Monday: Charity begins at home

The next part of the resume for a stay at home mother is charity/volunteer work. Physically writing out your unpaid experience can help you, come resume construction time. It can also be either an ego-booster or a humbling experience, depending on how much/how little you have done with your free time. List ALL experience you can recall; executive profiles often include seemingly 'meaningless' items like church committee and such, but these items are still service.

Listing the items in front of you is also going to help you look for new volunteer outlets. Unpaid work is definitely resume-worthy material; it is also a fantastic way to keep dusting off your leadership skills. It is also a great way to get a break from the kids:)

Below is a listing of what I did during both my professional and non-professional lives. Group memberships are important to list, but even moreso are the things you have done:

-Religious ed. instructor
-Member of local mom's group
-Organized fundraisers for local maternity home
-College MBA Alumni Association

As you can see, my list is not terribly impressive. But here are some things it tells me.

INTEREST AREAS: Where do my interests lie in relation to my non paid experience? In my case, the answer would be faith, motherhood, pregnancy, education. What other organizations would allow me to flex my unpaid experience muscles?

CONNECTIONS: I belong to two groups. Do either of these organizations have fundraisers or committees with which I can assist? Are there any members of either group can help me find volunteer opportunities?

COMMITTEES: Do any of my groups/interest areas have committees I can join? This is a fantastic item for any resume, no matter how short your paid work experiencee. Most committees will meet once a month AT MOST and require minimal take home work/studying on your part. Many committees for schools or community organizations only meet during the school year to accomodate families. Committees also LOVE young members. My generation is not reknown for joining or contributing. This is your chance to step and do your civic duty, too!

Brainstorm everything and then eliminate only by physical limitations. For example, a nursing mother cannot be gone too long from the home, but she can group email her parish mom's
group and suggest/coordinate a diaper drive or canned goods drive for the local maternity home.

The final step is to just join something. There is a disclaimer that should be made: this is a resume building excercise that should also prove quite fulfilling. Any little thing does make a difference. But do not join anything looking for explicit 'thank yous' or a chance to make big, sweeping reforms for the better. Sometimes committees are merely sounding boards for the boss. Frustration is common among members who have these high expectations and do not gettheir ways. Changes made may be incremental; that has to be OK with you or you will not be successful.

Monday: Past Work Experience II

2008-present: Blakester's Booties, Owner & manufacturer.

I forgot about this one! When I had my first child, I had a hard time finding baby shoes that stayed on a newborn's feet. They like to kick a lot. What I did find was made of leather and extremely expensive. Now I do not mind paying $30 for footwear but for footwear that fits feet for a very short period of time that they only wear in doors? There was my objection.

I deconstructed a pair given to me, remade the pattern and purchased a sewing machine. I do have some experience in sewing. I made a few pairs for family, who recommended them to friends and by the end of my first year had covered my initial investment.

This was a FANTASTIC lesson in both entrepreneurship and in setting price points.

Lesson 1: about a quarter of the people who say they would purchase your product actually do when you create said venture.
Lesson 2: That doesn't mean that anyone else will.
Lesson 3: Prices usually end up being lower than you thought or than your initial customers think they should be.
Lesson 4: Your market may not be what you think it is... I can easily charge $10 for a pair of these shoes and still profit. I discovered this in my first year through trial and error. But my mistake was thinking only thrifty moms liked this product. What input did dads have? Not usually many objection over a $10 shoe. However, when I did start making shoes with sports team logos, they would not stay on my shelves. Locally, I can get $15 for them; on craigslist, they sell for $20. Think outside the box.

Marketing has been minimal; business comes by word of mouth. But I have had to halt production at times when I am late into a pregnancy or just plumb busy. Naptimes or after the kids are in bed are 'production time'; but the work is detailed and quality declines when I am in these more tired stages. Business is steady when I allow it to be... which gives this venture many possibilities.