The life of working parents is a crazy one. You are either at work and when you are not at work, you are trying to balance family life, your personal life and get some much-needed shut-eye. These are not the easiest tasks to juggle. Luckily we have amazing people who help lighten that load. Let’s face it, house managers make life less hectic and if you are able to have one in your life, you should try it out.
House managers are often an extension of your family. They become so versed with your family routine they start to know more about your own house than you do. So it is important to make sure that you pay close attention when hiring a house manager. You are inviting someone you do not know quite well into your safe space. Here are some tips that may help you with during the hiring process
Access your needs
There are two types of house managers; a live-in and a daybug. A live-in house manager lives in your house together with your family. They spend most of the time at home and have leave days to visit their loved ones. A daybug only comes over to work for a couple of hours a day. They make their own living arrangements.
Deciding what kind of house manager to get is dependent on your needs. If you have a small child and are not always there with them, a live-in house manager makes sense. If you just need help with a couple of chores, you can look into getting a daybug. The great thing is you can try what works for you and stick to it. Parenting: 5 Tips To Keep In Mind When Recruiting A Nanny
Experience
It is always wise to look into their previous work experience. How long have they been working as a house manager? Are they good with kids? This allows you to have a sense of the person you are inviting into your home. Additionally, ask them if they have any first aid training. Handling children is a delicate task and you may plan on leaving your house manager with them. Having someone who reacts quickly in case of an emergency is a big plus.
Some people prefer older house managers to younger ones and vice versa. All this depends on preference. If they had been recommended to you, its easier to assess their work ethic by asking whoever had referred them to you.
The fit
Unfortunately getting a great fit for a house manager is not an easy task. Many people have gone through so many of them before settling on one they can get along with. It is not just about their work ethic. They could be good at what they do but constantly disagree with members of your household. If you have children, you can introduce them prior to hiring the house manager. This is not to say that your children determine the decision to hire or not but taking their thoughts into consideration can be of help. Especially if your children are old enough to understand what’s going on.
Hygiene
The truth of the matter is, even though it is important, we all have different hygiene standards. It is important that you consider what your potential house manager considers as hygiene. You can hire her on a trial run basis. Take her through how you would like things done first. If her cleaning standards do not meet your own, then you may not get along regardless of how great she is in other areas of her work.
Agency or Individual
The most common means of acquiring a house manager is through references. It’s easy to ask a friend who has one already if she might have a lead or two. It is a less informal method and you can get help really quickly. These days, there is an increase in employment agencies. They serve as the middle man between you and potential house managers. An advantage of using an agency is that they do all the work.
They assign you a house manager and some even provide training in first aid and house management. However, they are pricier than having to find a house manager by yourself. Sadly, you need to be vigilant. There are some fraudulent agencies that exist to dupe employers. They use the house managers to rob people and make away with the household items. If you choose to go the agency route, make sure you use a trusted agency.
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Featured image via https://www.megfaure.com
