As I listened to the TAPP webinar this Tuesday, I was really surprised to learn that Lynn Berger, the speaker – career coach and author of The Savvy Part-time Professional: How to Land, Create, or Negotiate the Part-time Job of your Dreams – was able to describe a proven plan of action to take with your employer when you are trying to transition to part-time.

She stressed that a part-time arrangement truly can be a win/win.  On the employee’s side, for one thing, it can really contribute to your being “healthy and vibrant.” I love that!  On the employer’s side, it’s a great way to keep the employee engaged and boost efficiency and effectiveness. I am very interested in this idea of the engaged employee.  In fact, I just read an article about it from Sustainable Industries. (Hope to talk about that in a future post.)

Lynn says, “If you don’t ask, you're not going to get.” To give you the best odds for success, she describes, step-by-step, an effective proposal that you can prepare and present to your boss.  She also knows what you can expect in terms of resistance or objections from the boss. 

Items you should cover in your proposal are:

• A list of the major and minor responsibilities of your job, noting which can be home-based and which can be office-based
• A description and examples of your value as an employee – Lynn says ALL OF US should ALWAYS be aware of our strengths and skills
• An outline of the schedule you have in mind
• Possible costs of equipment you might need to work at home
• A time frame for evaluating how well the arrangement works

Common objections & suggested responses: 

EMPLOYER:  We’ve never done this before.

EMPLOYEE:  Well, let’s try it for 3 months and if it’s not working we can figure out something else.

EMPLOYER:  Everyone will want to do this.

EMPLOYEE: Lynnsays this simply isn’t true. Offer some examples of people who would not want to work part-time.

So, now you know what to do. If you really think that working part-time will be the best option for you, GO FOR IT!  Join the 27 million people who are already doing it.  Be healthy!  Be vibrant! 

Lynn Berger is a National Certified Counselor, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Master Career Counselor and Professional Certified Coach. She received her M.A. in Organizational Psychology and her Ed.M. in Psychological Counseling from Columbia University, New York.  In addition to her private practice, Ms. Berger conducts career workshops relating to women, work and stress and a variety of other topics. Her past experience includes working in the Consulting and Human Resource fields.  Find out more about Lynn at www.lynnberger.com