Back in August we covered what happens if your back-up quits and you have to work more or different hours. This time around we’re gonna cover what happens if you are getting worked to death by your employeers.

• It Happans Too Easily- I think the biggest thing to realize is that this problem can and does happen far too easily in this line of work. Or any line of work that deals with being a part of someone’s home life. (personal assistant, house keeper, chauffeur, body guard, etc.) It’s easy to slip into the mentality that you’re needed and it can’t possibily be done without you, both on your side and the part of your employeers. Yes that’s right you can put the pressure on yourself to always be helping(working). So how do you keep from slipping into this trap? How do you keep yourself and your employeers from working you to death?
• Communication- This is it! If you don’t get anything else from this post this is the point you need to know! Communication, communication, communication. Your boss might not realize you are feeling over worked and under appreciated unless you say something. Then again your boss may realize they are asking a lot of you, but hay you’re not complaining so what’s the problem? I have a very good relationship with my bosses, that doesn’t mean I haven’t had difficult discussions with them. I’ve had to tell them I’m feeling overwhelmed and over worked. Nine times out of ten they either didn’t realize it or did and were going to approach me about it. But what if your work relationship with your employeers isn’t so tight or familiar? And it isn’t so easy to talk with them about this issue?(trust me I am not a confortational person so this is something I’ve had to learn)
• Keep it Professional- In the end you are the employee and they are the employeer. Yes you have a lot to do with their family/home life, but at the end of the day it’s a job. Nothing more. If it’s really that bad where you can’t talk to your boss and you’re getting over worked… You can get another job. If you are under a contract to work a certain amount of time, fulfill your contract(obviously there are some cavats here, for example: your boss is being physically or emtionally abusive, or you feel unsafe at work- then just quit!) and move on to the next family. Keeping it professional and keeping bounderies on your time-off or vacation time is vital, but it’s something you need to set at the beginning. Don’t be a door-mat just to get brownie points with your new boss. If you give an inch it’s very easy for them to take a mile. Now don’t hear me say that they’re all evil and some how maliciously using you(some bosses do, but definitly not all) because most likely they’re probably not. This ties back in to my point above; if you’re not communicating what your bounderies are then they are going to think asking you to work all these extra hours is okay. Being honest and up front from the get-go is so important!
• Defend Yourself- Another key thing to remember is you might be the only one in this boat. You might be the only nanny, the only in-house employee. Does this make a difference? Yeah it sure does! First off you can’t form a union… Okay totally joking here, but in one sense, yeah you can’t. In the thick of a difficult situation it’s hard to see you’re being mistreated or misused. You can get very emtional and it’s hard to find perspective. It’s also hard if you’re like me and you think I’m the only one whose feeling this way, so why rock the boat? Listen if you are not going to take care of yourself and communicate and be professional about your job than your boss probably isn’t going to do that for you either. Keep track of how many extra hours you’re working, try your hardest not to respond to texts or emails on your days off, be smart and honest when they ask you to work extra, tell them when it’s too much. It’s a job! Another good idea is to get an outsider’s opinion. Ask for advice, you don’t have to conquer the world alone.

I hope this was helpful. If you have any questions at all about this or other nanny topics leave a comment down below, message me via any of my social media accounts or shoot me an email at: nannysnotebook@gmail.com

Lots of love,

Tally