Deciding whether or not this is the career choice for you is important.
Do you love children? Do you have experience with them? Children can test your patience and even if you love children, they can wear you out.
So, if you have a bad temper or short fuse, you might want to consider another career choice.
However if you have been around children and you feel that this is your calling, then the best of luck to you! The first step is finding out about your areas licensing requirements.
Some counties do require a license for home daycare centers but most do not.
Although you may want to be licensed whether you are required to be or not.
Being licensed allows you to care for more children at a time.
You will also more than likely need certification.
Getting certified is not that difficult.
Just as with any career choice you will go through a training course and if you pass you become certified.
You will receive a certificate to display.
You may also want to get small business insurance.
If you do not hire others, you will need to be the manager, secretary, accountant, cleaning lady, first aid administer, bookkeeper, scheduler, organizer, referee, teacher, counselor, comforter and many other roles.
I am sure you can handle this if there is only a handful of kids you care for.
But, if you want a larger center, you may need to get others involved to lighten the workload on you.
There are plenty of forms you will need to have on hand to run a successful operation.
Forms with background information need to be filled out before taking on a child.
On that form you will have the address, phone number, allergies and any special circumstances that involve the child.
Other form examples are liability, scheduling, payment arrangement and prescription forms.
All of your prices should be set before you open for business.
All of your center policies should be set and on display in your facility.
All of the equipment and supplies should be purchased and ready to go for the amount of children you are taking on.
The center environment should be cleaned thoroughly and sanitized.
Children can catch a cold faster than you can blink.
Lastly, you need clients.
Flyers posted up at your towns hot spots should do it.
You can hand out business cards to people with children.
This is by far the easiest career choice to spot potential customers.
If they have children, more than likely they will give you a call.
With more and more mothers taking up jobs, childcare becomes a necessity for them.