Hold the front page - being a SAHM for 8 years is shit for your future job prospects!

[needthemoney]

Just that really. Working on my CV and there is just no way that I can make it look impressive. Most recent work experience is from 2005 and that looks shit whichever way you dress it up.

Waffling on about being on the PTA, volunteering at Bazaars and various rinky dink playgroup and school committees just sounds a bit lame.

Previous career was quite impressive but not one I want to return to as it's simply not suited to family life. Trying for jobs in shops, basic admin stuff and nowt doing.

Don't know why I'm posting really just feeling sorry for myself and wanting a rant!

OP, I saw a really good CV the other day from a mum, who'd been a SAHM & she had made her time off sound like a really positive choice.

She said something along the lines of

2006 - 2013 - Time out of the paid workplace to care for children. During this time, as well as giving birth to 3 children, I also became involved with helping run the local 1 o'clock club. This involved coordinating with the local authority, blah, blah blah (I can't remember all of it). I also joined the PTA of my local school and was involved with a number of fund-raising events. For this I exercised my skills of persuasion & organisation - blah, blah, blah. All sounded very positive. Mentioned updating her computer skills in this time as well.

So, what looked like a howling career gap sounded very positive and filled with useful skill maintenance that were made relevant to the job she was applying for.

Agree re Linked In. I only ever really decline people on Linked In if I have professional experience of them and they're shite and I don't want to be associated with them or I know them socially and know they take the piss at work and wouldn't want to be associated with them professionally. Otherwise I usually accept. For linked in to work without paying you need a big network do its in their interest to accept you.

It can be done! I was a SAHM for eight years like you and thought no one would hire me again. I started volunteering a couple of half days a week at a national charity head office (most charities need volunteers to help do admin in their offices). Three months later when I had a bit of confidence back I got my first interview for a part time admin job and got it. I mostly used the experience I got from the volunteering post in the application form and the interview but being a SAHM gives you so many transferable skills and the interviewers recognised that. I also purposely looked out for jobs which required an application form to be filled in rather than sending a CV. I had really struggled to make my CV look in anyway impressive but an application form made it easier to skim over some time periods and focus on the stuff that was relevant to the post.
Good luck! You can do it.