Nine to Five

Sarah Kennedy - 18 Jan 16

You may remember that awhile ago I posted a blog about doing something new now that my little boy Luke has started school. So, true to form of being a doer and not a lets just think about this for while kind of person I decided it was time for me to perhaps think about getting a job. Having not worked for 5 years I honestly had no idea where to start or what to even do. I looked at a lot of different options but it seemed the easiest one was to go back and do what I did before having my kids. The exciting world of Finance! So once I actually found my CV and updated it…..no easy task let me tell you….(what did I exactly do in my last job?? I couldn’t remember my boss’s name never mind what I did!) I popped it off to the agencies and hoped for the best!

What has happened since then has both surprised me and frustrated me in equal measure. It turns out that once you actually have some good relevant experience, companies are still interested in seeing you even if you have been doing something a ‘little different’ lets just say for the last five years. I was amazed that I was getting calls and being put forward for roles and getting interviews. Talk about a confidence booster! The thing about being a parent is that even when you get it really right and know you are doing a good job there is no one there to acknowledge that apart from your kids obviously. So to be talking to people about my previous roles and what a great CV I had and to be told I came across very well was really quite nice if I am honest.

But then came the tricky bit. The bit where I actually had to go to these interviews and look like a person that could get to work every day and actually do the job they wanted me to do. It was an utter revelation that these companies just presumed I had my shit together because I turned up to the interview on time and looked the part. That presumption astounded me. Had they any idea what I was doing 20 minutes before this interview?? Pulling my two-year old little girl off my leg and explaining that Mammy’s meeting would only last an hour and we would go for a baby-chino afterwards. Looking the part was the other fun bit. I had no clothes. Well no clothes that were suitable to wear to an interview anyway. Even I knew that leggings and uggs didn’t quite cut it in the corporate world I was considering re-entering. So out came my new Christmas Day dress. Slightly festive and a bit short if I am honest but it would do the trick with my newly purchased suit jacket over it. There were a couple of problems with this approach. One was that when I was called for second interviews I had to pull out last years Christmas Day dress which wasn’t really up to the job having been worn every time I needed to wear something a bit ‘dressy’ over the past year. The other problem was that when it actually came to Christmas Day my lovely new Christmas Day dress had suddenly become my not so new interview dress so I felt a bit odd to say the least standing at the cooker cooking christmas dinner for everyone in it.

And then came the crazy bit. The part where they asked me questions relating to my experience. The actual interview. What they all seemed to acknowledge but then forget just as quickly was that my work experience happened 5 years ago. A LOT has happened in those 5 years but as soon as the interview actually got started it was like I was just another interviewee who was expected to demonstrate competencies based on their job description….like hello…..who on earth did they think I was?? Can they not just sit here and congratulate me for showing up on time and for like being fairly smartly dressed by my standards anyway? Can we not just talk about what I have done in the last 5 years and talk about my lovely children and discuss how I would manage the transition back to work and I don’t know maybe chat about doing 3 hour days instead of 8 hour days? Apparently not as it turned out. Straight to it from the we have no idea what kids really do to you gang: “Can you describe how you dealt with a stressful situation and what you learnt from it?”. Me: “Em…….well let me see…..stressful you say? Well ok the other night I was changing the water in Goldie our goldfish’s tank. Goldie is a bit of a minx and when I scooped him out to change the water he made a jump for it and landed on the kitchen counter. As he flapped around gasping for air I started screaming the house down and tried to get him back into the water as quickly as I could. But he is a slippery little dude so I couldn’t grab hold of him. I then proceeded to run around the kitchen screaming my husband’s name. My husband ran in thinking I had chopped off my finger only to see poor little Goldie dying before our very eyes. He very quickly established what needed to be done, grabbed hold of Goldie and in the blink of an eye he was back in the water swimming around. He was alive! Albeit slightly traumatized but alive none the less”. No kids gang: “Right ok….well em can you tell us what you learnt from that situation Sarah?” Me: ” Well I learnt that I probably wasn’t the best person to be changing the water in Goldie’s tank and that perhaps I should delegate more….so I learned how to delegate”. Competency one…tick!

Normal people with ability to walk out of house without someone attached to their leg: “Ok can you give us an example of how you managed an awkward or difficult person?” I smile, thinking instantly of my little girl Ella and that I have got this one nailed. “It’s all about listening and hearing what the difficult person (aka my 2-year-old Ella) has to say and letting them know they are being heard. If say for instance this difficult person is screaming at you in a shop to buy them a packet of sweets even though they have had a kinder egg about 5 minutes ago its important for you as their line manager (aka mother) to listen to their grievance without judgement and to come up with a solution in a calm and collected manner. This can be quite difficult when said difficult person is rolling around the floor screaming and everyone else is standing there staring at you. I usually deal with these sorts of situations by giving in to their demands in an upbeat and cheerful manner so that the people around me think I am in control and know what I am doing. It’s all about perception you see. Inside I am obviously ready to scream at the shop owner for placing said packet of sweets within easy reach of my two-year old and why oh why can my little princess not understand that living off a diet of pure sugar is quite frankly dangerous. I feel this demonstrates my ability to resolve difficult situations quickly and also my ability to inspire confidence in others.” Normal people: “Right ok”

And so my job search has progressed and believe it or not I have actually just been offered a job. Only problem with this really exciting opportunity is that it is full-time. Going from not working outside the home for five years to taking on a full-time job scares the living daylights out of me. I have learnt a lot over the last few weeks. One is that the lack of flexibility for people with kids in the workplace astounds me. It’s not like having children is unusual…..there are kids everywhere!! Yet its like as if as soon as you enter the workplace we are all supposed to pretend they are not the most important things in our universe and that as soon as we start work they are suddenly to be placed in a file called….to be dealt with on your own time. You are here to do a job regardless of the fact it is beyond difficult sometimes to make it all work. Two is that although I may feel ready to go back to work in reality unless I can find that fairytale challenging part-time role it just won’t work for my family. And so the search continues but in the mean-time I can rejoice in the fact that bringing up my two little lunatics is most definitely the best thing I will ever do in life even if no one wants to actually talk about it in an interview!

Sarah Kennedy

Just another momma trying to survive parenthood by writing about how crazy and funny it is to be a full-time mother to two adorable but slightly nutty kids.

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