Falling in love with your job as a caregiver comes pretty easily. You get to experience the development of a tiny human, explore the city, do arts and crafts and eat snacks on the job. But as some outside of the caregiving world might believe, working with children and their families is not always a fun day at the park. After a while, you might start to wonder what it would look like to find a new family to work with, a new school to teach at, or maybe even dive into a new career. No one wants to wake up and go to a job that they don’t like. It’s the perfect recipe for burnout, resentment, frustration, etc—so doing a job you enjoy is key.
If you’ve turned to a friend recently and said “I don’t like my job,” a few things could be true:
You’re Working With a Family That Isn’t the Right Fit
When choosing a family to work with, it’s important to make sure they are a good fit. A few things that will let you know you’re making the right choice are: you and the family have similar childcare values, the assigned responsibilities are aligned with what you want to do, they’re responsive to your needs as a caregiver, and you actually enjoy doing your job. If you are having conflicting thoughts about your position, or issues with caring for the child(ren), let the parents know. You can work together to come up with a plan of action to make this experience more enjoyable.
And if it’s not working, there’s no need to force it. It’s okay to seek new opportunities. There’s an undeniable connection that is formed when we work in these spaces – with the children, parents, maybe even extended family. If you decide to move on, as you are job searching, be sure to be specific on your expectations and what you need from a new family to feel most comfortable.
You’re Not Having Fun
Caregivers are big kids at heart. The inner child is always looking for an opportunity to shine and what better place than in the presence of children? It’s a privilege to be able to have fun on the job, one that we should definitely take advantage of. A great way to do this is allowing the child to lead the day. Giving children room to explore while you experience the world through their eyes is quite rewarding. Remember, children are masters at having a good time and you’re bound to learn something new.
This also helps to build stronger connections with the children that you work with. You can have a better understanding of who the child is, what they enjoy, or even how they best learn. Look for opportunities of engagement while observing their behaviors.
Keep in mind that you too are allowed to enjoy the day in ways that you love. What do you do for fun when you’re not working? Maybe you love to dance around your room getting lost in a really great album, or maybe you enjoy doing arts in crafts while out in nature. Bring your personal fun to work – merging the interests of the caregivers and kids helps everyone to end the day with a smile.
You’re Not Taking Care of Yourself
The saying “you can’t pour from an empty cup” is one that caregivers should hold very close to heart. If there’s anything to learn working in this field, it’s that taking care of yourself outside of work is one of the best things you can do for yourself and the family. Taking care of someone else’s children comes with its own challenges, so making sure your needs are met outside of the home is important. Your objective shouldn’t be to be the greatest nanny, babysitter, or teacher of all time, just always show up ready to do your best, whatever that may look like on any given day. How do you do that? Practice mindfulness and self-awareness in your everyday life.
Building awareness around your personal life, how you’re feeling, your needs and desires, allows you to stay connected to your mind and body. When things feel off mentally, physically, emotionally, etc. you will be able to listen and respond accordingly. Do you know what burnout feels like? How about things that are overwhelming, anxiety inducing, or just plain old exhaustion? Being able to see the signs can be very helpful in taking care of yourself before things get out of hand. And when that happens, because you are human and it will happen, this is a great time to request a day off, do something that you really enjoy to give yourself a reset. You might even schedule time to speak with a professional about your health.
Caregivers take on a huge responsibility when having a role in raising a child, being deeply trusted and depended on. At the same time, it’s important that your voice is heard and that you are happy with the family that you care for. Take some time to check in with yourself daily, weekly, monthly whatever feels best, but regardless, check in. Ask yourself “how are you really doing?” Are you enjoying your job? Are you having fun? And if you find that you’re not doing well, enjoying your job, or aren’t having fun, it’s okay to seek new opportunities. At the end of that day, you need to do what’s best for you.
