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Career vent- LONG
So as you all know, I work as a nanny but not by choice. I got stuck in this as a temporary solution to being laid off from my interior design job and the economy crashing, right before our wedding. Well temporary will be 3 years in April, almost all of my post college life. I am grateful that I had a job through all of this and that I love my little one at work but I am so over feeling bad about what I do.I was a good student and had so much ambition and now I have no idea what to do. There are a few problems.
1) I have been out of my career so long that I am not marketable anymore. I have 4 months of experience in interior design, almost 4 years after graduating. I pretty much would have to go to grad school to make my self valuable again but I can not afford that and fertility treatments.
2) I am not even sure I want to do interior design, but I have no idea what I want to do.
3) We are hardcore trying to get pregnant and with me starting to see an RE I do not want to quit this job, find a new one and I have to be leaving all of the time for appointments. Or if I get pregnant, leave the job not long after I start since I will be a SAHM. Or lose my current insurance, get pregnant and the new insurance might not cover maternity.
I just know that I am sick of this job and the only way for me to get out of it now is when we have a little one but I do not want to stick around here and that take years, but I do not want to start a career and wait on a little one. I always planned on being a SAHM mom and maybe work part time or be self employed but right now I do not know how any of that would happen.
If you made it this far, thanks so much!!! I just needed to vent and would take any advice you are willing to offer.
Re: Career vent- LONG
Hugs, I'm sorry you're at such a crossroads. I know a lot of bloggers pursue interior design on a small scale b/c it is such a vast career field and takes a while to get into the circle basically.
I wish I had more advice, as the breadwinner and in the midst of my career, I don't even fantasize about staying home, b/c it will never be in the cards for us.
Wives Unscripted
October 11, 2008
Trusty Gal blog|Trusty Tales
My FIL just started his own baking career recently. You can message him on FB if you'd like, and ask him about how he got started with it. He's been getting lots of orders, 500 cookies at a time sometimes! I know he'd be more than willing to help you and give any advice you may need, he's that sort of person. Plus I'm the favorite, so he'd do it for me haha.
Let me know if you want his name so you can send him a FB message.
I'm a breastfeeding, baby wearing, cloth diapering, co-sleeping, anti-CIO Mommy
Raising Bean
Wives Unscripted
Married my hero on 10-11-08
Our bean was born on 05-19-11
Whitney I feel ya girl!
I am in almost the same position as you, however, I'm holding on waiting on DH to get a perm job somewhere rather than waiting on getting PG.
I got a temp job in my field (graphic design/desktop publishing) about 4 mths after I graduated. It lasted for almost 6mths. I then was unemployed(by choice) for about 9mths becasue we were waiting to move as soon as DH finished his research. We thought it would be only a month or maybe two, but it ended up being longer than that. Again I didn't want to get a job, just to leave a month after I started.
I had a job, kinda in my field, when we lived down in PA. I was a glorified admin assistant, with some desktop pub. duties. and then we moved home
Once I got home we expected to move again pretty quickly (to Buffalo from Rochester). But again we were delayed by the slow economy and Dh's PHD committee. Long story on that last part, but because of a missed paperwork deadline, he only was able to get his masters. It's a load of bureaucratic crap, but it is what it is. So with that I ended up getting a temp job, just so I have some sort of income, now that temp job is going on 18mths.. with possibility to turn perm soon. DH is now working at 2 diff. community colleges as an Adjunct Prof. with hopes that he'll get in full time soon.
So I've had this same temp job in the service industry (nothing to do with my field, but I had experience there becasue of the time I worked retail in college for ~6yrs.) I had a breakdown about it like 2mths ago. I feel stuck, but at the same time., I feel like can't quit and find something newbecasue I don't know if we will have to move when DH gets his perm job.
I enjoyed when I worked at my first temp job, but not so much at my second. I don't know if I want to be in graphic design either anymore. It seems to have gotten more competative and mostly gone the route of contract work and I don't know if I can market myself well enough to do it, nor do I think I have enough talent And like you, the longer I stay out of my field, the harder it will be to re-enter. And I also would love to be a SAHM at least part time, and would I be able to do that if I was in the very competative graphic design field....
So not much advice from my end, just more of a total understanding of what you are feeling. (sorry this got long too)
My Knot Bio My Blog
That was my very first thought!
If you are going to be a SAHM, I would not pursue a new corporate career or grad school now because in 9-10 months when you have a baby, you will leave that job.
If I were you, I would work on marketing materials: facebook pages for your baking, your baking blog, even tweets. Do you have a laptop? Take that to work with you and when the baby naps, work on your baking company! If you do all of the leg work now to get it going and get clients, when you have a little baby, it will be easier to continue to do it!
I gather from your OP that you feel like your current job in no way challenges you and you feel like you're wasting your degree? Trust me, I know how you feel! Just remember that education is never a waste and while you're not using your degree right now, the things you learned are helping you!
I think you could do some awesome stuff with baking/party planning on the side and that will be awesome when you're a SAHM!
Call me if you want to vent more!!
If you'd like some help putting together a plan, let me know. I'm in marketing and always looking for ways to get more experience and practice, especially with some of the social media stuff that's out there.
Brie's Blog 10.11.08 The Top Shelf Bookshelf
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T, thanks for sharing. I am glad someone else can understand what I am going through.
Okay so how would I market a baking business more? I have my blog, and I have a facebook page and do updates but no one ever visits or comments anymore.
October 11, 2008
Trusty Gal blog|Trusty Tales
Have you considered advertising on Craigslist? It's free, so a good way to start, and if you get overwhelmed with responses you could pick and choose what jobs you wanted to take.
Also I know some peole sell baked goods on Etsy. You could start with just a few things, and then begin branching out to custome orders eventually.
My Knot Bio My Blog
I am sorry your dealing with this. I bet you are more marketable than you think, so many recent graduates have this 'everyone owes me attitude' these days (which is such a turn off) and you definitely do not. You may have to start at the very bottom but you never know.
Now if you really don't think you even want to stick with that as a career anymore I would think maybe it would be better to pursue something new after you have a LO, I really am just drawing that from my own current feelings. DH and I both want me to possibly look for something new but it would be something I would do after having the baby. I realize I am in a very different boat than you but maybe focusing on one thing at a time is best right now.
Either way so many hugs your way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I've also thought about starting the whole baking thing. With J possibly going to Iraq soon, I'll be a SAHM and would love to have something to occupy my time and do something I love.
No solid advice, maybe a bake sale at church or work? To get people interested and let them know you bake and do a great job at it?
Good luck!
Do you have a logo? You need to create what's called a "brand" for yourself (Brie would be able to help you too since she's studying it right now....it's been a long 4 years since my PR/Mktg degree!). A brand is something that when people say the name of your company, they know exactly what you are selling and who your audience is. A good example of that would be McDonald's. You know their logo, you know that target children and families who need a convenient and affordable meal.
What Brie said about a business plan is crucial for any successful organization. In the business plan, you would outline your goals, your target market, your prices, your procedures, etc, etc, etc... They don't have to be very long, just enough to get all of your thoughts and plans down on paper so you can implement them successfully.
Now, if you want to be a real business (as in file the State of Georgia), there is a lot of paperwork and taxes involved but it is not hard or expensive. When I created my event planning company a couple of years ago, I only had to pay around $100 and it was a legit LLC business in Kentucky. You would have to pay taxes quarterly on money you make off of the business, BUT (and here's what would be great for you) if you register it as a business, you can write off everything you use on your taxes: oven, fridge, computer, phone, new mixer, printer, etc.
I say GO FOR IT!! I would be happy to help get you started or help with any logo design, branding, etc....
And I have to thank you because I just got a big rush of creative juices! I, too, feel like I'm wasting my degree and it feels good to help!
October 11, 2008
Trusty Gal blog|Trusty Tales
Mrs. Little Drew 10/25/08
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TTC since 1/2010 - Dx with Stage IV Endo
11/10 - 100mg Clomid + trigger + IUI + Estradiol + Progesterone = BFN
12/10 - Unmedicated cycle due to RE not doing treatments in December = BFN
1/11 - 100mg Clomid + trigger + IUI + Estradiol + Progesterone = BFN
2/11 - Same sh!t, different month = IUI cancelled due to no response = BFN
IVF #1 - Start stims (Follistim) 5/10, add in Ganirelix 5/14
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{{hugs}} I don't think being out of interior design for 3 years makes you unemployable -- just that you'll be in an entry-level position. Have you been looking for work, and it's not out there or you're not getting hired? If you haven't, then I think you should stick yourself out there and see what happens.
I know a few people who had babies while in law school and they found that their schedules were more flexible while in grad school than any other time. ... but you don't want to chose a program without being 75% sure that it's what you want to do.