I left my Admin job at the top of my game. I had given birth to my oldest son and had all intentions of going back. He came into this world a little sick and I could not leave him. So I put my career on hold and raised both him and his younger brother as a stay-at-home mom. Now everyone knows what a hard job a stay-at home mom can be, but like always, I was up for the challenge.
When my oldest went to kindergarten, the principal of the school was looking for some part time help at the school. I stepped forward and for 13 years I worked part time getting the kids off the bus in the morning, supervising them on the playground and during lunch. I would also sub for the office admins in the schools within our district as well as admins in the district office.
Our public library often held classes on resume writing, Microsoft software and other relevant classes for people looking to gain employment. I took them all in hopes of keeping my skills up and to turn my part time job into a full time position in one of the schools offices or within the district office. When it was obvious that this was not going to happen, I decided to look outside the school.
I sent my resume to all the large corporations that were in a 25 mile radius of my house but to be honest with you, I was not interested in 60 hour work weeks. My oldest was in high school and my youngest in middle school. So I sent my resume to all the public schools in the surrounding neighborhoods. I heard crickets. I then started looking at the private schools and found a position as Office Manager of External Relations at Lake Forest Academy. I knew nothing about a boarding school environment but was intrigued. After researching the website I wanted this job . . . badly. I had received offers from two places but was holding out for LFA. I got the job and all is history. WHAT?!?!?! Just kidding. This is the important part.
I started full time in the External Relations Department, the fundraising department for the school. It was exciting and exhausting all at the same time. I came home and hit the couch and was zonked out before 7pm. Working part time in a grade school does not prepare you for full time in an independent/international college prep school. LFA does not roll up the welcome mats at 3pm. No it is open 348 days a year. And even on holidays our faculty and boarding students live on campus so it is humming. There are trips to the city (Chicago) for dinner on the weekends or to Milwaukee for a baseball or basketball game. During the weekday there are evening trips to Target for supplies or a fan van to see one of our teams compete. Nothing prepared me for this.
And nothing prepared me for how insecure I would be about my admin skills. As I said, I was at the top of my game in corporate America and had kept up my skills. But working for a team of 12 in a fast paced office was overwhelming and I needed to gain my confidence back fast. That is when I began to research experts in the Administrative field. I picked up all the books I could from the experts such as Joan Burge, Bonnie Low-Kramen, Peggy Vasquez, Sandy Geroux and Julie Perrine. I signed up for newsletters from Lucy Brazier, Rhonda Scharf, Chrissy Scivicque, Office Ninjas and Courtney Clark. I would frequent the websites/blogs of International Association of Administrative Professionals, Vickie Sokol-Evans, American Society of Administrative Professionals, Jennifer Abrams, Colette Carlson and Exceptional EA. I signed up for every free webinar I could find and watched every YouTube webinar. I KNOW that I am missing many of the wonderful sites that I frequented and currently visit. I promise to include them in other posts in the future. The point is, I gave myself the professional development I needed and at no cost or low cost to me. Providing myself with knowledge that I gained from those who had struggled with the issues I was struggling with and came out on top and were willing to share gave me the confidence I needed to work towards being the best Admin I am capable of being.
If you are returning to the workforce after a hiatus, you got this!!! It is in you, you just need to find your mojo. Whatever it takes to find it, use those avenues. If there is anything that I can do to cheer you on or steer you in the direction of what you need, ASK. We all are in this together. We all have doubted ourselves. Heck, I STILL doubt myself . . . often!!! You can do this and there are so many Admins with great knowledge who are out there waiting to help you. Dream big and go after it.
Jackie