Career Change

I have been wrestling with the idea of a new career lately. I have been a stay-at-home mom for four years now, and while my children are only 2 and 3, I know that eventually I will have to go back to work. And I don’t know what I want to do. Before I had children, I was a technical writer. I have a Master’s degree in Professional Writing, which I pursued because at the time I was an English teacher. I spent four years prior to working as a writer teaching high school English. While teaching has its rewards, I could not imagine juggling that professional responsibility with a family. My children are my first priority which is making it difficult to choose a new career path. I like being home and I will need a job with a lot of flexibility. I need to be here when they leave for school in the morning and when they return in the afternoon. I need to be available to pick them up if they are sick, chaperone field trips, and take them to gymnastics or baseball. I don’t want a job where I have to bring work home from the office or do any travelling. I am the type of person who needs very little supervision and actually prefers it that way. I don’t want to be a secretary or a receptionist, a salesperson, an accountant, a computer programmer, a telemarketer, or an advertising rep, to name a few. I know what I don’t want to do. The trouble is, I don’t what I do want to do.
I would love to stay at home, work when I want and how I want. I have searched for work at home opportunities but I can’t tell the scams from the real deal. I wanted to start my own t-shirt business and had a good idea, but couldn’t make it work. I thought about eBay and while I am sure I have things to sell, I would rather donate them or give them away to friends. I considered becoming a bridal consultant, which would let me be creative and work my own hours. But it would also require me to work weekends and I don’t want to miss a moment of my kids growing up. Direct selling is not for me; I just don’t have the right personality. My ideal job would be making and selling crafts, everything from candles to picture frames to refurbished furniture. I could do it via the internet with plans to one day open a storefront. But that requires money and we don’t have it to throw it away on a dream. So, in reality, I know that I need to start planning for a new career.
Right now I am researching the paralegal profession. I have the right skills – writing, communicating, researching. I have a BA in Government & Politics and took a few legal courses way back. I would need to go back to school which I don’t mind at all. In fact, if I could get paid to be a student that would probably be the perfect job for me! But I need to start planning now so that I can be ready to embark on my new career in a few years when my kids are in school full time. I am confident that I could do the job but it lacks the creative edge that I enjoy and I am not sure how flexible the hours would be. Of course, if I could work on a contract or case by case basis that would be perfect. But I think I would need some experience before going out as a freelance paralegal. Freelance writing is another possibility but it isn’t a steady paycheck. And how do you compete for jobs with so many other writers when you have been a stay-at-home mom for so long?
I don’t have to make my choice tomorrow but it would be nice to have some direction. And it would also be nice to have a second income. My family and I could certainly use it. But unless I can get paid to work from home, I will just have to continue my job as MOM for the meantime.