Throughout the year, you are building a relationship with your kids that will last a lifetime. You know what your children like and dislike, their quirks, and what motivates them. You make holidays and special occasions memorable by adding personal touches that you know they will love, creating memories that they will cherish well into adulthood. As we head into the holiday season, you may already be keeping an eye out for the perfect gift, or planning a wished-for experience for your children. That thoughtfulness makes you a great mom.
Take a moment to consider how you got to know your kids so well. It may seem obvious, but spending time with them and actively listening to them in conversations has made you the expert on your children. No one knows how they tick like you do.
Believe it or not, you’ve been sharpening relationship building skills with your kids that can transfer to the workplace, making you a valuable asset as a leader.
5 Reasons Moms Are Experts At Relationship Building
So how do you prove you have what it takes to transfer this mom-expert skill to workplace relationship builder? Here are five reasons to share with potential employers that will showcase value they will want on their team:
You are observant. As a mom, you pay attention to the most subtle cues from your children that an outside observer wouldn’t notice. For example, one of my children loves hugs and I can usually tell when she needs one, whereas others might not. In the workplace, you can put your power of observation to work with your teammates to learn all sorts of ways to better communicate and work with others. If you notice Jim isn’t the most amicable person before 10am, you won’t schedule meetings before that time. If you notice that Barbara enjoys listening to classical music, you can add that into the office playlist to help boost her productivity.
You are thoughtful. Having someone in your life that cares about you is a perk that is valued in the workplace these days. Gallup has shown that having a friend at work directly correlates to the amount of effort people put in at work. Since you became a mom, you’ve been thinking of ways to creatively show your children that you care about them. You buy them the perfect gifts, you spend time with them in the way they appreciate most, you make their favorite meals. In the workplace, you will put your power of observation to work by getting to know them better, then becoming a friend who genuinely cares and makes them feel like a wanted part of the team.
You successfully tailor your interactions to accommodate different personalities. Let’s face it, no child is the same. If you have more than one child, you’ve learned to interact with each one in a way that will uniquely get through to them. Adults are no different. While one person may take direct, blunt feedback well, another person will find it crushing to their morale and will need it balanced with a few positives you’ve noticed. You can use your experience with your children to prove that you can adjust your written and verbal communication style, and even body language, to ensure the best possible communication with others on your team.
You know how to motivate even the toughest critics. In my experience, getting children to put away clothes or toys is an uphill battle. But, as parents, we learn how to motivate them to get the job done. Some children may be encouraged by a reward upon completion while others may just need a creative way to make the job more fun. In the workplace, you can use your skills to motivate even the toughest person on the team to meet their goals. You’ll be willing to work with your supervisors to come up with creative, realistic solutions to build morale and work ethic.
There is no challenge you cannot navigate. Being a mom is the most difficult job on the planet. You work long hours, make sacrifices, and never give up. When you find a job that you are passionate about, you will bring that same devotion to the work. You’ll do what needs to be done to reach goals and find success, because being a mom has developed perseverance and dedication in you that you didn’t have before.
As you contemplate how to showcase these relationship building values into a conversation with a potential employer, remember to tailor each of them to your exact situation as a mom and use examples. It’s helpful to write them down to flesh out details beforehand so that you can build a strong vision of what you bring to the table.
Other Mom Transferable Skills
Relationship building is just one of many transferable mom skills. When preparing your resume, cover letter, and interview talking points, consider other mom skills, such as research and problem solving, adaptability and agility, strategic thinking, communication, motivation, and organization. For even more mom skills that transfer to the workplace, click here.
