I've been offered a job but...

[Feelingcrappy2]

It's a bit of a random one for me.

I have worked in Finance most of my career, but have had a long hiatus due to having 3 children back to back. My brother in law owns a car repair garage very close to where I live and he has offered for me to join him as a sort of front of house/admin person.

The good thing is that it is close by and hours can be flexible, of course he knows that I have nursery and school runs to do and is ok with that.

It feels very random and it does feel like a step back (a big step back) but it is a relatively 'easy' job to do and it would ease me back into work life, as well as earn me some money. I am not in a position to go back to my old line of work (yet) as the responsibility that brings would be way too much.

Thing is, when I asked him what sort of tasks I'd be doing, he said it would mainly be:

-Taking Bookings (but I have heard him on the phone taking bookings and customers mainly ask about pricing/technical advice and generally seem to get on so well with him because of his technical knowledge - which I do not have!)
-Ordering parts - I know nothing about car parts and although I'm sure he will tell me the names of them/part numbers, I worry that the salesman on the phone will give me options and I will be forever asking BIL for clarity!

As silly as the above two points are, my point is, it really works well him doing all the admin (although it is A LOT whilst trying to be on the tools at the same time). He knows a lot of the repeat customers quite well, he knows everything about the technical side and I worry that I will not be somebody a customer would ideally like to deal with. I'm most concerned that I would have a negative impact on his business.

Am I being silly and massively overthinking?

Well, you are massively over-thinking it. You know nothing about car parts RIGHT NOW, but after a few months of being immersed in the car parts world, you will have vastly increased knowledge and wont have to keep asking your BIL. You probably have a lot of knowledge that he could make use of in his business, as well.

@PonyPatter44 Yes, you are right. It just takes time and day by day I'd most certainly be learning something new!

I feel so full of self doubt and nerves having had such a long break. I never thought I'd lose this much confidence, even the idea of answering the phone fills me with nerves! I think it's just something I have to do.

Oh no, really don't get worried about this. I've done very similar work in my time and you don't need loads of knowledge about vehicles to do it. You'll pick it up as you go along. It's often the same issues that occur or you'll have a vehicle back and forwards with the same issue. All the parts are numbered and it'll be the mechanic deciding what to order once he's had a chat with the vehicle owner.

I think it sounds like a good job!

I trust you get on with your BIL!
I agree that you'll soon learn. You may get sales emails rather than calls these days. But if you do get calls, play the 'I'm new' card for all you're worth. And I bet he'll have you on the book-keeping too. Good luck!

I took a job like this during COVID and I had no knowledge either. The mechanics will write down what you need to order and when someone books the car in they will tell you the symptoms, like going to the doctor, there's a knocking sound, gears are sticking, handbrake is a bit loose. Can you do me an MOT, 20000 mile service etc. you'll be fine.

No one will mind if you need to pop customers on hold or ring them back once you've got advice from the mechanic. That's normal.

Remember people get nervous ringing the garage too!

Definitely overthinking
I work in the trade and didn't have huge amounts of knowledge when I started beyond "cars need a mot and a service"!

You’ll be fine, you’ll pick it up.

Also worth looking at the ‘women returners’ programmes that a lot of big companies do. They are designed for women getting back into work after kids, using the desirable, professional skills they have. They will be used to women needing flexibility and being a bit rusty!

I think you'll be absolutely fine. The only issue I see with this is whether working with your BIL will ruin your presumably good relationship?

Go for it. When recruitment was part of my job I frequently prioritised general intelligence and a good attitude. Previous experience is not always important.

I briefly helped a friend out in a similar role, I don't even drive so know literally nothing about cars but I really liked it there, in fact they would have had me there permanently but the location was no good for me. You will learn all those things, it sounds like an ideal job for you

You will be fine and if you are not, then there is nothing stopping you quitting so you have nothing to lose but a lot to gain.

I work in Finance too and would take a job like this in your shoes.

This!!

Wow - what a confidence boost! Thanks everyone 🥰

If your background is finance you can probably bring some useful skills too! Go for it - it'll help you become you again rather than just 'Mum, Mummy or Xs Mummy' and if you do go off to work somewhere else it's a job on your CV which shows versatility!

I wouldn’t do it if it’s going to be a massive step back in your career, find something more aligned with what you were doing previously, you seem way overqualified for the job and would probably end up doing very menial tasks