How to Navigate “The New Normal” With Your Nanny
Over the last few months, an increasing number of parents have transitioned from office life to work-from-home scenarios, either due to necessity or want. Navigating the new landscape of boundaries and expectations with your domestic staff or live-in nanny can be challenging, but we have a few tips to help keep your relationship professional, productive, and positive.
1. Consider a household manager, the hybrid nanny: If you have been seeking the solution to your busy household needs, and find yourself even busier with the added stress of children being home full-time, we have the solution for you. A household manager can help with all sorts of duties ranging from childcare, in-depth cleaning, errands, and more. Being able to trust that your home is being cared for completely by the perfectly selected individual is crucial, and can free up your time to focus on your tasks when you need to work, and relaxing when you’re all done!
2. Remember to set boundaries: As everyone is adjusting to the “new normal”, many tasks and responsibilities have shifted to adjust to changing schedules and household needs. Children may be home more often due to normally scheduled schools and activities being closed temporarily, or there may be an additional need to clean and sanitize the house. As important as it is to ensure that your needs as a household and parent are being catered to, it is important to reevaluate your boundaries and reinforce that both families and household staff need to be in alignment with what is acceptable and reasonable to expect. Ensuring that adequate days off are accommodated, work hours are scheduled, and expected job tasks are clearly communicated is essential to ensuring that neither party experiences frustration or burnout. All of our candidates are thoroughly vetted to ensure they are of the highest quality, however, to keep these individuals happy and performing their best, it is vital to ensure that they feel respected and allowed to enjoy their valuable free time.
3. Communication is key: Assessing a changing lifestyle and ensuring clear communication between providers and parents is what we advocate here at Hometown Nannies Plus. For example, if you’re a parent working from home 9-5 and you previously had to leave at 7 am to commute to your office, you could work with your provider to ask about changing their scheduled work hours to begin later and end later so that it better fits your new schedule. Allowing and giving flexibility can make for a happy, long-lasting relationship between parents and caregivers, which translates to transforming your home into a sanctuary.
For over 33 years, Hometown Nannies Plus has been an expert at recruiting and staffing the perfect candidate for your unique family needs. Contact us today to find the right fit for your home by visiting hometownnannies.com!