How To Trust a Nannies Professional Judgement
I speak to many families about their childcare search daily. We go through all the different types of nanny there are, what stage of their career they are at and how that impacts their budget, what types of qualifications and knowledge the nanny might have and their expertise and experience.
Lots of parents tell me:
- ” I want a professional” ,
- “I want a career nanny”,
- “I want a qualified and experienced nanny”
- “I want the best nannies”
Once they have employed their Nanny, sometimes there is conflict of how the “expert” communicates to “the parent” about what is best for their child. This could be advise on routines, dropping or implementing naps, meal times, behaviour and development.
Communicating
Communication is absolutely key. The Nanny needs to be polite, patient and word suggestions in the right way. The parent needs to take a step back and consider what the Nanny is suggesting. When changing any behaviour or habit or encouraging a new skill, it needs to be consistent, so parent and Nanny have to be both on board with the plan or it just does not work. The Nanny will not be trying to “take over”, but merely using their professional judgement and experience to express what they may feel might work best.
The Bottom Line
However, the Nanny is not the parent, and bottom line the parent will have the final say on how they would like their child to be treated, and the Nanny will need to respect that, even if they do not agree with it. My advise would be, if you have hired a professional for their expertise, it would be best to be open minded and trust their judgement. In turn, this develops trust and respect to your Nanny, which then gives them confidence in their role.
