Trusting someone else to take care of your kids is hard enough, and finding a worthy candidate just makes it harder.
Search for a Sitter Using Reliable Sources:
If you don’t have anyone to ask for recommendations (or don’t like anyone they’ve recommended), look at sites that provide thorough information on sitters.
You can also ask people who have cared for your kids before—camp counselors or after school program assistants—if they’re available for private gigs. If you can find someone this way, you’re at an advantage. You know they’re someone you can trust, and they know your kids and what your kids like. Remember though, that just because you know someone doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go through your checklist of qualities.
Once you have your list of potential sitters, you can start the screening process. Don’t wait for one person to get back to you before moving on to screening the next one, try to get through as many people as possible so you have a thorough list of acceptable back up sitters.
Screen Your Candidates Thoroughly:
Trusting someone with your children isn’t a decision you can make lightly, so expect to devote quite a few hours to the search. Before you start interviewing candidates, come up with an estimate of how much time your interview process will take. By standardizing the process, you’ll know how many steps you have for each person and how much of your time to budget for screening.
- Interview each candidate. If you don’t have time to have a bunch of in-person interviews, try doing phone screens first. You can do these during lunch breaks at work, on your commute, or during nap time for your kids.
- Actually call the references they provide you. It’s worth the extra time.
- Hire a backup. Your thorough screening process means you’ll have a great second pick.
- Do a test run before committing. You’ll be able to see how they interact with your children before you commit to a longer term position.
After the test run, you should also talk to your kids about how they liked the sitter (assuming your kids are old enough to talk). You may need to take their feedback with a grain of salt, but they could also have valuable insights into how good of a fit the sitter will be.
Develop a Strong Relationship with Your Sitter:
When your sitter starts, be sure to write out any rules or expectations you have for them. The clearer you can be, the better it is for everyone—you get the level of care you’re looking for and the sitter knows exactly what they should do for a stellar job.
You may be tempted to pay your sitter for their time and get them out the door each night, but you should make an effort to get to know them. Chat with them for a few minutes when they arrive, and do a quick check-in with them before they leave. You’ll learn what your kids are like with other people, and it’ll strengthen your relationship with your sitter (and hey, maybe next time you’re in a pinch they’ll switch their plans around to help out their favorite client).
Finding a sitter isn’t a fun process, and you probably aren’t itching to do it again soon. But once a year, revisit whether your sitter is still a good fit for your family. If your or their circumstances have changed—like your kids get older and need someone to help them with homework or your sitter moves too far away to be easily available—they may no longer be the right person for the job.
