Staying Connected

By Kellie Geres, Regarding Nannies Development Team

In the nanny industry, one of the most important things to do for ourselves is stay connected with other nannies. For some, this is easy – there is a nanny group in their area, they live in a neighborhood full of nannies, or belong to a nanny/child playgroup. However, for others its not so easy. They may be isolated in their neighborhood, not live in an urban area where there is an abundance of nannies or a nanny group, or they may have older children, while most of the nannies have younger charges.

Staying connected with our peers is an essential ingredient to maintaining a healthy balance for nannies and their jobs. Being able to connect with other nannies that have the experiences, knowledge, and understanding for what we do is critical for our industry.

The internet has opened up a huge market for nannies to stay connected. From message boards to social networking, staying connected is as easy as having an email address.

Some of the most popular avenues for nannies to connect are …

· Facebook. A number of nanny groups and organizations have a presence on Facebook. Regarding Nannies, Nanny Island, APN, INA, NANC, Nanny’s Helping Hand – all have pages on Facebook.

· Nanny Island. The place for nannies to come, relax, network, share stories and photos, join groups, and not worry about agencies or changing diapers. With over 700 members, Nanny Island is a popular place to connect with new friends and read about what is going on in the nanny industry.

· Nanny Network. A bustling message board full of topics and forums. From East Coast to West Coast and in between, Nanny Network offers an array of discussions for all levels of nannies.

· Yahoo Groups! Ah, Yahoo. Grab a Yahoo ID and get started. Do a search of Nanny and you’ll discover a world of online groups for numerous metropolitan areas, interests and more. Get a Daily Digest of messages from your group and keep up with what’s going on in their corner of the world.

· Twitter. Do you tweet? Get a status update from your favorite people, group or business. What are they doing? You’ll only know if you tweet.

· Meetup. Meetup is the world's largest network of local groups. Meetup makes it easy for anyone to organize a local group or find one of the thousands already meeting up face-to-face. More than 2,000 groups get together in local communities each day, each one with the goal of improving themselves or their communities.

What are other ways you can stay connected?
· Attend local story times and connect with nannies in your area.
· Join a local nanny group.
· Contact a local agency and ask them for nannies in your area.
· Host a nanny get-together and post on message boards and get the word out.
· No nanny group in your area? Consider starting one. Read how-to on the Nanny Groups blog.
· Volunteer in your community. You’ll meet other individuals with similar interests and possibly some nannies.
· Ask permission to hand out fliers at schools and carpools. Nanny Get-Together. Have coffee, meet for dinner, form a playgroup.
· Make yourself visible to others, letting them know you’re a nanny and interested in meeting others. Ask employers if they have co-workers with nannies that may be interested in getting together.

What ways do you stay connected?