These days, it’s too scary to hire just anybody to babysit your kids. There is always something in the news about some crazy babysitter harming the kids. That’s a nightmare of every parent.
As much as some parents try their best to avoid hiring a babysitter, some parents just can’t avoid hiring one. Even stay-home moms can’t do without a babysitter.
These days, getting help is not a luxury but more of a necessity.
Managing the home is not just a one-man show. Unfortunately, the responsibility is often left to moms. Ideally, home management should be shared between mom and dad. That is, ideally speaking.
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Managing the home is not just a one-man show. Unfortunately, the responsibility is often left to moms. Ideally, home management should be shared between mom and dad. That is, ideally speaking.
Most parents will agree that it’s just not happening that way. Most moms are left to manage the home. So it’s but fair that they get help from time to time.
Hence, there is always a need for a babysitter. That’s the main reason why parents really want to get to know the babysitter. If they’re going to have another person help them out at home, they should get to know that particular person.
So is there a way to really get to know the babysitter? The answer is yes and luckily for you, there are more than one ways to really get to know the babysitter.
Table Of Contents
4. Ask For A Resume
Babysitting is a job. It’s not a past time hobby as some kids perceive it to be. That being said, you have the right to ask for a resume.
Each time you are looking for a babysitter, you are offering a job opportunity. So just like any job posts, the first thing that you should get hold of is the applicant’s resume.
Don’t be afraid to ask for a resume. A professional babysitter is always willing to initiate her application with a resume.
Don’t be afraid to ask for a resume. A professional babysitter is always willing to initiate her application with a resume.
You can start to get to know the babysitter from her resume. From there, you will be able to find out about her past work experiences.
You will also be able to gather basic information about the babysitter. That’s always a good start if you really want to get to know her.
There are two pieces of vital information you should always look out for in a babysitter’s resume. One of which is the list of references.
You should take note of the list of people she has listed as references. Check them out and spend some time to give them a call. It wouldn’t hurt if you did.
You should take note of the list of people she has listed as references. Check them out and spend some time to give them a call. It wouldn’t hurt if you did. Related read: The Difference Between Sittercity and Urbansitter
Another piece of information you should look out for on the resume is the list of training and certifications the babysitter has had in the past. It’s important to know if she has had some life-saving training.
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If she has had some sort of training and certifications on life-saving; lookout for the validity. A professional babysitter should be current with her training and should have all that in writing.
3. Get On The Phone To Interview The Applicant
You don’t really have to interview the babysitter once she hands over her resume. The best thing you can do at that moment is to take some time to go over her resume.
The best time to give the applicant a call is when you have gone through the resume. Don’t rush to conduct a face-to-face interview. Take your time.
The best time to give the applicant a call is when you have gone through the resume. Don’t rush to conduct a face-to-face interview. Take your time. Related read: Save with a Care.com Promo Code
Once you are on the phone with the applicant, you should always consider the tone of voice.
There’s a lot to know about the babysitter through her tone of voice. Does she talk too fast? Is she a smooth talker? Does she have a high-pitch voice? There’s a lot to know about the babysitter through the tone of voice she uses.
Another thing you should monitor is the consistency of information. Verify the information written on the resume. Ask questions and get answers. Keep in mind that you are doing the interview and not the other way around.
2. Meet Face-To-Face For Another Interview
After you have gathered and verified information from the telephone interview, schedule a face-to-face interview. You will, no doubt, gather more information from a face-to-face interview. Related read: Get a Discount on Sittercity
With the face-to-face interview, you will be able to learn a lot from the babysitter’s body movements. Her non-verbal language can say a lot about her. So take note of her posture, eye-to-eye contact, and her other mannerisms. Those things count a lot if you are in the process of getting to know the babysitter.
1. Run A Background Check
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Getting to know the babysitter is a process that takes some time to complete. It doesn’t just take a resume or an interview to get to know the babysitter.
For you to be able to really get to know the babysitter, you would have to ask for a resume and conduct interviews. You can’t do one and not do the other. You will miss out some vital information about the babysitter.
So after you have done both and you already have someone in mind for the babysitting job, then run a background check. That is the most important thing you can do to really get to know the babysitter.
So after you have done both and you already have someone in mind for the babysitting job, then run a background check. That is the most important thing you can do to really get to know the babysitter.
Running a background can get pretty expensive. Even if all parents want to do it, there are some who just don’t have any means to go about it. Such is the reason why childcare service providers like Sittercity offer it as an added service.
So there are really ways to get to know the babysitter. You just have to ask for a resume, conduct interviews, and run background checks
If you find it hard to do all that, you are better off signing up for Sittercity. With Sittercity, you will be able to really get to know the applicants.
As a Sittercity member, you will truly get to know the babysitter because you will have access to credible reviews and profiles of the babysitters. Given all that, how can you not get to know the babysitter from Sittercity?
Disclosure: Compensated Affiliate. Click here for details.
A nerd at heart (haha), I have been following and analyzing the world of online sitters for a couple of years now and have seen a lot of innovations and changes in this market. In between taking care of my loving (and demanding 😜) family and writing, I also do a lot of “traveling” on the Travel Channel and Discovery Channel. Read More
I would still want to run a background even if the sitter has already done so on herself. Most sitter services boast that all their sitters have undergone background checks but at the end of the day, it’s our responsibility to get it done.
I guess before you get to know the sitter, it’s best to find someone who is really worth all the trouble, right? I really wouldn’t want to go through all the trouble of getting to know a sitter who is not willing to stay for the long haul. So for me, I would really focus on hiring the right sitter before thinking of getting to her first.:)
I see your point. After all, there are good sitters who are not really willing to stay for the long haul. I only know of a handful of professional sitters. They can be fully booked at some point. So we can’t really consider them for the long haul as well. It’s really important to know how committed a sitter is at the beginning. A committed sitter is good for the long haul.
It’s important to touch base with the sitter on a regular basis. If I have to come home early for that, so be it. I just don’t want the sitter to see that I am trusting her too much. I need her to know that I am concerned about my child even while I am away. It’s very important that she sees how serious I am when it comes to choosing a sitter.