Netmum Sally on running a business from home
Netmums is a website that helps mums with anything from finding local child-friendly cafes to sharing ideas for quick and healthy family meals. But what gave Director Sally the idea for the website? She explains, "We started netmums.com, a friend and I, about seven years ago now. I was chatting to my friend Siobhan and she said she was thinking of setting up a website.
We worked together to create something, just for our local community, so that any new mums coming along could learn from word of mouth. It's not just us providing our wisdom, but encouraging people to get together and share information.
"What we're trying to do is help mothers generally as women, whether they have issues about the environment, are looking for a holiday, or are concerned about food and healthy eating. Work, and childcare around work, is very important to some of the people who use the site."
An opportunity to work from home
It was after her second child arrived that Sally decided she'd like to wave goodbye to the daily commute and work from home. How has she found working from home? "Setting up netmums has turned out to be one of those jobs that you can do from home and around the children. It's sometimes difficult to know when to stop working when you're there late at night with your computer at home. But that's the sort of pressure everybody has - that's quite normal!"
Using the skills you've learned as a mum
A key priority if you're thinking about returning to work is giving yourself credit for skills you may have built up in the home. Sally agrees: "I think it's a shame that when you have children you enter a new world and people think they've lost some of the skills they used to have. In many cases I think being a mother you learn all sorts of new skills, or hone the ones you have. You have to be a great negotiator and you have to be able to multi-task. You have to hit deadlines, make sure things are done on time and the children get to bed at the right time. People tend to forget about those sorts of things."
Be proud of what you've got to offer
Sally also has a message for you if you think employers might be reluctant to take on mothers returning to work: "I think a lot of employers are starting to realise that a mother who is returning to work is likely to be very loyal. Often some employers employ students or younger people thinking they're getting someone who's very enthusiastic but actually at that level people often change careers quite frequently.
"However, if you have a mum returning to work, if they're happy in their employment, they might be likely to stay. Having trained that person you're going to get a lot out of them. So there are a lot of good reasons for employing mothers who are going back."
Bringing your skills up to date
If you're returning to work, you're probably wondering if your skills will still be up to date. In the working world, computer skills are most likely to be the ones you'll need to update. But that needn't hold any fear for you, Sally explains, "Technology is moving so fast that perhaps they feel that they're out of date and a new piece of software has come out - a new version of Word even, and they're not quite used to dealing with it.
"There are courses out there, such as learndirect and others, and UK Online centres, which can give people access to training locally or through distance learning. Those are very welcome and the key is to know exactly which skills you want to develop. Perhaps seek advice on what is going to suit you best before you start."
So there it is, from the horse's mouth. Be confident, make the most of your parenting skills, get advice on skills and career changes, but most importantly, follow your dreams!
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