Motivation...What Motivates You?

The next few days we will be publishing the scholarship recipients and runners up.  They will be published in random order.

Thank you again to Marni Kent who made this scholarships possible.

MOTIVATION by Susan Fordham

          According to Psychology Today:  “motivation is literally the desire to do things.  It’s the difference between waking up before dawn to pound the pavement and lazing around the house all day.  It’s the crucial element in setting and attaining goals – and research shows you can influence your own levels of motivation and self-control.  So figure out what you want, power through the pain period and start being who you want to be”.

          In the real estate market, you hear every day “the sellers are highly motivated” and in the professional and amateur sports fields, you hear analysts say “what motivates him or her?”  And in my chosen profession, I hear “when will you get motivated to find a REAL job?”

          Where does my motivation come from?  For one, when people say something like that to me!  My motivation comes from the smiles and hugs I get on a daily basis, the boo-boos I am allowed to kiss away each and every day, getting down on the floor to roll a ball across the floor – now that’s motivation for me.  I chose my path in life a very long time ago, but I do believe it chose me a long time before I was aware of it.  I believe I was put on this earth to do what it is I do.  I have a long history of caregiving, some of it was very, very hard and some of it had such rich rewards, it made my heart

sing.  I chose to focus on the rich rewards and not the bad stuff, I chose to get up each and every morning and look out the window for something to make me smile, I chose to set aside special time for me and me alone, in other words, I CHOSE MOTIVATION!

          Motivation comes to me in many different shapes and sizes.  Sometime it shows itself in a hummingbird coming to my feeder or in a peculiar or intriguing cloud formation.  I look for these things in my life, I seek them out – it keeps me going.  My mind is open at all times to find the good in things, even when they can be so dark and scary.  Motivation can be very tricky – you may have to scrape away a few ugly layers to find whatever you need to keep on going.  But keep scraping, you will find it.  There may be times when the motivation is there, but you can’t see it or you don’t WANT to see it.  Maybe sometimes, it’s as easy and as simple as getting up and washing your face, clearing away the cobwebs and see what is right in front of you – MOTIVATION was there all the time!

          Children are my biggest motivator.  All children deserve love, respect and the right to be heard.  It makes no difference what is going in my life, what matters most is what should be happening in their lives.  They should be receiving the best of everything and it is up to US to provide that for them.  Children motivate me to be a better person, they motivate me to be more creative, they motivate me to take more time to smell the roses.  I have the BEST job in the world and I would not give it up for anything or anyone.  So for those people in my life who are waiting for me to find a “real job”, don’t hold your breath – THIS IS MY REAL JOB, THIS IS MY PASSION…THIS IS MY MOTIVATION!!

          

2014 INA Scholarship Recipients

Before I announce the scholarship recipients (All of the entries have been notified via phone or email) I want to say a huge from the bottom of my heart thank you to my friend and colleague Marni Kent for making this years scholarships happen.
I would also like to let you all know that Marni has already committed to repeating these scholarships for the 2015 International Nanny Association

When I say that the essay entries were outstanding this year, I really mean they were outstanding. Nanny Magazine and Regarding Nannies you should take advantage of their writing talent! INA Newsletter, we  know some nannies that can write!
It was so difficult to choose only 3 and Marni being the generous person that she is decided to contribute 2 more gifts of $50 to go toward registration for 2 more essay entries which are contingent upon conference attendance.

The scholarships for new nannies who have never attended conference go to
Susan Fordham and
Jenn Farlow.
The scholarship for a previous conference attendee goes to

Lisa Willis.
The $50 gifts contingent upon conference attendance go to Katherine Dallmeyer and
 Kenda Horst.

INA sets up their early registration so that nannies can try to take advantage of these opportunities but if it doesn’t work out they can still take advantage of the early bird registration.

We do hope to meet you all at the INA Conference. I speak for both myself and Marni when I say that INA has made a huge impact on our personal and professional lives and it is worth the effort to be there.

Essay contest process

Well it's 11:30 and our committee has finally agreed on 3 Scholarship recipients.

They will be notified tomorrow via email or phone. (Did you think I was going to tell you early?)

We want to thank all of you that submitted essays. They were all outstanding and we were truly impressed with the time and effort (not to mention talent) of our essay writers.
This was such a difficult decision, we have been pouring over essays since early this morning.
Before we announce the scholarship recipients I wanted to share with you a little bit about the process of how we choose.
First of all, since January 22 my dear friend and fellow nanny Gael Ann has been monitoring the nannytransitions gmail account.
I sign out of the account and as the essays come in, Gael Ann has her own password, she goes through, removes any identifying information that she can from the essay and assigns them a letter and then emails them to us.
Once we have all the essays, we (Marni Kent, Christy Ochs and myself) read them, make sure they have followed all the guidelines and then we vote for our 3 top choices.
Once we have decided on who the scholarships will go to, then and only then are the names of the essay contributors revealed to us.
The essays were outstanding and we chose 3 winners and 2 runners up.
Stay tuned 

INA Scholarships for the 2014 INA Conference

Transitions by Marni Kent and details on the 3 INA Conference Scholarships

(The first part of this  article by Marni Kent was previously published in December 2013, but this post includes the specifics of the INA Conference Scholarships for 2014)

TRANSITIONS BY MARNI KENT
Just like many of you, I myself have gone through transitions that have changed my life; personally and professionally.
When things like this happen I suppose the first thing to ask yourself is, what's the situation and why don't you think it can change? Sometimes things feel impossible but that's because we are depressed or too close to the situation to see clearly. There might be a solution if you can talk to someone about it; a friend, family member or someone who has been there like a peer.

Beyond that, how do you stay strong? Well, for most people it's really just a matter of getting through it. Getting up every day, eating, showering, going to work/school/whatever and coming home, sleeping and doing it all over again. That doesn't sound very helpful but that's how it generally is; life keeps going on no matter what and you go along with it and eventually some time has passed and things change or you don't feel as bad anymore. Some people find solace in religion or spirituality, some distract themselves with books and TV and friends, and some people can't enjoy anything so they just feel terrible all the time.
 If you're able to still enjoy things, try to spend as much time doing those things as possible, and wait it out. Nothing stays the same forever.

When I reached out to a friend/ peer when I was going through a difficult time in life (Glenda Propst the owner of Nanny Transitions) she gave me advice that at the moment did not fit all of what I was going through but on down the road it clicked.
Eventually I realized that there are some stages of transition that apply whether the transition is work or personal.
Over the last few years, I have found Nanny Transitions to be an amazing source not just for myself but for sharing with other nannies.
This year I am going to sponsor 3 Scholarships to the 2014 INA Conference.
Two scholarships will go to nannies who have never been to the INA Conference and one will go to a nanny who has attended a previous conference.
The scholarship recipients will be able to choose from 4 different topics to write their essays.

Here are the guidelines for the Nanny Transitions INA Conference Scholarship.

NANNY TRANSITIONS INA CONFERENCE SCHOLARSHIP 

In order to qualify for the Nanny Transitions INA Conference Scholarship, you must meet the following qualifications.

·                     You must be currently working as a nanny at least 24 hours a week.
                      (If you are a nanny in transition, looking for a new position, please let us know)

·                     You must be a member of INA as of February 15, 2014.

You must go to the Nanny Transitions page on Facebook and like the page.

   By submitting this essay you are committing to attend the 2014 INA Annual Conference.

INA Board of Directors, conference speakers and workshop presenters, conference sponsors who receive complimentary registration, the 2013 and 2014 INA Nanny of the Year award recipients are not eligible for this prize.

To Apply

Submit an essay on one of the following topics:

             1)   Motivation is really about your own personal commitment and goals.
             Tell us what motivates you?

      2)      What do other people say are your positive personality traits?

                       Example - I am a go getter, with a proven track record of success.
            3)      What has been your biggest challenge as you have gone through your job transition?
               What has Nanny Transitions helped you learn from it?

             4)       What are you most looking forward to at this years conference?

   Your essay must be at minimum 500-1,000 words. 

(No more than 1,000 and, no less than 500)

 Do not include information in your essay that would identify you, such as the name of your city. We would like to keep the submissions as anonymous as possible.

       Essay must be submitted between Wednesday January 22 and Saturday February 1, 2014                11:59pm EST

        Use spell check and count your words.
        Recipient will be chosen by content and presentation of essay.

There will be 3 Scholarships awarded.

2 scholarships for nannies who have never attended an INA Conference and

 1 for a current nanny member.

Scholarship recipients will be notified via phone and/or  email on Monday, February 3, 2014.

This will give those of you who do not receive a scholarship, time to take advantage of the early bird registration rates.

Previous scholarship recipients do not qualify. 

Essay submissions should be sent to: Nannytransitions@gmail.com

If you have any questions, feel free to email us your questions
before you submit your essay.nannytranstions@gmail.com

INA 29th Annual Conference

March 27-30, 2014
Hilton Los Angeles Airport
Los Angeles, CA

- See more at

:http://www.nanny.org/annual-conference/2014-annual-conference/

               By submitting this essay you are committing to attending the 2014 INA Conference.

You understand that you are responsible for your transportation to and from the conference,
your hotel room and any other expenses incurred at the 2014 INA Conference.

You have discussed this with your employers and
they have agreed to give you the time off to attend the conference.

These scholarships are sponsored by Nanny Transitions and funded completely by a generous donation from Marni Kent, INA’s 2002 Nanny of the Year.

Transitions by Marni Kent

Transitions by Marni Kent

Just like many of you, I myself have gone through transitions that have changed my life; personally and professionally.
When things like this happen I suppose the first thing to ask yourself is, what's the situation and why don't you think it can change? Sometimes things feel impossible but that's because we are depressed or too close to the situation to see clearly. There might be a solution if you can talk to someone about it; a friend, family member or someone who has been there like a peer.

Beyond that, how do you stay strong? Well, for most people it's really just a matter of getting through it. Getting up every day, eating, showering, going to work/school/whatever and coming home, sleeping and doing it all over again. That doesn't sound very helpful but that's how it generally is; life keeps going on no matter what and you go along with it and eventually some time has passed and things change or you don't feel as bad anymore. Some people find solace in religion or spirituality, some distract themselves with books and TV and friends, and some people can't enjoy anything so they just feel terrible all the time.
 If you're able to still enjoy things, try to spend as much time doing those things as possible, and wait it out. Nothing stays the same forever.

When I reached out to a friend/ peer when I was going through a difficult time in life (Glenda Propst the owner of Nanny Transitions) she gave me advice that at the moment did not fit all of what I was going through but on down the road it clicked.
Eventually I realized that there are some stages of transition that apply whether the transition is work or personal.
Over the last few years, I have found Nanny Transitions to be an amazing source not just for myself but for sharing with other nannies.
Nanny transitions helped me remember to ask myself these important questions.

What qualities do you have in your nanny career?
What characteristics do you possess that make you an excellent nanny?
What inherent attributes allow you to enjoy your job?
 Stop and think for a moment about what your employers like about you.
What do the children like about you?
What do other people like about you?
I want you to think about the answers to those questions and then I want you to think about the qualities you possess that resonate energy in all aspects of your life.

I am going to sponsor 3 Scholarships to the 2014 INA Conference.
Two scholarships will go to nannies who have never been to the INA Conference and one will go to a nanny who has attended a previous conference.
The scholarship recipients will be able to choose from 4 different topics to write their essays.
I will be sharing more details with you as the time gets closer but for now I would like for you to think about the first essay topic:
How has Nanny Transitions helped you through transitions in your job?

Stay tuned over the next few weeks and we will be sharing more information.
I am so excited to share this opportunity with you because both Nanny Transitions and INA mean a lot to me.
Marni Kent

Step Aside and Let it Fly

If you know me, even a little bit, you know that I am a huge fan of the Brave Girls Club.
Everyday in my email box I get beautiful affirmations, and wonderful words of encouragement for living my best life!
It usually feels like it was written especially for me.Sometimes I read things and I say "Oh yes, that's nice....and I go on about my day but other times I read something and it strikes a chord deep inside of me.
The other day this one struck a chord deep inside of me and everyday her words resonated in my mind and in my heart.
I think this is such wonderful advice for anyone, no matter what you are going through but I think it's especially appropriate for nannies in transition.
Sadly, sometimes when nannies are in transition, especially as they are seeking other employment they sometimes find themselves in the line of fire.
When former employers are giving you a bad reference, or when the last days of your job become so uncomfortable you don' know if you can bear it one more minute,
You don't have to believe it, you don't have to catch it, you don't have to take the hit, just step aside and let it fly!
Stay on the high road.....you will never regret it.

Read these wise and wonderful words by Melody Ross on the Brave Girls Club blog:

It is always an honor to be featured on other sites and blogs, especially one as popular as ENannySource

When the best nannies need nanny advice, they turn to Glenda Propst, seasoned nanny extraordinaire.  With nearly three decades of nanny care under her belt, it shouldn’t be surprising that this nanny has seen both the best and the worst the industry has to offer and opens her heart to support and advise nannies as they face change and challenges working in this one of a kind career. When not mentoring a nanny personally, Glenda, who was also the 1991 International Nanny Association Nanny of the Year, shares her words of wisdom with the nanny masses at www.nannytransitions.com.
Over the almost 29 years I have spent as a professional nanny, I have learned a lot about people and a lot about the people who choose this profession. There are nannies who find jobs easily, breeze through interviews, and have great relationships with their employers long after a job ends. Then there are nannies who get stuck in a terrible rut of taking jobs that sound wonderful and end up not being as they were described, taking jobs with families who take advantage of their good nature and their willingness to be flexible, and taking jobs with families who work them long hours, pay them low wages and expect their nanny’s life to revolve around them. These nannies typically end up leaving jobs on bad terms with little or no future contact with their previous charges.
It seems like nannies who find great jobs always find great jobs and nannies who don’t find great jobs just repeat the same experience over and over with new families.
With nearly three decades of nanny experience under my belt, I’ve certainly made my share of mistakes and I learned a lot the hard way, but there are things that nannies do that perpetuate the pattern of being taken advantage of in job after job. When I visit nanny messages boards I read the same story over and over again – most often from the same nannies.
So what are the top 9 mistakes nannies make that make it difficult to be successful in this industry?
Read the rest of this article HERE