Hints for Starting a Day Care

Always dreamed about staring your own day care business? The perfect self employment situation which allows you to be with your kids whilst bringing in much needed money and being your own boss. However, you haven’t gone beyond dreaming about it due to a fear of the unknown. The fear of taking a risk on something you’re not even sure you’ll be suited to.

Here’s my tip, remove the fear. Sample the environment first, familiarise yourself with the business to see if it is something you would truly enjoy. This is the ultimate form of research, total immersion. Try to get a job or even get volunteer work at a day care (ideally one that allows staff to bring their kids or arrange a temporary child care arrangement whilst you research your potential business). Do whatever it takes to get the time off, use your vacation days, arrange a leave of absence.

Observation and practical application is great for figuring out what works and what doesn’t. Plus there is nothing like on the ground experience to figure out your suitability for a particular profession. You can learn so much from an existing daycare that could save you a lot of time and effort in the future. They’ve already made the mistakes so you don’t have to.

Your research period should be your sponge phase. Use it to soak up every atom of information possible. Take a copy book with you and jot down notes on your breaks, while it’s still fresh in your head. Do the same thing when you get home in the evening before you forget those little nuggets. Oogle all paperwork, policies and procedures every chance you get. There’ll be a lot so just try to remember key points for now. You can flesh that stuff out later. Just get an overview of how it all fits together.

Ask lots of questions particularly of the senior, experienced staff and the owner. Observe how they work, their methods of interaction with children, parents and other staff. Try to identify different staff roles e.g. does each room have a keyworker and assistants? How is the team dynamic and could it be improved? Hone in on any behavioural problems and notice what is the procedure for dealing with same. Note what you consider to be weaknesses and use that knowledge to your advantage as a lesson in what not to do.

Effective systems, policies and procedures enable a business to run smoothly and give management and staff structure and direction. The same applies to day care, once you remove the fear of the unknown by immersing yourself in the daily operations of a day care all the pieces will come together in your head enabling you to get beyond the fear to a more confident and constructive place. Throwing yourself in at the deep end, observing all the nuts and bolts of a day care business will give you an invaluable insight into your own suitability for this profession.

This is an excellent way to discover if you would thrive in a child care business and it is very important to figure this out before you start. You will need to love it because, like any business, there will be tough times and your passion is what will carry you through to success. Get researching!

Fiona Lohrenz has been running her own day care for the past 10 years and is the founder of a childcare website that offers articles and resources for child care providers and parents. She has also produced ‘Start a ChildCare Business’ DVD found here StartChildCare.com. Fiona can be reached at her website here: ChildCareOnly.com

- Fiona Lohrenz