Need a little help around the house? Who doesn’t! Here are some mother’s helper interview questions you simply must ask before hiring.
Having a mother’s helper was one of the best things I’ve ever done.
Ever.
A few years ago, I found out I was suprise – SURPRISE – pregnant with our 5th child.
One near set of Irish twins.
I knew that I couldn’t take care of 4 little ones while pregnant with a 5th and trying to work a few hours a week here.
So, I prayed, asked around, then found and hired our lovely wonderful Mother’s Helper.
She was with us around 4 years and recently retired to have her own baby and I can say with all confidence that having a mother’s helper is genuinely… truly…
Helpful.
🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄
Okay okay, so if you are looking for a mother’s helper and are getting geared up for an interview – or to talk with someone who may be interested – here are some important questions to ask.
Read all the posts in my Mother’s Helper Series
- How to find a mother’s helper you can trust
- 10+ mother’s helper interview questions
- How much to pay a mother’s helper
- Your mother’s helper’s AGE: key considerations
- An in-depth job description for a mother’s helper you can use
- The ultimate guide to finding, hiring, paying, training & keeping a mother’s helper
Interview Questions For Your Potential Mother’s Helper
These questions will be great starting points for conversation in an interview with a potential mother’s helper. Whether you are interviewing something from Care or having a casual chat, these will help.
Are you willing to help around the house with chores?
When I interviewed our mother’s helper, I made sure to say this…
“I won’t ever ask you to do anything I wouldn’t do. But I may ask you to do basically anything that needs doing. Will that be okay with you?”
What you don’t want is someone Super Precious who can’t wash pee sheets or clean up a potty accident.
It may take time before they are comfortable with certain tasks or before you would even ask your mother’s helper to do certain things, but you want someone willing to jump in and do what needs doing.
Read: An Epic List Of Household Chores (that you’ll want help with!)
Are you comfortable being on duty alone with the kids?
It was months and months before our dear mother’s helper was on duty alone. For months I simply went to another room to work while she watched all the kids.
Gradually as she became more and more comfortable (she was 19 when she started) she watched the kids for longer periods of time alone.
Until eventually she would watch them for as long as needed and was comfortable doing this.
Will you change diapers and help potty train?
You may not ask your helper to change any diapers for a while, but eventually – if you have a baby – you’ll want someone to help doing anything necessary.
Depending on how natural minded your mother’s helper of choice is, you may not want to ask them to help you with cloth diapering, but you simply don’t want to hire someone to watch your little ones who can’t take #2.
Read: Potty Training Tips Your Mother’s Helper Can Use
Do you have safe reliable transport and, if so, are you willing to do errands or pick ups and drop offs?
If you want to hire a mother’s helper who is an early teenager, they won’t be able to drive. Will their parents be able to get them to your house or do they have a bike?
Late teenagers and above, do they have a car?
If you are interested in this and feel comfortable, can they be available at times to run errands for you or do the school pick up or drop off?
Personally, drop offs and pick ups are the Absolute Worst and having someone to handle this frees you up.
Read: The No Tears Approach To Running Errands & Appointments With Baby
Are you willing to put your phone in a designated spot for periods of time?
People cannot cope without their phone these days.
And certain age groups are worse than others.
What you don’t want is someone who comes over to watch your kids and spends half that time Snapchatting or Instagramming or whatever people do these days instead of actually watching your little ones.
Also, if they are always running to the phone during any down moment, they will not be in the habit of finding things to do around the house that help you.
Like evening sweeps.
And tidy routines.
Find somewhere central to ask your mother’s helper to leave their phone during set times. Starting off in this way communicates to your helper that you are serious about the issue.
I never had an issue with this at all, but you certainly might depending on the person, and it’s best to start out with clear boundaries from day one.
PHOTO OF BOX
Read: The Bad Habit Women Start While Nursing — And Wish They Hadn’t
Is this ($x) hourly rate / salary acceptable to you?
How much you pay your mother’s helper will depend on their age, your location, and – quite simply – what you are willing to pay.
You decide the rate you can afford and are willing to pay, not the other way around.
You want to pay someone fair and also leave room for pay increases as they are with you for more and more time. Here are some things to consider.
- You can pay a child or young teenager as little as $5 an hour.
- Or an older teenager $10 or more.
- Find out the minimum wage in your state and adjust accordingly.
- Don’t abandon the idea of help if the going rates are too high for you, simply have your mother’s helper come fewer hours. Any help is better than no help!
➡️ Before you interview or hire anyone, know what you are able to pay and be up front about it.
Can you keep the routines I’ve already set up with the kids?
Your mother’s helper should essentially help you carry out your normal routines.
This means they learn when babies nap, when they eat, your wind down routines, and anything else.
If your mother’s helper has ideas that are better than yours – EVEN BETTER – but you want to be sure you have someone helping you who will carry out your wishes.
- Baby Schedules & Routines
- Toddler Schedules & Routines
- Baby Sleep Schedules & Sleep Help
- School Routines
- Mom (& Eventually Mother’s Helper) Routines
If you’re a routined person you don’t want someone who refuses to follow a routine. And vice versa. They don’t need to have your exact personality, but they do need to be willing to follow your lead.
Are you comfortable, in time, to help discipline certain behaviors in the way we do it?
Until your children get comfortable with the mother’s helper, you will likely be the only disciplinarian with their help and support.
With time, your children should come to see your helper as an authority in their day to day. With the buck ultimately stopping with mommy.
Ultimately, you don’t want your mother’s helper to come to you every single time your kids act up. You can share your family rules, your preferred consequences, and your overall discipline mindset.
Do you have any experience with babies, toddlers, preschoolers, etc.?
This is probably a given.
Our mother’s helper had been working at a daycare and wanted to leave and work closer to home. Your mother’s helper may not have any experience with littles, and that’s okay too.
Sometimes people who come from large families are very experienced and extremely helpful. Depends on how many kids and what your goals are.
I don’t know that I’d ever held a baby before I had my own and now I have 5 so…
Who knows what life will bring?
Can you be flexible and able to adapt to the daily changes that come with life with littles?
While you want someone who can keep your routine, you also want someone who is flexible and can roll with the punches.
As they told us in England where my husband and I met…
“Blessed are the flexible, for they don’t break when bent.”
In the interview with the mother’s helper, you want to get across that while she’ll always be helping YOU, the days may look a lot different.
- One day you may want her to come with you on a major grocery run.
- Another, to the park.
- The next day, to sit with the kids in the van while you run in and out doing errands.
- Or take the kids to get ice cream.
- Or rock a tired baby.
- And vacuum up Cheerios or make grilled cheeses or….
You get the picture. You want someone who can follow your lead and jump in, wherever the day may take you.
Grab a free printable — Mother’s Helper Interview Questions
Grab your mother’s helper interview questions in a PDF right here!
Read all the posts in my Mother’s Helper Series
- How to find a mother’s helper you can trust
- 10+ mother’s helper interview questions
- How much to pay a mother’s helper
- Your mother’s helper’s AGE: key considerations
- An in-depth job description for a mother’s helper you can use
- The ultimate guide to finding, hiring, paying, training & keeping a mother’s helper
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