How to secure a job without giving notice?

[Anonymous]

I am currently looking for a new position. While I work with a great family, they have a pretty unpredictable schedule, hours get moved around(a lot), hours got cut, mom can't her mind up on keeping her job/getting a new one. She's had three jobs since I started! It's really stressing me out, amongst other things at the job. I have a wonderful letter of reccomendation from them. How can I tell potential families that I want to secure a job before giving them any hint I'm leaving? I'm feeling pretty overwhelmed!

P.s I have an interview this evening, so any advice is welcomed!

[Anonymous]

I don't think you owe potential families any explanation regarding securing a new position before giving notice. Most families would assume that you would prefer to remain employed while interviewing, particularly in today's economic climate.

I think the best way to go about this is letting families know that you plan to give your current family x weeks notice upon securing a new position. This lets the families know that your availability would be x weeks from finalization of a job offer. This conversation would likely take place either during the portion of the interview in which they are asking you why you are leaving your current position (looking for a position that offers more predictable hours is all you need to say) or when discussing their needs in terms of a start date.

Good luck on the interview this evening.

[Anonymous]

This may not be helpful and you sound nice but I would not consider a nanny who couldn't provide a recent reference. A written recommendation that I couldn't validate would not suffice. I don't know you and there would be no way for me to know whether the family wrote this or whether you wrote this. You would have to be far. far above other candidates, be offering qualifications above candidates at a much lower rate, or be so incredible in the interview that we really clicked for you to be considered on the same level as other candidates.

[Anonymous]

I'm an MB. If you were interviewing w/ me I'd want you to explain honestly why you were looking to leave, and share the letter of recommendation. Tell your prospective employer that while you really like your current family you're unable to work around their very unpredictable schedule and the mother may be leaving her job soon. You want to secure another job but also want to take your time to find the right fit so in the meantime you're not telling your current employers that you're looking. You might find something terrific right away, or it could take a couple of months to find that best match and that's why you're not giving them notice yet.

When you do find the right position you'll give your current employers plenty of notice and do everything you can to help them with the transition. In the meantime though you can't offer them as a reference.

As a potential employer I would totally understand that explanation and respect it. Hopefully you have several other references they can speak with?

Good luck! Be sure that everything you say about your current family is professional and appropriate - your prospective employers will make a lot of judgments about you (hopefully positive ones) about how you discuss your current employers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm an MB. If you were interviewing w/ me I'd want you to explain honestly why you were looking to leave, and share the letter of recommendation. Tell your prospective employer that while you really like your current family you're unable to work around their very unpredictable schedule and the mother may be leaving her job soon. You want to secure another job but also want to take your time to find the right fit so in the meantime you're not telling your current employers that you're looking. You might find something terrific right away, or it could take a couple of months to find that best match and that's why you're not giving them notice yet.

When you do find the right position you'll give your current employers plenty of notice and do everything you can to help them with the transition. In the meantime though you can't offer them as a reference.

As a potential employer I would totally understand that explanation and respect it. Hopefully you have several other references they can speak with?

Good luck! Be sure that everything you say about your current family is professional and appropriate - your prospective employers will make a lot of judgments about you (hopefully positive ones) about how you discuss your current employers.

You are either naive or selfish (or both) with that "advice". How do you suggest the nanny protect herself should her current mb have a toddler temper tantrum about the nanny wanting to leave?

No one in their right mind discusses leaving until they have a contract for their new job. It's sad how dumb you want nannies to be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm an MB. If you were interviewing w/ me I'd want you to explain honestly why you were looking to leave, and share the letter of recommendation. Tell your prospective employer that while you really like your current family you're unable to work around their very unpredictable schedule and the mother may be leaving her job soon. You want to secure another job but also want to take your time to find the right fit so in the meantime you're not telling your current employers that you're looking. You might find something terrific right away, or it could take a couple of months to find that best match and that's why you're not giving them notice yet.

When you do find the right position you'll give your current employers plenty of notice and do everything you can to help them with the transition. In the meantime though you can't offer them as a reference.

As a potential employer I would totally understand that explanation and respect it. Hopefully you have several other references they can speak with?

Good luck! Be sure that everything you say about your current family is professional and appropriate - your prospective employers will make a lot of judgments about you (hopefully positive ones) about how you discuss your current employers.

You are either naive or selfish (or both) with that "advice". How do you suggest the nanny protect herself should her current mb have a toddler temper tantrum about the nanny wanting to leave?

No one in their right mind discusses leaving until they have a contract for their new job. It's sad how dumb you want nannies to be.

This response was for 12:20. Sorry.

[Anonymous]

To the rude nanny, its unfortunate that it is more difficult for YOU to find a job if you are not leaving on good terms but as an employer I'm looking for the nanny candidate that presents as the best nanny. This just isn't the one who can't provide a recent reference. There are too many great nannies available whose employers are giving great references to decide to ignore that one candidate can't do this. Prospective employers do not want to get into the drama of which side of the story is true and frankly in most situations like this there is blame on both sides.

[NisforNanny]

I did this. I used my network of nanny friends and former nanny employers, so I was a known quantity with known references. Even though those references were a couple of years old, my current employer knew two of them very well, so they had more credibility for her than a stranger who was currently employing me would have offered. (I also already knew my current employer peripherally, from when I worked for past employers.)

My current employers did not ask if my then-employers knew that I was planning to resign, but I alluded to the fact that they did not and they figured it out right away. During our first conversation, I briefly explained why I wanted to make a change in employment and how much notice I would ideally like to offer my then-employers, as well as how much notice I was required to give them. When I mentioned "giving notice" it served to inform the interviewing parents that notice had not yet been given.

OP, I've been in my current job for a year now and it is wonderful. Good luck! Definitely network.

[Anonymous]

"To the rude nanny, its unfortunate that it is more difficult for YOU to find a job if you are not leaving on good terms but as an employer I'm looking for the nanny candidate that presents as the best nanny. This just isn't the one who can't provide a recent reference. There are too many great nannies available whose employers are giving great references to decide to ignore that one candidate can't do this. Prospective employers do not want to get into the drama of which side of the story is true and frankly in most situations like this there is blame on both sides."

I would not dismiss a nanny entirely in a situation like this since of course most people interview before quitting. BUT if I had another nanny I liked as much or even almost as much and she had a current employer vouching for her, that would likely tip me towards her over the less well-known candidate.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks for all the great advice! It really helped. I let the mom know why I was looking for a new position(in more details then I posted here)and why I had not given notice yet, and she fully understood. I never spoke badly of my current employers, rather I spoke highly of them and just said that things weren't going to work anymore because of this and that.

The interview went extremely well and honestly it was one of the best interviews I've been on! So fingers crossed.