellent alternative to the sweater but with structure.
• A blazer is a must preferable in a light wool blend that skims the hips. You never want to go past the hips, it will only add bulk. 
• For a larger bust: a three button will minimize and hold the bosom in properly. 
• For tummy control a 1-2 button blazer that nips at the waist and creates an immediate hourglass figure. 
• Jacket with snugger sleeves are slimming. 
• If you want to appear thinner and taller avoid big collars and shoulder pads. 
• Jackets should not ripple along the shoulders or down the back.

5. Shoes:

• Everyone should start out with five basic pairs:
• Comfortable flats – my favorite is the ballet flat; 
• Pump or sling backs with a 2-inch princess heel; 
• Pump or higher heel; 
• A pair of boots; 
• An evening shoe or sandal in black or metallic. 
• Metallic shoes may be worn for evening or day. 
• Shoes go on last to complete the outfit not compete with it. 
• A colored shoe will engage the eye and accent the fabulous, while drawing attention to your legs and hemline. 
• A lower cut shoe will lengthen the leg and a shoe similar to your skin tone does the exact same thing. 
• Do buy the most comfortable and the best you can afford because the feet are not very forgiving.

6. The kimono dress for a basis piece is brilliant. It accentuates all the right areas:

• Example empire waist highlights the smallest part of your torso.
• Loose sleeves provide coverage if that is a concern. 
• V-neck brings the focus upward. 
• You can wear it as a dress in the evening or over jeans during the day.

#1 Rule: Life is not a dress rehearsal so take center stage!

KD CONSULTING
Catherine T. Delnero
Wardrobe Consultant
Contact: 917-951-6246

www.kdcstyle.com

Work Attire: How to Rework What's Already in Your Closet

A new year brings new life, an opportunity for rebirth and the anticipation of spring. Let us begin this revitalization with our closets. Love what you already have with refreshing new color combinations, eliminating convention and intermixing old and new. Change your signature style to reveal your wardrobe's brilliance.

Here are the steps you need to pump new life into work attire.

1. Keep separates separate! Immediately break up every sweater, suit, dress and jacket or other multiple item sets. Each piece should be hung up individually and worn at different times. Take the sweater vest from the sweater set and place a crisp button down shirt underneath, pair with metallic necklace – the transformation is simple to sleek. From there use the cardigan portion of the set and place it over a shift dress add a belt - a modernized professional look. Remember pieces do not have to match, they have to harmonize.

2. Just add a blazer! Think men's wear for a strong structured tailored look. There is nothing more powerful or sexy than a confident woman in a board room. Fitted blazers, wide leg trousers, white button down shirts, pencil skirts and vests are all keys elements. For a bit more edge, wear your favorite printed T under a fitted jacket along with double strand pearls, a pencil skirt and black pumps – contemporary glam!

3. Dresses, dresses, dresses! Shift, shirt, jersey or ruffled dresses are an effortless option to the age old question "What should I wear?" A classic solution you don't have to think too hard about, just grab and go. Throw on a pair of opaque tights, slip into your knee high boots with a shift, shirt or jersey dress for an instant contemporary look. A cocktail dress worn with a sweater or blazer and accessorized with a bold necklace or a cuff bracelet can easily result in a chic office appearance. Another alternative; slide on a thin blouse under a dress for a rich and seamless look.

4. Visit the hemline! We often forget about the importance of a hemline. One that is too long can make us look matronly and one that is too short may not be so "age appropriate". For a petite frame it is extremely important to keep the hem from falling beyond the knee. While a taller person will need the length. Review your hemlines. An inch or two can immediately change a style from slouchy to sophisticated.

5. Use your jewelry! Do not wait for a special occasion. Place a brooch on a lapel or on the knot of a wrap dress or shirt. Statements are just not made with clothing it is the entire package, so remember the add-on.

6. Spin the color wheel! Glorious vibrant hues bring a beautiful sense of renewal. The added dimension of color is a fantastic way to give a hint of the unexpected, a little mystery to your personality. Accent with:

• Canary yellow, delicious orange, reds, blues
• Perfect pastels and shine in sorbets. 
• Forever metallic! (don't be afraid to mix your metallics)
• Combine: canary & navy; white & champagne; black & silver; cream & gold

Last but not least, take out all of your shoes and wear them. An all black outfit with a pair of red patent leather pumps projects power. Caramel brown trousers and a pair of pointy orange flat exude educated style. Project confidence this year and use your closet has a tool to express yourself!

KD CONSULTING
Catherine T. Delnero
Wardrobe Consultant
Contact: 917-951-6246

www.kdcstyle.com

7 Motivators for Relaunching Your Career and Returning to Work

Although each woman may phrase her reasons for wanting to return to work slightly differently, we've identified seven major motivators for relaunching, with many women experiencing a combination of these.

1. Money

Not surprisingly, number one on the list for most women is money. Although your husband may have earned enough to permit you to take time off while your children were young, you may not be able to afford this set up any longer. Or, you may be concerned about your financial future. These concerns may not force you to get a job tomorrow, but they may play, more or less subtly, into the calculus of your thinking about returning to work.

Over the last few years, in particular, after the bursting of the stock market bubble in 2000, many husbands have encountered career hiccups, for perhaps the first time in their work lives. Even if you managed to stay home during these episodes of reduced or non-existent spousal incomes, you may have vowed not to put your families at the mercy of one employer again.

And, for better or worse, there are also many of you who are currently single again, whether through widowhood or divorce, who may have enough of a cushion for the next few years but who know, or believe, that the money won't last forever.

2. Validation

When you left work in the first place, you probably couched it as "a good family decision." Unlike the traditional housewives Betty Friedan described in The Feminine Mystique, you chose to be home after proving yourself quite capable of handling a demanding career. Friedan's women never had the opportunity to test their professional potential and experience career success. The big surprise is that despite previous professional accomplishments, today's women who decide to relaunch after taking extended leave from promising careers often experience a kind of delayed and watered down version of what Friedan's women felt. It is not unusual to experience self-doubt about whether you can still make it professionally, or whether, while at home, you've lost something critical to success. How do you overcome these feelings of self doubt? You need the validation that will come from resuming your career.

According to Peggy, after she quit her job as an advertising executive, "It would kill me not to have an occupation to fill in on forms." For those of you without pressing financial need who are returning to the workforce after raising children, the job itself is the validation. The bottom line is you need to make money again and contribute to the family income, NOT for the purchasing power of the income, but rather for the legitimacy and validation that simply earning it provides.

3. Leveling the Marriage Playing Field

Pulling in your own income and contributing in a material way to family finances can do wonders for making you feel self sufficient, confident and independent within your marriage. Resuming your work status means spending decisions replace spending negotiations. You simply put less pressure on yourself to be thrifty when you carry some of the financial burden. You more easily give yourself "permission" to splurge occasionally.

Melanie, a relauncher who started her own Web site design business relates "I was the fourth kid in my family growing up, and my family had to scrape for me to go to college. So I always had discomfort with not being in control financially." Molly, a textile artist and weaver who relaunched as an art teacher for the disabled, explained her delight at receiving her first paycheck: "I told my husband and kids I was taking everyone out to dinner when my first paycheck came in. And I did! It was a terrific feeling to be earning my own money again."

4. Intellectual Stimulation

Most women do enjoy their maternal roles, but being at home full time makes some go stir crazy. For those, a lack of intellectual excitement in your lives drives you to think about re-entering. Vivian craved the company of other bright, high-energy adults. Charlene, a former brand manager turned consultant cited, among other reasons the "pride and sense of accomplishment I get from work." Susan, who had been at a large management consulting firm and relaunched by working for the board of education of a major city, mentions a common theme: "I like working, feeling connected to people, using skills, having an impact, being challenged. I don't like drifting."

5. Avoiding Empty Nest Syndrome

Although some of you might wonder if it would be better to wait until the kids are in high school or college before going back to work, many of you may be haunted by the specter of the unfulfilled women of your mothers' generation. According to Maxine, a former real estate executive, "I see a lot of at home mothers whose kids have gone to college and they are lost. They are leading lives of quiet desperation."

Patty, a psychologist, appreciated the problem from both a personal and professional perspective: "I feel if I don't develop something of my own I'll develop 'emptiness syndrome,'" a condition she had studied in her masters program.

"My mother had gotten kind of depressed in her 60s when she felt like she didn't have much to do, and I didn't want that to happen to me," Kim, a former city planner confided.

6. Serving as a Role Model

How do your children view you if you've been home since they were born or since they were young? Do they see you as an intellectual being, a warm, loving soul, or even just a servant? How do you want them to view you? One of Vivian's motivations for returning was a desire for her children, especially her daughters, to see that there was a dimension to her life that went beyond running the household.

In the March 2005 issue of "Parenting," Jill Johnson, a mother of three boys returning to work after five years at home, said she wanted them to see that "mommies can go out and earn a living just like Daddies can."* Lindsay, a chemical engineer, wanted to demonstrate to her three daughters "that you can remake yourself at any point in your life." The unspoken implication is that if you wait until your children are all grown up before you try to go back to work, your kids will never observe that it's possible to both work and mother.

7. Ambition

You may have been hugely ambitious early in your career, but when you made the decision to stay home, your family commitments combined with, in some cases, diminished confidence may have whittled down your ambition. For the relauncher, the difficult part is balancing re-emerging ambition with the reality of daily life at home. Dinner's not the only thing cooking on the back burner; your ambition probably is too! Recognizing you have unfulfilled career ambitions is one of the first steps of a successful relaunch. When we tell you that relaunch time is time for you, part of that message is it's time to unleash your stifled ambition. You don't have to announce it to the whole world. The only one who has to know is you.

*"Parenting Mom Squad," Parenting (March 2005), p 106.

Written originally for www.w2wlink.com by Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin.

Join us for more great articles like this!

www.w2wlink.com is the premier community dedicated to professional women, helping you get to where you're going - faster. We provide you expert knowledge, tools to overcome obstacles, and connection with others in our online groups.

Hot Topics: women in leadership, women entrepreneurs, work life balance, women owned business, conferences for women and networking.

Career Coaching Experts at Mom Corps University Boston!

Class is now in session! Mom Corps University is an educational workshop series for women focusing on the current issues affecting both your career and your family. Join us for our first - ever class in Boston, MA:

"Your Career and Coaching"

Wednesday, January 21, 2009
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
Boston Public Library
Central Branch, 700 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

"Your Career and Job Search"
Allison O'Kelly, CEO, Mom Corps offers proven strategies and techniques on finding the right employment options for you that will enable you to GENERATE INCOME and strike the right balance in your work and family life.

"Learn How Coaching is KEY to a Successful Job Search and Career"
A team of local area expert Life and Career coaches will introduce you to the practice of coaching and outline the most common barriers that people face when trying to make a change in their professional and personal lives and how coaching can help them address and overcome these challenges.

Experience coaching "live" in a small group session! Let our expert coaches reignite your career!

You'll learn:

• How to identify your best assets
• How to easily overcome roadblocks 
• How to network successfully 
• And more!

Agenda
9:00 - 9:45 Allison O'Kelly, CEO, Mom Corps
9:45 - 10:30 Coaching Panel
10:30 - 10:45 Break up into smaller groups
10:45 - 11:45 Group Coaching with Expert Coaches
11:45 - 12:00 Networking Coffee

Linda Waters - Back to Business LLC, Career and Business Coach
Linda Platt - Executive Coach and Learning Consultant
Anne Sugar - Coaching/Consultant - Maximizing Breakthrough Performance
Cissie Klavens - KlavensAndCompany, Executive/Career Coach
Pam Jensen - HR Consultant/Career Coach

Don't miss this opportunity to receive personalized, hands-on coaching to help tailor your career track or back-to-work plan!

Sign up before January 15th and SAVE $10! Regularly priced tickets - $45 - Click here to register!

Please feel free to tell your friends and co-workers!

Trigger Words - Is Your Resume Full of Them?

In today's climate of downsizing, closings, and unemployment – can your resume compete and get noticed?

Our economic climate is not the only factor to consider. Recruitment has changed dramatically within the last 10 years. The majority of recruitment is handled through automated application systems. If you've ever applied to recruitment engines such as Monster.com or CareerBuilder.com you'll know that 'black hole' feeling. You fill out all of the necessary information, attach your resume, and click 'submit'. Then what? It's a waiting game. You and thousands of other applicants hope that your application will be THE ONE. Have you ever wondered what's happening on the other side – the employer's side?

Here's the process from the employer's side of online recruitment engines:

1. The employer has the option of either searching for resumes manually or having the system match resumes to an open position. Either way, if your resume does not have the correct trigger words, and A LOT OF THEM, then your resume will never get looked at.

If the employer is searching for specific resumes then he/she will fill out a list of 'key words' that must be present in the resume.

Here's an example: The employer has an open Accounting position available.

He/she will search for key words such as...

• Accounts Payable
• Accounts Receivable
• General Ledger, etc.

The recruitment engine will then scan the resumes of all the applicants. It will go through and highlight the Key Words (trigger words) in each resume.

2. Then, it scores each resume according to the number of trigger words present in the resume. It will then reply back to the employer with a list of all of the resumes. This list could contain thousands of resumes.

Here's the most important part of the process...

3. When the employer receives this list of resumes it is sorted by RATING. The recruitment engine will sort these resumes by the score (number trigger words found in the resume). This means, if there are 100 resumes with 20 key words and YOUR RESUME only has 19 key words – guess what? There is a strong possibility that the employer will find strong matches to their open position before even getting through all 100 resumes. That means your resume will never get looked at.

Where does that leave you? It leaves your resume unread and not even considered for that job. But keep these tips in mind, and consider working with a certifed resume expert and you'll greatly boost your chances of getting noticed!

Job Interview Questions that Help Reveal a Company's Culture

A job interview is the perfect opportunity to assess whether the company's culture aligns with your needs and values. You don't want to find out in a matter of weeks or months that your new job is not a good "fit" for you... and neither does the company!

How can you find out whether or not this is a place where you'd love to work every day? Here are a few culture-related questions to ask HR representatives, hiring managers and possible future colleagues. Choose to ask a few that are of particular interest to you. Don't forget to research the company and ask industry-related questions as well!

Questions for a Human Resources Representative:

• How would you describe the company culture?
• What qualities make an employee successful here? 
• Do you hold employee gatherings?
• What training opportunities do you offer?
• Do you offer educational reimbursement? 
• How does your review process work?

Questions for a Hiring Manager:

• How would you describe the company culture?
• What makes an employee in your department successful?
• How would you describe your management style?
• How do you encourage teamwork within your department?
• How are employees recognized for going above and beyond?
• What's your favorite thing about working here? 
• If you could change anything about your job, what would it be?

Questions for a Future Colleague:

• How long have you worked here?
• How would you describe the company culture?
• How would you describe your manager's style?
• Would you say that teamwork is encouraged within the department?
• What's your favorite thing about working here?
• If you could change anything about your job, what would it be?

Asking well thought out questions is important for several reasons. First, it helps you determine whether or not this is a place you want to work, and can quickly bring out any "red flags" to think about. Second, it allows you to demonstrate that you're interested in becoming a significant contributor, and want to find the "right fit"- not just a job for the short-term. Finally, it helps the interview flow more like a conversation, which is a much more comfortable and natural way to communicate.

Linda Waters is a wife, mother, career coach, and the founder of Back to Business LLC. Located in Franklin, Massachusetts, Back to Business provides a full range of services for women returning to the workforce or seeking a better professional "fit" and more fulfilling career. By providing powerful self-assessments, career exploration and coaching, resume and interview preparation, and professional image development, Back to Business helps women reach their goals with clarity and confidence.

For more information on how you can get Back to Business, check out www.backtobusiness.org or call 508-520-4100.

Mom Corps University Career Re-Entry

An educational workshop series for women focusing on the current issues affecting both your career and your family. Join us for our first class in Atlanta, GA:

"How to EARN Money and SAVE Money in the New Year!

Thursday, December 11, 2009
9:00 am - 11:30 am
Terry College of Business Executive Education Center
One Live Oak Center, 3475 Lenox Road, Atlanta, GA 30326

"How to MAKE Money"
Allison O'Kelly, CEO of Mom Corps offers proven strategies and techniques on finding the right employment options for you that will enable you to GENERATE INCOME and to strike the right balance in your work and family life.

"How to SAVE Money"
Stephanie Nelson, Founder of Coupon Mom will offer smart shopping strategies to consider in a tightening economy. Stephanie's "Shop Smart" lessons include:

• How to cut your grocery bill in half
• How to save 80% or more every time you shop 
• How to find great deals on dining out 
• How clipping coupons can help feed the needy and more!

Agenda
9:00-9:30 Networking Coffee
9:30-10:15 Allison O'Kelly, CEO, Mom Corps
10:30-11:15 Stephanie Nelson, Founder, Couponmom.com
11:15-11:30 Q & A

Sign up before December 1st and SAVE $10!

Regularly priced tickets - $35, click here to sign up today!

Please feel free to tell your friends and co-workers!

A percentage of the proceeds from this event will benefit "Cut Out Hunger", a program started by Stephanie Nelson (the Coupon Mom) to benefit local food pantries. Special thanks to our sponsors, Terry College of Business and Skirt! Atlanta!

Prepare Your Resume Today To Find Full or Part-Time Jobs

Companies are cutting back, laying off, restructuring, and even closing down. Are you prepared?

Last month, there were 235,681 employees laid off in Mass Layoffs (a Mass Layoff is when a single employer lays off at least 50 people.) Unemployment stayed at 6.1% from the previous month. However, last year in September the unemployment rate was 4.7%.

We know that October's financial reports of the economic downturn have caused even more unemployment and cutbacks (stay tuned to next month's blog for an update).

What are you doing to prepare yourself?

A loss of job can have devastating affects. Are you prepared? Certainly now is the time to take a deeper look at your employment situation. If you became unemployed today, would you be ready to send out your resume tomorrow?

1. Is your resume Job or Industry specific? Your resume needs to be written with specific target words and terminology from your industry. When the recruiter or hiring manager scans your resume, they are looking for these specific terms, i.e. Infrastructure, project management, 6 sigma, etc.

2. Do you have a section of accomplishments that have been quantified and qualified? The hiring manager will quickly read your resume searching for actual accomplishments – not a job description. Numerical representation of your accomplishments will get you noticed and peak the interest of the reader.

3. Is it POWERFUL? Can you get the attention of the hiring manager within seconds? Can you maintain that attention long enough for the reader to finish the first page? Can you compete with thousands of other applicants? Your resume needs to be formatted with the appropriate emphasis; it needs to be eye catching but professional at the same time. Most of all, it should be easy to read and structured logically.

4. Is your resume a true reflection of you? Does your resume bring out the best of who you are? The reader will need to determine whether you are a fit for the job within 30 seconds. If your resume does not reflect your abilities within that time, it will be discarded.

Does it seem like a daunting task to rewrite your resume? We can help. We have professional Human Resource consultants who will walk you though the process and rewrite your resume into a powerful reflection of you!

Don't delay – get prepared today. Your future may depend on it.

Nine Tips on Professional Job Interviewing for Working Moms

Whether you're going to a job fair or an interview, it is important to be prepared, polished and professional. Research tells us that landing a job is 70% presentation and 30% actual skills. Knowing that, I've put together the following nine tips:

 

1. Do your homework prior to the Interview. Did you know that job seekers spend thirty job-search hours to get each interview and only one hour preparing for the interview? Before your interview, research the company as thoroughly as possible. Annual reports, web pages, business and trade magazines are great resources. Be able to articulate what properties of the company appeal to you and why you want to work there. What is their culture? Where is the company going? Be able to demonstrate that you have some understanding the industry. Research the competition too. What are the industry hot buttons? Every industry has is "language". Make an effort to learn some of the industry-specific phrases and terms.

2. Review and be familiar with your resume. It's awkward for everyone when the interviewing managers ask a candidate about responsibilities in a prior position and the candidate has to wrack her brains trying to remember what she did in the job. It is easy to forget the details from prior positions that you've held, especially if it has been a long time since you were in that position. However, if it's on your resume it's fair game for discussion. Be familiar with everything on there and ensure you have a few success stories to go with each position you've held.

3. (Even if you don't feel it) conduct yourself with confidence. When meeting an interviewer make a great first impression. Stand up straight, smile, make eye contact, and shake hands firmly. When you do sit, keep your hands in your lap. Nervous people tend to make wild gestures. Also, remember to use your active listening skills. That means, take notes if appropriate, lean forward and nod to show you're listening. All of these give an air of confidence.

4. Don't ramble. Because of nervousness, candidates tend to talk too much. Sometime they're not sure how to answer a question so they just dive in anywhere; this is not a good tactic. Before answering a tough interview question take a few seconds to gather your thoughts so that you can give a clear, concise answer that highlights your skills. If the interviewer wants more information, they'll ask a follow up question. Whenever appropriate, use quantifiable data rather than vague generalizations.

5. Identify and reiterate your strengths especially as they align to the job description. Prior to the interview create on paper an inventory of your experiences, skills and talents. Then, carefully examine the job description or posting. Where do your skills align with it? Take a note of those and during the interview be sure to highlight how your skills and talents make you a good fit for the position.

6. Ask questions throughout the interview. Make every interview an interesting business conversation and not an uncomfortable interrogation. Asking thoughtful questions is a great way to demonstrate understanding of the company and industry. Show your interest in the position, and work to uncover important information to determine if there's a good culture fit between you and the company. At the end of the interview, don't be afraid to ask what the next steps are, the more specific, the better. Finally, collect business cards from each interviewer.

7. Be prepared to answer the question, "What is your greatest weakness?" This question is a recruiter's favorite question. It can reveal a lot about a candidate. So be prepared to answer it. Conventional advice recommends that you state your weakness as a strength. "I work too hard," "I'm too demanding of myself", "I'm a perfectionist," are pretty typical and transparent answers. Try a more thoughtful response that truly highlights your skills. For example, "Although I have strong Word and Power Point skills, I feel like my skills in Excel are not as strong as I'd like. I am currently enrolled in a night class at the community college." Then follow up with a statement that shows how you will use your new skills. "I know I will be able to use my new Excel skills in this position to help me with spread sheets and tables." Finally, follow up with a question such as, "Would you like me to elaborate on any of my other computer skills?"

8. Dress well. Polishing all aspects of your appearance is important. It demonstrates your level of professionalism and commitment. It either says "executive", or it doesn't. Invest in your appearance and you'll feel great! Buy a few interview suits that can be mixed and matched later for less formal use, and have them tailored so they fit you well. Always wear a suit to an interview – even if the culture where you're interviewing is casual. Remember to keep your jewelry and accessories toned down. You want them to hear what you're saying, not what you're wearing. Carry a briefcase or a purse, not both. Backpacks are never a good idea.

9. Follow up right away. Follow up with a thank you to each interviewer and clearly express your interest in the position. Try to use specifics. If you forgot to mention something in the interview, you can add it to the note. After a week if you haven't heard anything from the company, call to the hiring manager and reiterate your interest in the opening. Ask if you can provide any additional information to help them make their decision.

Linda Waters is a wife, mother, career coach, and the founder of Back to Business LLC. Back to Business, located in Franklin, Massachusetts, provides a full range of services for women preparing to return to work or seeking a better professional "fit" and more fulfilling career. For more information about Back to Business and/or career-coaching, please see www.backtobusiness.org.

Chic Tips for Business Opportunities, Ownership and Success

For years, women were told that when it came to business they should try to be more like men in order to advance in their career. Thankfully, times have changed. Today women are succeeding as themselves and getting ahead. A Chic Businesswoman embraces her female strengths and uses them to her advantage. She is proud to be 'a skirt' and succeeds with smarts, sass and style. Work on yourself and increase your effectiveness with these Chic Tips:

1. Short Emails Save Everyone Time: We are all pressed for time. And even though we are living in an increasingly digital world, the White House's Office of Management & Budget estimates that paperwork handled by corporations, the government and the general public consumes more than 9 billion hours a year. Sheesh! Before you send out another long-winded email message, edit it down, add bullet points and be concise.

2. Ask for Recommendations: Whether you're social networking or building up recommendations for your website, you have to ask for what you want. Send an email through a social networking site like Naymz, ask for a recommendation and say that you would be glad to give one in return. Then, you can add the recommendations anywhere you want people to read about your amazing skills (i.e. website, blogs, business marketing materials, etc.).

3. Play Socrates: It's easy to talk about what you know, but growth is about exploring what you don't know, which means asking questions. Stimulating rational thinking through inquiry will allow you to gain insight into your clients' needs, networking associates' thoughts and potential partners' ideas. You will become more knowledgeable, and highly regarded in your field. Double the amount of questions that you normally ask to illuminate new ideas and debunk false assumptions.

4. Bring in the Sunshine: When you arrive at your office in the morning, let the first thing you say brighten everyone's day. Human beings tend to mirror each other, so if you put out positive, happy vibes, others will reflect them right back to you.

5. Make a Do-Not-Do List: Sometimes what you choose not-to-do is just as important as what you do choose to-do. For every necessary task that you put on the to-do list, put a corresponding low priority activity on the do-not-do list. This will balance your life and give you greater perspective.

6. Schedule Time to Just Think: Even highly effective people like Stephen Covey and David Allen don't just spend all their time 'do-ing'. You can be a more effective do-er by also building time into your schedule for thinking. Set an appointment-free day for yourself. Put it on your schedule in advance and let your employees know that this day must be kept clear. Use this time for big picture thinking and decision-making. Turn off your phone and your computer and just think.

Use these tips and you'll be on your way to becoming a successful Chic Businesswoman. It's a lifetime pursuit and oftentimes not easy, but take it from me, it's worth the hard work.

Elizabeth Gordon owns a boutique management consulting firm called Flourishing Business®, headquartered in Atlanta, GA. She is the author of the bestselling, business strategy book for women, The Chic Entrepreneur: Put Your Business in Higher Heels. Receive a free copy of her latest eBook The Seven Secrets to My Success, at her website, www.chicentrepreneur.com when you sign up for her free Chic Tips ezine.

Mom Corps and Philosophy Support Breast Cancer Awareness Month

I am so excited about Philosophy's support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. They have created "She Colors My Day Bubble Bath" (which we are featuring on the Own Your Health segment of the Resource Center).

With each bubble bath purchase, Philosophy donates 100% of the proceeds to the Entertainment Industry Foundation's Women's Cancer Research Fund.

What a great idea! I bought 20 myself to give out for the holidays for teachers, friends... I hope you do too! It's a great gift and even a better cause!

Together Philosophy, Art of Grace, Entertainment Industry Foundation's Woman's Cancer Research Fund and songwriter Amy Grant are collaborating to raise awareness and celebrate the special bond between mothers and daughters. SheColorsMyDay.com is a web site – and now product – designed to join women, mothers, and daughters together in fighting all women's cancers.

The site features a heart-warming new recording by Amy Grant titled "She Colors My Day", which was authored and co-created by Philosophy founder Cristina Carlino, who was inspired by the artwork of her young daughter and the special bond she shares with her as a mother. Visitors to the site also have the option to create their own commemorative slide shows of friends and family to share with others. Click here to learn more! Mom Corps celebrates Philosophy's commitment to support women and promote cancer research – Click here to buy!

9 Tips for Working Moms on Polishing Your Professional Image

Remember, the seemingly small things do count when it comes to your professional image. For example:

• Ensure your email address is professional. "4kidsthenuthouse@hotmail.com" does not conjure up a professional image in the eyes of HR and hiring managers!

• Keep an email box just for your job search and check it regularly (twice a day at a minimum).

• When designing an email address use your first initial then last name. Or, if this is taken, try first initial.last name. Simple addresses reduce the likelihood of typos.

• Make sure your voice mail greetings at home and on your mobile phones are professional. "This is Jane and I can't find the phone just now. It must be in the back seat because I threw it at my screaming kids," will not do!

• Conduct an online "vanity search" by "Googling" your name. Is there anything you're going to have to explain in an interview? Also check LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace, Classmates, etc. and ensure your online "presence" is clean and professional.

• Have an "elevator speech" prepared. When you meet networking contacts be prepared to talk about what you're interested in, why you're a good fit and how you'll add value to the company.

• Dress up one notch so that you're professional and polished. Candidates who have been cleaning the house, driving carpools, and making lunches and dinners for years need to throw out their sweats and t-shirts and update their hair and wardrobe to reflect a new professional image!

• Name drop. Even though your mother told you not to do it, do it anyway! If someone referred you, you should use his or her name. It's okay. HR representatives and hiring managers scan hundreds of resumes and interview many candidates. They will likely give you more consideration if they know someone from within the company put your name forward. (Plus, sometimes those people get cash rewards if their candidate gets hired!)

• Smile during your interview! It's a conversation not an interrogation. Ask questions and talk with your interviewers. Nervousness makes you more tense, but enthusiasm is contagious!

The bottom line: Your physical and cyber images are extremely important! They are a reflection of you! They either say "professional", or they don't. Invest a little time and thought in your appearance and you'll feel great!

Linda Waters is a wife, mother, career coach, and the founder of Back to Business LLC. Back to Business, located in Franklin, Massachusetts, provides a full range of services for women preparing to return to work or seeking a better professional "fit" and more fulfilling career. For more information about Back to Business, the conference and/or career-coaching, please see www.backtobusiness.org.

How to Launch a Website - 9 Things Female Entrepreneurs Should Know

Before you launch your website or a new version of your old site, be sure to consider these 9 important factors:

1. Branding, Logo, Color, Palette, Design - You should have a compelling logo that looks appealing to the eye, alludes to what your company does and has colors and a shape that your niche market will be attracted to. For example, truckers probably won't look at a webpage that has kitties and flowers with pink and purple all over it.

2. Content - Don't add info your competition shouldn't see. And follow the KISS method and keep it simple, sister. Make sure that at least three sets of eyes look over your content and that between you there are at least five revisions. Your ultimate goal is to get people to call, order, contact you or visit your website.

3. Target an Audience - If you don't know who your target is, how do you expect to market to them? You should know your market inside and out so you can speak to them in their language.

4. Research Web Companies - Ask others about their experiences with web designers/developers to get some tips and hear common issues that they faced. Find samples of sites you like and make sure you know your goals.

5. Budget – Have a surplus amount of money for your website because just like building a house, it usually takes longer than estimated with added expenses.

6. Offerings and Products – On your offerings and product page you should succinctly state what you provide. This should almost be a tagline it is so short. Then there should be another more pages to click through that explain your products/services in more depth.

7. Server/Emails - Ensure that your system doesn't go down. Have a backup plan that you know how to implement in case of disaster or unexpected issue.

8. Capture Information - What kind of customer information do you hope to pull from your site for future marketing? How are you obtaining that information? Do you need a CRM (customer relationship management)? Ask your potential web developer and get specifics so you can capture and use the information your site gathers.

9. Reporting – Know your viewers' point of entry, point of exit and path on the site. This will allow you and/or your developer to see possible roadblocks or issues with navigation. You may need a sitemap to make a complicated website more manageable for viewers.

 

Elizabeth Gordon owns a boutique management consulting firm called Flourishing Business®, headquartered in Atlanta, GA. She is the author of the bestselling, business strategy book for women, The Chic Entrepreneur: Put Your Business in Higher Heels. Receive a free copy of her latest eBook The Seven Secrets to My Success, at her website, www.chicentrepreneur.com when you sign up for her free Chic Tips ezine.

Top 10 Signs You Are a Working Mom

By Nataly Kogan

I keep running lists of things I never thought I'd say as a parent. You know, things like "Don't lick the microwave" and "Pennies are not for eating" and "No, you can't ride the dog." The other day, as I flaked dried applesauce off of the sleeve of my favorite black blazer, I looked at the "Dora the Explorer" bandage on my cut finger and decided to start another list: My top 10 signs you're a working Mom.

So, with apologies to David Letterman (and possibly Jeff Foxworthy), you know you're a working mom if...

1) You put things you've already done on your to-do list, just so you have something to cross off immediately.

2) You've lost weight, and you realize that it's probably because all you're eating is whatever is left on your toddler's plate after dinner.

3) You've gained weight, and you realize that it's probably because you're eating whatever is left on your toddler's plate after dinner in addition to your own meal.

4) You've arrived at the office with the dried remains of something your kids ate on your clothes.

5) You keep two sets of two looped-together ponytail holders in your desk drawer and you know how to use them.

6) You deliberately remove your contact lenses before you get in the shower because you don't really want to know what it looks like in there and you don't have time to do anything about it before work anyway.

7) You don't know how NOT to multitask.

8) You've text-messaged with your teen while in mid-conference call with someone else.

9) You "dryer-iron" more often than you dry clean.

10) The first day of kindergarten was emotional and poignant but, overall, you were more psyched than sad about it.

 

WorkItMom.com is an online community for working mothers. Whether you work outside the home, at home, or run your own business, you can come to Workitmom.com to connect with other moms similar to you and share advice on anything from balancing work and family, finding quick dinner recipes, getting better organized, growing your business, finding time for yourself, reducing stress, and much more.www.workitmom.com

Turn Your Full-Time Job into Part-Time Employment Contracts

With part-time and consulting work continuing to be seen as "the holy grail" of work/life balance, more and more women are asking how they can make the switch from being an employee to a contractor or consultant. Fortunately for those interested in making this change, more and more companies are open to engaging people, especially former employees, on this basis. This is particularly true today, when many employers need to cut back on FTEs (full time equivalents), but still have work that needs to get done. Readers recently queried us about the ins and outs of building sustainable consulting businesses.

Q. How do I transition myself from a full-time job to a consulting job working part-time and still make a decent paycheck?

A. You can't expect to make the same amount right off the bat, unless you're considered a hot shot and already have a backlog of clients interested in hiring you for projects. Start by talking with your current supervisor(s) about ways you might cut back on your hours and still stay engaged by them. In other words, try to turn them into your first client. In terms of pricing, if you're good at estimating the time it takes you to finish a project, you may do better financially by offering your services on a project basis, rather than an hourly basis. It makes it more difficult for clients to chip away at your pricing if you don't talk in terms of rates and time estimates. Set your prices based on what the client would have to pay someone else to do the same job. Or demonstrate how much money your work will save the client and make your pricing a percentage of those savings. In Back on the Career Track we have a section on consulting pricing which goes into these options in more detail. To build your client list, do the same sort of networking you would do for a job - contacting old work and school acquaintances, etc.

Q. As a contractor paid hourly, when is an appropriate time to ask for a raise? Since I am at home and there is little face time, can I do this over the phone or should I go into the office to ask?

A. After servicing an account for a year, we think you could ask for a raise. We suggest you e-mail your supervisor/contact saying you'd like to schedule a time to come in and discuss on-going arrangements. Ideally, you should approach your client just before or during their budget planning season. Then you can talk about the raise in the context of what their anticipated workload is for you, the kind of work, etc. Don't feel you have to get them to agree to what you want in one meeting. If they express hesitation and say they have to discuss it with higher-ups, don't automatically drop to a compromise position. Let the negotiations take their course and hopefully you'll end up where you want to be.

Q. I have one great client, but I want to grow my business, and I'm also worried that they might drop me. What should I do?

A. To cement your relationship with this client, try to develop relationships throughout the firm, so that you're not dependent on one good contact. That way, if your primary contact leaves or is eclipsed, you have other supporters. Also, be proactive about soliciting assignments. Don't just wait until they call you. Knowing their business as well as you must, periodically suggest projects or tasks you can take on that you think need to be done.

To expand beyond this one client, turn this client into your secret weapon. Don't be shy about asking your current client contacts to introduce you to noncompetitive companies you've identified where they have relationships. If you have a good relationship with your current client contacts, and you assure them that you'll continue to give their account top priority, they should be willing to recommend you to other firms.

Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin are the authors of Back on the Career Track: A Guide for Stay at Home Moms who Want to Return to Work (Warner Books, June 2007). For more information and/or to contact them, please visit www.backonthecareertrack.com.

The Key to Success for Female Entrepreneurs is to Think Positively

Optimism is a key ingredient to success. Having owned my own successful consulting firm for three years, authored a bestselling book, and coached countless business owners to greater success, I have recognized trends along the way. The nature of a business owner's attitudes and behaviors often dictate their success or failure. Optimism can seem too fleeting to teach, but it has a clear link to achievement. Here are five ways to increase your level of optimism:

1. Take time out each day to let your passion and purpose overwhelm you. This is not something you let happen once, it is something you visualize and let consume you daily. Create some kind of ritualistic way to passionately express and feel your optimism and enthusiasm every single day.

2. Purposefully visualize yourself participating in your own success. By using this technique routinely, you will come to understand that you are closer to achieving the success you desire than you think. You will become more positive, which will have affirmative effects on your presence.

3. Create a mantra. This is one, short sentence that you repeat to yourself throughout the day. It should be stated in the positive and have a meditative quality about it so you can zone in on. Used during meditation, mantras help your mind to focus and relax, thus allowing you to get in a more Zen place that will allow positivity to flow freely.

4. Use optimism as a tool. Being optimistic is also one of the most effective tools you can use to inspire yourself, ward off frustration and feelings of defeat and keep your spirits high. Carrying that energy with you will drive you forward daily to make your life's dreams an enjoyable reality.

5. Write down positive things that happened to you during the day. These are things that you are to be thankful for and writing them down just before bedtime will allow you to ruminate on them during the night and wake up feeling more upbeat the next day.

For more chic success, do one thing every day that will increase your level of optimism. If you have time, do more. A focus on getting your mind in an affirmative place is never a waste of time. With the expectation of a good outcome comes a good outcome. It's that simple and it's that much more important to focus on each day.

Elizabeth Gordon owns a boutique management consulting firm called Flourishing Business®, headquartered in Atlanta, GA. She is the author of the bestselling, business strategy book for women, The Chic Entrepreneur: Put Your Business in Higher Heels. Receive a free copy of her latest eBook The Seven Secrets to My Success, at her website, www.chicentrepreneur.com when you sign up for her free Chic Tips ezine.

5 Common Resume Mistakes That Will Ruin Your Chance

You may not realize how many people you are actually competing against for a single job. It could literally be hundreds or thousands of other applicants. One mistake on your résumé will take you out of the running within seconds. Below you will find 5 common résumé mistakes. Is it time to revise your résumé?

1. Mistake: Not tailoring your résumé to a specific job.
You should have a specific résumé written for a specific job. This will take the guesswork out of it for the employer and help you secure the job that you want. Your goal should be to land a job that is a good fit for you – not just any job. This is not only about the employer finding a good candidate; it's about YOU finding a great job that fits your experience and future goals. So, be specific. As mentioned in #3, research and find out what you really want to do!

2. Mistake: Not being specific with your accomplishments.
Don't just list all of your tasks and duties. You will need to think strategically and list your accomplishments. Your résumé should contain specific examples of how your employers benefited from your performance. Wherever possible, include measurable outcomes of your work. Quantify and qualify them.

Example:
Task = Attended group meetings and recorded minutes. Accomplishment = Used laptop computer to record weekly meeting minutes and compiled them in a Microsoft Word-based file for future organizational reference.

3. Mistake: Too much personal information.
It is not necessary to add your hobbies, marital status or other irrelevant facts about your personal life. Keep it professional! Employers don't need to know how many children you have or what you do on the weekend. It may be wise to remove graduation dates, as well. This gives the employer the ability to calculate your age. If you are posting your résumé on Internet sites then remove your address – for security reasons.

4. Mistake: Not highlighting your value.
Make sure your résumé shows how you will add value to the operation and growth of the organization. Answer the question, "What difference will you make in my organization?" That means you will need to research the company you are applying to and understand how you fit in. Every employer wants to build 'human capital'. Show the employer how you will be an asset for their company.

5. Mistake: Too many pages.
It is wise to limit your résumé to two pages. That is, generally, the industry standard. Some companies have specific requirements on page length, cover letter, references, etc. In these cases, you will need to research the company and submit exactly what is required.

 

Click here to read more tips from Mom Corps about what NOT to include on your resume.

Biggest Obstacles Stay-At-Home Moms Face When Re-Entering the Workforce

When stay-at-home Moms begin job searching after for five, ten, or more years of being at home, they often find themselves lacking the confidence and sometimes the skills needed to land the type of job they'd like to have. I call this "The Gap".

We've spent the past 2 years interviewing hiring managers, recruiters and HR professionals to define this gap, and find out what areas stay-at home Moms most need to address in order to compete in today's job market.

The feedback has been remarkably consistent! Here's what they want to see:

1. The Resume

Time at home with family should not be reflected by a void on a resume. You've certainly done whole heck of a lot more than nothing!

Highlight your volunteer activities and identify all relevant, transferable skills you've learned and utilized.

For instance: If you served on a board, include your leadership and management skills! If you managed any projects, highlight the skills you used to get the job done! If you raised funds, this is selling / marketing experience! Most of the time, participation in groups includes process optimization, teambuilding, etc. Be sure to include any numbers that demonstrate the results you obtained.

Bottom line: Do not undervalue or "pass over" what you've been doing, even if you weren't getting paid for it. The hiring Managers are open to time out of the workforce, but they do want to see what you have been doing. Remember, the resume is designed to get you the interview. It is the interview that can get you the job- so make sure to keep the resume concise and easy to scan in 30-45 seconds.

2. Computer Skills

It's unanimous. Every single hiring manager we interviewed cited computer skills as a showstopper to gainful employment and critical to competing in today's job market. Even career and college classes require you to have computer capabilities now, including Microsoft PowerPoint, Word and some Excel.

Be careful not to underestimate how much there is to be learned! Some light internet and email use is not enough in the business world.

Not sure where to start? Take a benchmark test to see where you stand. Employment/ staffing agencies can provide these. They also provide "brush-up" tutorials. The Microsoft website has a library of tutorials, and most local adult Ed programs also offer courses to get you started.

Become comfortable with the basics and then research industry or job-specific requirements. You can use O*Net to look up careers and learn what industry-specific skills and software program knowledge are preferred.

Bottom line: You don't need to be an expert, but you do need to know your way around the computer and some basic software programs. So invest in yourself and remember that employers are open to offering some industry-specific training.

3. Professional image

Candidates who have been cleaning the house, driving carpools, and making lunches and dinners for years need to throw out the sweats and t-shirts and update their hair and wardrobe to reflect a new professional image!

Take this time to "re-invent" yourself, it can be fun! Go get fitted for a good bra. Update your hairstyle. (Make sure your hair color and makeup look natural!)

Buy a few interview suits that can be mixed/ matched later for less formal use, and have them tailored so they fit you well.

Remember to keep your accessories toned down because you want them to hear what you're saying, not what you're wearing. If this seems daunting, then get help from someone who knows how to dress for interviews and for life in your new chosen profession.

Bottom line: Your appearance is extremely important! It demonstrates your level of professionalism and commitment. It either says "executive", or not. Invest in your appearance and you'll feel great!

4. Interview Skills

Of course I could write volumes on this topic, and many people have! So I'll include some of the basics that hiring managers want to see:

• You've researched the Company: You know what properties of the company appeal to you and why you want to work for them. Demonstrate that you have some understanding of their industry. Research the competition too. What are the industry hot buttons? Where is this company going? What is their culture?
• You've made an effort to learn some of the industry-specific language: Every industry has is "language". Read up to at least understand standard phrases and terms.
• Be Real! Remember that the person on the other side of the desk would LOVE nothing more than for you to be "the one" so that they can move on to their next task! Seeming nervous or "manufactured" just makes it difficult for them to figure out whether or not you're a good fit for the job in question.

So, be yourself. If it's not a good fit, then simply move on and remember that it's not personal. Also remember that you are interviewing them as well, to make sure that their work environment is one that you'll be happy and able to thrive in.

Bottom line: Interviewing takes practice. Get out there and learn! Make every interview an interesting conversation, not an interrogation. Take every interview opportunity you can. If you're open, you're bound to learn something from each interview experience!

The best interview prep tool I've found is a killer value at $50, a 2 CD set called "Interview Mastery".

5. Confidence

This is not something you can buy or obtain easily. It comes from a process of introspection, clarity of who you are now in your life, what your needs are, and where you want to go- and it takes time and work to develop! So, be patient with yourself.

Potential employers do want to see that you believe in the value you can bring to their organization and to the job you're interviewing for.

Practice articulating your value and goals: Women in particular often need improvement when it comes to talking about themselves and their skills. Learn to effectively market your skills to your chosen profession. Practice!

Be clear on what type of work culture is best for you. Remember, it's not about getting any job; it's about getting the right job in an environment where you'll be successful and happy.

Remember that most companies know that stay-at-home Moms may be lacking in some areas, however there are other areas where they will outshine their counterparts. While raising children parents quickly mature. They learn professionalism, commitment, patience and organizational skills. They also learn to multi-task and keep cool during highly emotional situations.

Bottom line: Every individual has special talents and strengths. You are valuable! If you package yourself properly, and focus on finding the "right fit", you will find success!

Linda Waters is a wife, mother, career coach, and the founder of Back to Business LLC. Back to Business, located in Franklin, Massachusetts, provides a full range of services for women preparing to return to work or seeking a better professional "fit" and more fulfilling career. For more information on Linda email at info@backtobusiness.org.

Back to Business will be hosting a Women's Workshop event at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA on September 18th and MomCorps will be there! For more detail go to www.backtobusiness.org.

Linda Waters is a business/career coach and the president of Back to Business, a company focused on helping people achieve successful career transitions and women who want to return to the workforce. She lives in Franklin with her husband and two children.

 

For more information on how you can get Back to Business, check out www.backtobusiness.org or call 508-520-4100. Copyright © 2008 Back to Business All Rights Reserved

5 Tips for Workaholics and Devoted Working Women

You're a workaholic. Ironically, working constantly can make your work decline in quality and effectiveness. In order to avoid letting your business take over, incorporate the following 5 lessons into your busy life:

1. Run for your life. It is far too easy to avoid exercising because you have to do more work. Make you physical health your top priority. Take a jog or walk and mull over an issue that you've been having in the workplace. You will find that you can run across the solution and you will have more energy to power through those times when you need to squeeze more work hours from yourself.

2. Snack healthily. Working until the wee hours of the morning can cause you to have the late-night munchies. To avoid feeling drained of energy, keep snacks that are high in protein like canned tuna, raw almonds and soy nuts. Healthy foods make healthy minds that can work longer, harder and smarter.

3. Sleep! When you find yourself nodding off at your desk, or daydreaming, you are no longer productive. It's better to get a full night's rest and be fresh in the morning than to stay up late and work inefficiently. It is more efficient to get the sleep you need and be faster and smarter the next day.

4. Go outside. This can be combined with lesson 1. Fresh air does wonders for your mental state, and spending time with nature can bring out creativity, which leads to great ideas that increase your bottom line. To avoid cabin fever and tunnel vision, take a long walk, breath in fresh air and notice the beauty around you.

5. Find quiet time. Spending time with your family, talking on the phone and writing hundreds of emails everyday can wear you out. Find ten minutes everyday to meditate, close your eyes or listen to soothing music. You will be amazed what a little quiet time can do for your peace of mind. Those around you will be grateful that you are a more pleasant person to deal with.

Working a lot is not a bad thing as long as it is temporary and there is an end, a break and future rewards in sight. By incorporating life-enhancing practices into your everyday routine, you can become more productive with a better quality of work, and this increases the longevity of your personal and business health.

Elizabeth is the author of The Chic Entrepreneur: Put Your Business in Higher Heels, published by Robert D. Reed in 2008. This business strategy book for women introduces Elizabeth's unique nine-dimension methodology for creating a successful business and teaches how entrepreneurs can supercharge their business growth using their sass and style.

Elizabeth is Founder and CEO of Flourishing Business, a business advisory firm for entrepreneurs specializing in working with high growth startups that want to augment their internal expertise with that of seasoned business advisors, who can help with strategy and execution.

Working Moms and Professionals Take Time to Think

By Randy Hain, Bell Oaks

As busy professionals with compounding responsibilities, isn't it becoming more and more difficult to find time just to ... think? Commiserating with colleagues and friends, we share how our work days are filled with an almost obsessed focus on getting as much work done as possible, countless meetings and squeezing every bit of air out of our schedules. In our other (and most important) roles as fathers/mothers and husbands/wives, we're faced with another harried stretch of time each evening filled with family dinner, kid's activities and the myriad other things that families require. Weekends are more of the same.

Clever vernacular such as "perpetual hurry syndrome" and "time poverty," are beginning to circulate when describing this phenomenon, but I simply choose to call it alarming. We make decisions all day long, but how much of it is reactive and responding to what others throw your way? Taking time to think strategically, be creative or even pause to ponder an issue before responding is a growing challenge. The fact that many of us view time to think as a luxury is a sad indictment of the culture in which we live.

We are addicted to background "noise" and connecting with others through computer and PDA screens. I'm not opposed to technology, but recognize how I've allowed it to exacerbate my challenge with finding quiet time to think. What used to be a leisurely drive to work a decade ago is now crammed with phone calls. Waiting for appointments to arrive, stops at red lights and elevator rides are now opportunities to respond with my "Crackberry" to the barrage of emails I receive daily. In an effort to become more efficient, I am sacrificing thinking time.

Research for this article uncovered these insights into our penchant for technology and predisposition for interruption:

• Last year, AOL's third annual "Email Addiction" survey revealed that email use on portable devices has nearly doubled since 2004. Findings from the company's release include: The average email user checks mail about five times a day, and 59 percent of those with portable devices are using them to check email every time a new message arrives. Forty-three percent of email users with portable devices say they keep the device nearby when they are sleeping to listen for incoming mail.

With or without portable devices, 15 percent of Americans describe themselves as "addicted to email," and many are even planning their vacations with email access in mind. About four in 10 email users say it is "very" or "somewhat" important to them to think about email accessibility when they are planning a vacation, and 83 percent admit to checking mail once a day while on vacation.

• The Wall Street Journal's Sue Shellenberger writes in her article, "Multitasking Makes You Stupid, Studies Say:" A growing body of scientific research shows one of professionals' favorite time-saving techniques--multitasking, can actually make you less efficient and, well, more stupid. Trying to do two or three things at once or in quick succession can take longer overall than doing them one at a time, and may leave you with reduced brainpower to perform each task.

• A study by Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Carolyn Buck Luce published in the Harvard Business Review states: Forty-five percent of high-earning managers are too tired to converse with their spouse or partner after a long day at the office. This strain is wreaking havoc on family and personal lives.

• From a TIME magazine article titled, "Help! I've Lost My Focus:" In a study of 1,000 office workers from top managers on down, Basex, an information-technology research firm, found that interruptions now consume an average of 2.1 hours a day, or 28 percent of the workday. The two hours of lost productivity included not only unimportant interruptions and distractions but also the recovery time associated with getting back on task. Estimating an average salary of $21 an hour for "knowledge workers," Basex calculated that workplace interruptions cost the U.S. economy $588 billion a year.

• "Crackberry" was named the 2006 Webster's New World Collegiate Dictionary New Word of the Year.

Baroness Susan Greenfeld, well-known British author and Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Oxford, said in a World Business article titled, "How Technology is Changing the Manager's Brain:" "We're already seeing the impact of the IT revolution on the workplace. Working on the screen is having a massive impact on the way we think and process information. The screen culture is not conducive to taking time to think--everything is instantly available. The result is iconic thinking, quick fixes and short attention spans."

Have we relinquished much of our ability to think strategically and creatively to the onslaught of increasingly sophisticated technology? Has the technological age, which was supposed to herald a time of increased leisure, in fact enslaved us? We are almost always reacting to television, the Internet, e-mails and phone calls. This forced diet of (other people's) information may be a necessary evil, but consider the real possibility that we have swung so far in that direction, we aren't generating and sharing enough of our own original thought. In her book, Leadership and the New Science: Discovering Order in a Chaotic World, author Dr. Margaret Wheatley writes, "The single most revolutionary act you can do these days is to find time to think."

Time to think, time to pray, time with family, time with friends--these are the components of the fuller and richer lives we all want to lead. Work will always demand as much of our time as we allow. But is technology the real culprit? Probably not. We have the freedom to choose how we spend our time and should take this responsibility onto ourselves. Remember that technology was intended to serve us, and not the other way around.

So how do we create these respites of time we so desperately need? It's the little things; the small steps that will help us find our "thinking time." I've shared some ideas here:

• Start your day on a different note Don't run to your computer and turn it on! Rather than checking email or reading the overnight news the moment you wake up, designate the first 20 minutes for reflection, reading, journaling or prayer. Have a cup of coffee, sit down and think about your day. Or perhaps reading or exercise stimulates your brain. Whatever it is, make it your time--it's the one part of the day when clients aren't calling and nobody is making demands on your schedule.

• Put it on your calendar. You know the saying that if it isn't scheduled, it will never happen? Try blocking out small windows of time each day for reflection. I borrowed an idea from the Jesuits called the Daily Examen where I schedule five-minute blocks of time throughout the day to reflect on my actions and think about the future. Schedule these time blocks around travel, meal and bed times. Keith Conley, an EVP with Document Technologies in Atlanta, offers this insight: "In an effort to force myself to sit back and spend time on the big picture, I have found what works best for me is to schedule 90 minute blocks of open time on my calendar twice a week. This creates an opportunity to focus on business strategy, evaluate progress towards business goals and to do a reality check on how I'm spending my time."

• Introduce simplicity into your life. Try reading a book versus listening to the audio version. Spend time with good friends who will challenge you. Listen to beautiful music or watch a classic movie. Take a long walk with your spouse. Do something outside with your kids every day. Embrace their natural curiosity and be grateful they want to learn new things. Make an effort to teach them something about the world and how to think for themselves. Get some time for yourself on the weekend and make sure your spouse does as well. • Don't feed your compulsions As a practical measure, turn off the 'ding' when new email arrives. It can wait! Don't feel compelled to answer immediately. Do the same on your PDA. Turning off the audio or LED notification and checking for emails at the appropriate time can add to your ability to concentrate in a conversation or other thinking assignments. Look at other areas that feed tendencies which negatively affect thinking time and make some simple changes.

• Hold mini-retreats every quarter. Take a day off once a quarter, if not more frequently. Use this time only to relax and plan. Explain to your loved ones that you need this to collect yourself and get re-energized. The toughest challenge with a mini-retreat is to turn off your PDA and cell phone. Computers are okay if you are trying to capture your thoughts, but don't plan on checking email.

• Schedule/participate in more open discussions and strategy sessions. It can be as formal as inviting your team to a meeting where you throw a problem on the white board for discussion, or as casual as inviting a few friends to lunch to debate politics. When in the presence of your team, colleagues or friends ask thought-provoking questions. In an effort to break free from simply sharing regurgitated ideas and information, ask "Why" more often. Regardless of how you do it, this open debate and discussion is healthy and will feed and stimulate you in important ways. And by the way ... turn off the PDAs! "In meetings where everyone is checking email, opportunities for collective creative energy and critical thinking are lost," says Nathan Zeldes, a senior engineer at Intel and a leader of the nonprofit, Information Overload Research Group.

• Designate certain windows of time as "gadget free". Choose times in the day (car rides are ideal) when all electronics are turned off, even the radio. This will take discipline, but imagine the car as your safe haven and "thought incubator." Lori Swope, an Account Manager with Watson Wyatt in Atlanta, has a balance in her life that I admire. She says, "I set aside certain times of the day for thinking and focusing on the people I love the most. Early morning is reserved for prayer, reading and exercise. The morning ride to school with my daughter is our time together - no Blackberries or phone calls. Dinner with my family means no interruptions or other distractions. It takes discipline, but these are my priorities. And my work is always finished!"

• Surround yourself with personal advisors. Pat McNulty, former SVP of Allied Waste and president of Barton Protective Services, has found that a "personal" Board of Advisors--consisting of friends, family, colleagues and clergy can stimulate you to think, calibrate, verify and validate; provide a valuable sounding board for decision-making; ask the tough questions; and provide real inspiration. Periodic and informal "values check sessions," give us much-needed pause. He continues: "Learning to drive, we are taught to look in the mirrors and gauge the short distance immediately in front of the car. We're also instructed to regularly take in the long-range, 'big picture' view. In everyday living, how often do we pause, breathe and take in the wider, more meaningful view?"

A good friend recently gave me a beautiful leather writing journal. This thoughtful gift has prompted much of the thinking for this article and initiated a significant change in my daily routine. I enjoy writing and used to email myself ideas or leave myself messages at work--adding to the volumes I already receive. Now, I take the journal with me everywhere and find I'm reaching for it instead of my technology enablers. Actually writing by hand provides me a few precious moments between appointments or in the early hours of the day to gather my thoughts on a number of topics, and the process has been rejuvenating.

Dan King, Chief Administrative Officer for Allconnect in Atlanta, offers this advice for creating thinking time: "I've discovered that three things are needed for me to think creatively – a topic, time and place. During the course of my workweek, I keep a pad to jot down topics that require deeper thinking, business-related or personal. A couple of these topics go with me to my 'think space,' which happens to be a quiet café near my home, once or twice a week. This practice has made me a more valued contributor at work and what I hope is a better husband and dad."

As many of us 40-somethings have a tendency to do, I am taking stock of what's important and am determined to find the time I need for God, family, work and me. Dr. Ron Young, CEO of TROVE, a national leadership development and coaching firm, recently provided me with this insight: "There are many different types of thinking. In today's competitive, adrenaline-addicted world, it is easy to fall into the trap of believing that we do not have time to think. Living on autopilot or "living on fast forward" is the quickest way to rushing into inefficiency, errors and hollow living. Research tells us that we can save between four and eight hours for every hour we invest in planning."

He continues: "We need to make time for big-picture thinking to look beyond ourselves and gain eternal perspective. Without time to think we are unlikely to question popular thinking, to be creative or strategic. Getting outside of ourselves and the rush of our day-to-day lives allows us to reflect, think unselfishly and remember why we are here. Making time to think allow us to connect with deeper needs of meaning and belonging. It allows us to recall that we are human beings, not task-driven robots."

In conclusion, we give the important areas of our lives our best effort when we're calm, rested and thoughtful. We own the responsibility to make the necessary changes to give ourselves what we need. Author Dr. Margaret Wheatley also said, "Don't expect anybody to give you the time to think. You will have to claim it for yourself. If we want our world to be different, our first act needs to be reclaiming time to think. Nothing will change for the better until we do that." What part of your schedule will you reclaim today to get some thinking time? You read this article and I hope it made you think--that is a good start!

 

Randy Hain is Managing Partner and Shareholder of Bell Oaks, a nationally-recognized executive search firm. He has an established track record of leading successful searches and building teams in diverse industries and functional specializations ranging from individual contributors to C-level leadership. He may be reached at rhain@belloaks.com or (678) 287-2031.

With a nearly 40-year legacy in executive search, Bell Oaks specializes in identifying, attracting and hiring professionals to critical positions with companies across the country. Founded in 1970, the national firm has particular expertise in the areas of sales and marketing, human resources, finance and accounting, information technology, and manufacturing/operations/engineering. Bell Oaks is consistently ranked as one of the leading search firms in the South and was recently named one of Atlanta's Best Places to Work by the Atlanta Business Chronicle for the second consecutive year.

Time Management Strategies for Working Moms

Tick, tick, tick... the hands of a clock turning. Time. As professionals, time is our greatest opportunity AND our greatest liability. How can we capitalize on this opportunity and minimize the liability? By looking at time, not as something to be "managed", but as a framework to help us find our business rhythm or flow.

Flow is a guide or structure for your business day.

Financials and Focus

Ask yourself: Where is my revenue line? Where do I add value to the company? How close to the revenue line is my daily work? Ask yourself: What is my focus for today, this week, this month, this year?

• The answers to these two questions become the guidelines for building your schedule.
• When you look at your calendar or schedule, enter the activities, projects and tasks FIRST that are closest to the revenue line and your focus.

Now you have ensured that you have time to work on the items that are closest to the revenue and highest priority items. Fill in the other activities around these items.

Location

Does everything have a place in your calendar?

• Ask yourself: Do all of my activities/tasks have a place in my calendar?
• As the pace of work continues to speed up, unless projects, meetings and activities – both personal and professional – have a place in your calendar then how can you realistically know how much time you can allot for a task? How can you know that you even have the time to do a task?
• Have you ever packed for a trip and kept adding more and more things to your suitcase? Then your suitcase is so full, you have to sit on it to get it closed. Time is the suitcase. We can only put so many things on our calendar and then we just run out of room. So, does everything have a place in your calendar?

Organize

Organize your days around your priorities and then structure your environment to support them.

• If your priority is to increase revenue, then how must you organize your days to support your goal?
• How must you organize your physical office space to support your goals?

Work

Make it work for YOU! Design a system that allows you to flow through your days.

• When is your energy high?
• When is your energy low? 
• How can you structure your schedule around your energy levels? 
• Do you want to do all of your intense, focused work in the morning and respond to customers in the afternoon? 
• What type of work can you do when your energy is not at its peak? 
• What calendar tool works best for you – paper or electronic?
• How do you process information? 
• Do you like to receive information electronically, verbally, or printed? 
• Is there a day planner or a software program that can help you increase your efficiency?
• Can you download contact management software? 
• Can you have your assistant enter all of your appointments? 
• Have you allowed enough time for you to respond to an urgent deadline, a personal emergency, or for fun?

Now, how are you going to get in the FLOW?

This article was written by Carson Tate, certified professional organizer and founder of Living Simply and Working Simply. For more information please visit our website at www.livingsimply.net. You may also contact Laurie Jones, the Residential Manager at-laurie@livingsimply.net or 704.362.1526.

How Working Moms Can Strive to Get "Un-Stuck" in Career and Life

At times we find ourselves getting in our own way. Sometimes, it's not clear to us how to go about making the positive changes we really need in order to be happy. We beat ourselves up for having done little or nothing about it, then continue in the same routine simply for lack of an alternative direction!

Sound familiar? If so, take a look that the following tips on how to move forward and create the life you really want. Practice using them to make the positive changes you desire. You'll see things turn around. You deserve this!

• Commit to yourself just as you would commit to helping a friend who needs you. You'll find that your own positive process will have a ripple effect on everything in your life.

• Be honest enough to say, "this isn't working for me". Define clearly what it is that you're unhappy with. Think about how it conflicts with your personal values. Work it out on paper.

• Re-connect with yourself. Do some fair and honest self-assessment and soul-searching. What are your strengths? Focus on them. What are your weaknesses? Be aware of them and put them in the "things to be aware of" category.

• Block out negativity or criticism that's not constructive. Tune in to your "self-talk." (You know what I mean, those negative beat-you-up tapes that run in your head). Write down the negative points and then give yourself twenty-four hours for a rebuttal. Think about these points as though someone had written them about your best friend. Now defend them! As for external negative influences, take stock of the contributors and resolve to allow them less-to-no- time in your new life.

• Invest in yourself. Are you taking the time you need to work on your new life direction? Are you making time to exercise or meditate? Could you benefit from working with a coach or by taking a class? What is your self-care routine? Define and commit to things that will fortify you.

• Allow yourself to make mistakes and learn from them. As long as you're learning, you're moving forward.

• Pay attention to how you present yourself. Projecting a positive image makes a difference in how you're treated and how you feel about yourself. Even if you don't feel like it, dress "up one notch" every day.

• Take ten minutes every morning to set your intention for the day. This will drive you toward your goals in easy to manage steps. You'll be surprised at how quickly the results accumulate.

• Find a mentor, someone whose goal is your success. This person should energize and motivate you. Asking for help is a very powerful step. When you ask for help you're giving yourself a gift.

• Write your goals down on paper. Focus on the things you want. Some people are so unclear on what they want they have to start with the things they don't want. That's okay! But move to the positive as quickly as possible. Resolve to be a goal-setting individual, moving every day toward the things that are important to you!

There's a start. Research tells us that it takes twenty-one days to make an action a habit. Stick with these actions and you'll find yourself in the driver's seat of your own life. Remember: your own thoughts, attitudes and actions create results. Make them positive!

Linda Waters is a business/career coach and the president of Back to Business, a company focused on helping people achieve successful career transitions and women who want to return to the workforce. She lives in Franklin with her husband and two children.

 

For more information on how you can get Back to Business, check out www.backtobusiness.org or call 508-520-4100. Copyright © 2008 Back to Business All Rights Reserved

Kudos to Cynthia Good for Supporting Atlanta's Working Women!

Cynthia Good, Editor of Pink Magazine, is another woman who's changing the way we work – specifically city workers in Atlanta, GA.

Highlighted on this morning's edition of NBC's TODAY Show, Good wrote letters to both Shirley Franklin, Mayor of Atlanta, and Sonny Perdue, Governor of Georgia, petitioning for verbiage on construction warning signs to be changed.

While the signs originally read "Men Working", the new signs will now read "Workers". Although the change cost the city $1,000 dollars, the message that it sends to the Atlanta community and to the women represented among the city workers is invaluable.

Mom Corps supports Good for her continued effort to recognize subtle discriminatory innuendos and to establish equality for women in the workforce. Kudos!

To see the full feature, click here or see below.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

How to Get Back on Track and Find Flexible Work Arrangements

By Carol Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin

Would you like to return to the work world but are concerned about how to find an opportunity that will allow you to fulfill your family or other non-work obligations, nervous about how to "market yourself" to potential employers, or unsure about what type of work you want to do?

We know how you feel. We took time out to be home with our children, and then relaunched our careers years later. Based upon our experience, and that of the 100+ women we interviewed for our book on resuming careers after a career break, Back on the Career Track, as well as the career counselors, recruiters and employers whose advice we sought, we've developed a detailed process to help you negotiate this major transition.

Here it is in a nutshell:

• Relaunch or Not? You Decide. If financial reasons require you to return to work, go to step 2. If not, determine whether you are ready to go back to paid work or whether deepening your volunteer involvement or engaging in a non-work passion might satisfy your restlessness. If you're not sure whether or not you want to return to paid work, visit www.backonthecareertrack.com. and take our Relaunch Readiness Quiz.

• Learn Confidence. If a lack of confidence is one of the obstacles holding you back, don't worry. You can regain it. Remember, whether you are a nurse, speech therapist, computer programmer, scientific researcher, or salesperson, your former colleagues' and classmates' image of you is frozen in time. They think of you as a consummate professional, and as you start to renew your professional persona and reconnect to the professional world, your confidence will grow. Following Steps 3 and 4 will also help increase your confidence as you update your professional knowledge and become more articulate in expressing what you want to do and why.

• Assess Your Career Options. Don't think that returning to the conventional full time workforce is the only way to resume your career. The moms we interviewed did everything from starting a home based afterschool enrichment program (former teacher) to running career services for a law school on a flexible schedule (former public defender) to job sharing a hospice administrator position (former social worker) to creating a marketing campaign for a new mutual fund from home (former mid level marketing executive). Break down your old job(s) or volunteer experiences into their component parts and focus on what you did best and what you liked best. Then try to think of new opportunities that build on those skills and interests.

• Update your Professional and Job Search Skills. A sure way to increase your confidence and bolster your employability is to update yourself. Read relevant journals, take continuing education classes and attend industry events. In terms of job search skills, develop an elevator story (a two minute talk answering the "what do you want to do" question) that summarizes your expertise and the kind of opportunity you seek in a few key sentences.

• Network and Market Yourself. Order yourself a business card with your name and contact information. That way you don't have to scribble on a piece of scrap paper if you meet someone who wants to keep in touch with you. Then, start talking to people, beginning with those you know well. Branch out to those to whom they refer you, and discuss your professional interests and the kinds of opportunities you'd like to explore. These informal conversations essentially function as interview rehearsals, as you gradually hone your message. Prior to formal interviews, make sure you prepare extensively by studying the employer's website and practicing answers to the most common interview questions. When asked about your resume gap, answer matter-of-factly that you took some time out to raise your children/take care of an elderly parent, etc., but that you're now eager to get back to work.

• Channel Family Support. Get your spouse, if you have one, on board with your plans as soon as possible. If you encounter resistance, make it clear how important this is to you and point out that with extra income you might be able to outsource some of the tasks that neither of you wants to perform, such as cleaning and shopping. The older your children are, the sooner you should tell them as well. If you need to change your childcare arrangements, try to implement the changes before you start your new job, so you can work out any problems. Streamline your household routines to maximize time to devote to either work or family. Develop a support network of family and/or neighbors to help you out in a jam.

• Handle the Job or Find Another One. You found the right opportunity and you've relaunched. Initially, keep your employer's expectations low. Better to underpromise and overdeliver, rather than the other way around. Ask for early and frequent reviews – ideally, every six months, because neither you nor your employer will be able to predict the rate of your career trajectory. Help your colleagues whenever possible, so they'll reciprocate when you need them. And, remember, this is just your first foray back to the professional marketplace. If it doesn't work out, you can always make a change.

Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin are the authors of Back on the Career Track: A Guide for Stay at Home Moms who Want to Return to Work (Warner Books, June 2007). For more information and/or to contact them, please visit www.backonthecareertrack.com.

Mom Entrepreneurs, Put the Fireworks Back in Your Business!

By Elizabeth Gordon

July is National Horseradish Month, National Hot Dog Month, National Grilling Month and National Ice Cream Month. Who comes up with this stuff? Whomever they are, one thing is clear: those folks like to eat. With backyard barbeques, homemade ice cream and time spent with family and friends on everyone's mind, here are 6 ways for you to put the fireworks back into your business during the summer lull:

• Bargain hunting 
  If you've been waiting to purchase new office copiers or cubicles, the summer is a great time to shop around. Suppliers might offer good deals to generate summer business, and you can even negotiate for additional perks like added features or discounted service plans.

• Go green
  As gas prices reach and exceed the $4 mark, a slow summer provides the opportunity for you to try to be greener by telecommuting to work. You can start out slow by doing this one day a week to gage your productivity and the functioning of the office.

• Get organized
  Even in the summer, it doesn't hurt to do some "spring cleaning:" start shredding old documents you no longer need. If you must keep large amounts of documents but you're running out of space, a document imaging service can convert your paper into easily manageable electronic files. And this clean up isn't restricted to just physical documents -- deleting old emails and programs you no longer use can help boost your computer's performance.

• Hire summer help
  Local universities and professional staffing companies are great sources for finding young professionals looking for internships or part-time work for the summer. The extra help will allow you to hand off mundane tasks like general office duties or data compilation, allowing you to focus on bigger projects or business growth.

• Revisit old ideas
  Use your extra time to go back to ideas or projects you put on the back burner earlier in the year. Did you want to redesign your web site? Did you want to focus on new products? Laying the foundation for new concepts during the slow summer months could help put your company in a better position when business picks up.

• Take time off
  If business is slow because customers are taking vacation time, why not follow suit? After working hard all year to make your business flourish, relax and spend time with friends and family. Besides, abandoning your Blackberry and laptop for a while can help recharge your batteries and make you more productive when you return to work.

Take advantage of the summertime and put the boom back in your business!

 

Elizabeth is the author of The Chic Entrepreneur: Put Your Business in Higher Heels, published by Robert D. Reed in 2008. This business strategy book for women introduces Elizabeth's unique nine-dimension methodology for creating a successful business and teaches how entrepreneurs can supercharge their business growth using their sass and style.

Elizabeth is Founder and CEO of Flourishing Business, a business advisory firm for entrepreneurs specializing in working with high growth startups that want to augment their internal expertise with that of seasoned business advisors, who can help with strategy and execution.

Eight Steps for Working Women to Find and Create the Work They Love

By Brian Kurth of Vocation Vacations

Many of us are still trying to figure out what we want to be when we grow up.  We may have good jobs and nice paychecks, but we are not really happy in our work.  We daydream about the "what if's" in our life and long for the chance to discover and explore the job of our dreams.  Identifying your dream job and the path that will take you there is both a challenge and an opportunity.  But by following a realistic step-by-step "vocationing" process, you can pursue your interests and passions to the job of your dreams.

• Define Your Dream Job(s) 

What are your passions and your interests? What activities give you a sense of purpose and satisfaction? Can you envision yourself in a job that fully engages your heart and your mind? You may still be trying to figure out what you want to be when you grow up.  That's okay. The "vocationing" process gives you the opportunity to explore, experiment, and discover what your dream job is and how to pursue it.

• Address Your Fears

Financial instability, family disruption, giving up an identity, failing at something new.  These are all fears that may stand in the way of pursuing your dream job. The biggest thing you can do to get past these fears is to meet them head-on. Bring these deepest fears to light and examine them with reason; talk about them; play each one out to its most irrational end. What is the worst thing that could happen?

• Do Your Research

Internal and external research helps you discover who you are and what kind of work meshes with your deepest self. Do your homework and access resources ranging from the Internet to one-on-one contact with people on-the-job to determine if what you think is your dream job, truly is your dream job.

• Find a Mentor

Inspirational, experienced, realistic, forthcoming and optimistic.  A good mentor is all of these things and eager to help someone else get started.  Recruiting a mentor who is a good match for you requires following a plan of action, asking the right questions, and building a relationship that is mutually satisfying.  Having a mentor is the crux to the vocationing process.  Whether you're 20-something, 30-something, 40-something, 50-something or even 60-something, you need a mentor!    

• Test Drive Your Dream Job

There's no better way to learn than by doing. Test-driving your dream job with a mentor provides a hands-on experience that has the potential to change your life. This is the opportunity to learn as much as possible about the job, how you feel about the day-to-day activities, and what it takes to succeed.  Whether your mentorship proves your perceived dream job is indeed your dream job or if it is a reality check illuminating that the job is not the one of your dreams, the mentorship experience gives you the required personal and professional due diligence you need prior to making a career decision.

• Create an Action Plan

Pursuing a dream job is less a leap than a series of incremental steps that move you closer to your goal. What is critical to reaching that goal is making sure the steps you follow are the right ones. An action plan is needed.  If you make a list of all the things you need to learn and do in order to realize your dream job, you will have mapped out a plan for moving ahead.  A knowledgeable action plan provides you with the power to forge ahead.

• Establish Thresholds

The biggest reason we pursue our dream job is to increase our life satisfaction. It is important to understand how much risk, challenge, and uncertainty you can tolerate before the life satisfaction goal becomes blurred by the process.  The vocationing process is as much about what you learn on the journey as the rewards when you reach your destination.

• Think Big, Start Small

You don't have to quit your nine-to-five job to pursue your dream job. Obligations and concerns may take you down a less-than-direct path.  It may take months, not weeks....years, not months. If you are patient and creative, you can keep your career transition moving forward. The vocationing process will get you from Point A to Point B.

By following these eight steps in the vocationing process, dream jobs can become realities; passions and interests can be fulfilled; and the career and life style you always wanted can be yours for the taking.

Brian Kurth is the founder of VocationVacations and the author of Test-Drive Your Dream Job- A Step-By-Step Guide To Finding And Creating The Work You Love.  Kurth is a sought after expert on how to pursue and attain one's dream job.  He has shared his wit and wisdom in appearances on NBC's TODAY Show, CNN, and FOX News, and has been featured in articles in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and Fortune Magazine.  Many more regularly turn to Brian for his comments, advice and insights.  A native of Madison, Wisconsin, Kurth lives in Portland, Oregon. For more information on VocationVacations, visit www.vocationvacations.com.

The Downturn's Effect on Working Women Single-Income Families

It's a discussion that many expectant parents have at some point or another. If you really budgeted and cut back on your expenses, could you survive as a single-income family so that Mom or Dad could stay at home with the new baby for a few years? At first glance, it often seems feasible. There won't be as much gas used because the stay-at-home parent in the family won't be commuting to work any longer, you can subtract the cost of lunches out every day and dry cleaning bills for work attire will be cut in half. If a couple is really on top of things, they can put enough money aside in their savings to provide a cushion for the first year or so after the baby arrives. And sure, you'll see various ads for 'jobs for mothers' targeting this demographic, but how many of them are really legitimate?

This arrangement often works out well for families. But sometimes, it does not. Unforeseen circumstances may happen. The sole breadwinner of the family could unexpectedly lose his or her job, or the credit card bills may start piling up just to make ends meet each month. In the book, "The Two Income Trap: Why Middle Class Mothers and Fathers Are Going Broke" authors Elizabeth Warren and Amelia Warren Tyagi explore the economic circumstances behind why so many middle-class parents who file for bankruptcy also have children. They typically aren't people who spend frivolously and lay down the credit cards for extravagant purchases -- rather they are just paying for groceries, the mortgage and car payments. Often, when a couple purchases a home, they have two incomes to help support the mortgage payment, but that can change when they start a family. All it takes is one missed house payment to set the wheels of financial crisis in motion.

So where's the happy medium? So many couples long for the chance for one parent to be at home full-time with their children while they are young, yet they fear the loss of that extra paycheck. Today more than ever, there are expenses that add up quickly, such as private school tuition, new uniforms for the soccer team or music lessons. At the same time, large, reputable companies are laying off employees daily and the price of gas continues to skyrocket. Inevitably, something has to give and these caregivers often seek flexibility in part-time work from home jobs, where they can earn money and not have to give up most of their paycheck for childcare.

If you are a family where both parents are working full-time, do you think you could survive on one income during this economic downturn? And if you're a single income family and are now looking for part-time work through an executive recruiting firm such as Mom Corps, what brought you to this point?

Stay-At-Home Moms Returning to Work Make a Splash!

You're qualified, experienced, and having juggled your families' needs for the last few years - MORE than capable!  So why is re-entry into the workforce so daunting?

There are a number of ways to refresh your professional skills, as well as apply the new skills that you have learned as a mother in order to make a splash back into the workforce.  Although it is not always easy, below is an inspiring look at how two professional women took time away and came back to their careers in a way that worked for them.

From Mommy to Manager: Going Back to Work
By Debbie Strong
Provided by ClassesUSA.com

Blair Wilson was a high school student in 1975 about to enter college, when she met the man who would become her future husband. In six months they were married; in less than five years, they had three small children.

Wilson chose to stay at home to raise her kids (and they eventually had a fourth child) while her husband went to work -- a common choice made by women who put their own career plans aside to be home for their family. After all, many women chose to stay home for years with the kids: The U.S. Census Bureau reported that in 2006, there were 5.6 million stay-at-home moms.

Fast forward to today: After 20 years at home, Wilson became mayor of her New Jersey town and continues to serve as a town councilwoman; she's also the executive director of Morris Habitat for Humanity, where she oversees a thriving nonprofit organization and a sizeable staff of 11 employees and more than 2,000 volunteers.

How does a stay-at-home mom make such a big splash getting back into the working world? Deciding to re-enter the workforce later in the game can be a daunting prospect, but job opportunities are definitely out there - along with resources that can help.

"Figure out what job you want and then make a long-term plan to get it," says J.C. Conklin, author of Comeback Moms: How to Leave Work, Raise Children, and Restart Your Career Even If You Haven't Had a Job in Years (Broadway, 2007).

Conklin says that certain fields tend to be more accessible for mothers. "It seems like women with accounting experience have had lots of success, and some lawyers, depending on geography, specialty, and which field of law is hot at the time they go back. Other big Mom-friendly jobs: Pediatrician, nurse and various other positions in health care, Conklin adds.

Beckye Young, who graduated from Vanderbilt University and received a Certified Public Accountant license in 1987 and then worked as an auditor and corporate controller before taking a hiatus to have kids, found a way to make a successful transition back into the workforce. After eight years, she was able to return to accounting -- but not without a struggle.

"I didn't anticipate having any trouble, since I had been successful in my career prior to staying at home. However, I had great difficulty," says Young. "I had no responses from the numerous ads that I answered and none of the recruiting agencies were helpful."

One issue seemed to be the length of time she had been out of the workforce. "A recruiter told me if I had only been out two years or less, no problem, but more than five was an obstacle that they did not feel I could overcome."

She took a position at a preschool, which, she says, helped her build confidence. "There were skills that I had learned from being a homemaker that are valuable to the workforce in general," she says, "like organization skills, management skills, and patience in working with different people with different personalities."

During the summer following her preschool experience, Young again began to look for a job in the field of accounting, this time contacting Mom Corps, an agency dedicated to helping women find flexible professional opportunities. "Mom Corps actually went over my resume with me and placed me in contract work within a few weeks," says Young. The company, which provides career resources at no cost to job-seeking women, eventually helped her find her current accounting position at a local CPA firm.

What about moms who lack certain education requirements?

"Call the human resources department of the company you want to work for, and interview them," says Conklin. "Ask what positions they are hiring for now and in the future; if they will be hiring for the position you want soon; and what kind of experience they are seeking. You may be able to get into the company you like by accepting a lower-level position. You could also find out what you need to do to improve your skills."

Plenty of college courses are offered online, and many programs, such as nursing programs, are offered in the evenings.

Also, Conklin advises women, "Make sure your computer skills are up to snuff before you go back. Take a class - or you could even have your child teach you. Children know a ton about technology."

For Wilson, the mom who eventually became mayor and then a top executive, evening classes were the answer. She enrolled part time at William Patterson University near her hometown, focusing first on a special education track, and then switching to a more general liberal studies major. The classes took her several years to finish; she balanced studying with family duties and eventually earned a B.A. The degree, along with helping out with office tasks at her parents' family billboard-making business, gave her the skills she needed to enter the professional world.

The major challenge, however, was boosting her own self-esteem. "[It was about] getting over the feeling that I couldn't compete with younger people, and trying to explain that I was doing something for those 20 years, and trying to figure out a way to get my foot in the door," Wilson says.

What saved her was her interest in the community and her volunteer experience at her kids' schools. "Because of my involvement, I took the next step and ran for political office while I was working full time and raising my kids," she says. "I love being a mother and I really like politics."

Wilson points to nonprofits as another place where women can make a successful entry into the workforce. "I work a lot of hours - days, nights, and weekends - and am glad my children are grown, as I don't know if I could do the job as well. But I know others who have families do well in the nonprofit fields. The downside is that nonprofit does not pay as well."

The important thing for women, says Wilson, is to recognize their own strengths before taking the leap back into the working world. "Women should recognize their talents. Find a career path that you love and have passion for, because when you are happy, then everyone around you is happy."

Originally posted at: http://www.kren.com/Global/Story.asp?S=8524429

Mom Corps' 2008 Database Survey Results

Thank you again to those who took our 2008 database survey - we received a 16% plus response rate! The full results once again prove what amazing, high caliber talent our database contains.

Database Lifestyle Demographics

Age of Respondees

• 0.3% ages 25 or under
• 5.8% ages 25 - 29
• 22.5% ages 30 - 34
• 30.7% ages 35 - 39
• 22.2% ages 40 - 44
• 11.6% ages 45 - 49
• 4.8% ages 50 - 54
• 1.6% ages 55 - 59
• 0.5% ages 60 - 64
• 0.1% ages 65 +

HHI

• 64.3% are part of Dual-Earner Households
• 56.7% are Primary Decision-Makers in their Households

Average Age of Children

• 95.4% are Parents
• 26.8% of children are between ages 1 - 3
• 23.1% of children are between the ages of 4 - 6

Education

• 90.3% have a College Degree
• 34.4% have a Professional Degree (41.8% MBAs)

Employment Demographics Current Employment Description

• 22.5% are Employed in Full-Time Traditional positions
• 21.0% are Currently Not Working – but Actively Seeking Employment

Reasons for Not Working

• 54.9% are not working due to Familial Obligations
• Only 2.3% are not working due to FMLA leave

Years out of the Workforce

• 36.7% have been out of the workforce for less than 1 year
• 23.8% have been out of the workforce for 1 - 2 years

Reasons for Working

• 75.7% are working due to Financial Obligations
• 47.1% are working due to a Sense of Career Achievement

Industry of Employment

• 30.4% Other
• 17.4% Marketing/Advertising
• 10% Human Resources
• 9.1% are in Accounting:
• 27.2% have Big 4 Experience
• 48.9% have Public Accounting Experience
• 37.3% are CPA Certified

Level of Experience

• 27.3% are/were Individual Specialists
• 23.5% have 8 - 10 years experience in their field
• 48.3% have 10 + years experience in their field

Factors of Importance

• 71.6% consider 'Flexibility' Extremely Important (93.5% Top 2 Box Score)
• 44.3% consider 'Money/Salary' Extremely Important (86.5% Top 2 Box Score)

Balance

• 15.5% are Perfectly Balanced!
• Scores vary evenly across the scale between 'Too Consumed with Work' and 'Too Consumed with Family'