Six Essential Tips on How To Become the Best Au Pair

So you decided you want to become an Au Pair, Horray! You probably can’t wait to come to Australia and experience a whole new adventure! But aside from getting your luggage ready for your trip, it’s also important to make sure that your Host Family will love having you around and that they will get the right support from you. We did our own research and came up with the following tips on how to become the best Au Pair to your Host Family.

Try To Be Independent

We understand that most Au Pairs are young and may not have that much life experience, but this shouldn’t stop you from trying to be independent! Being an Au Pair is the perfect opportunity for you to learn how to stand on your own two feet and learn essential skills to be of great value to your host family. This means you should know how to do very basic and minor household chores such as washing dishes, refill the pantry (yes keep an eye on the milk in the fridge), or starting a load the laundry without much guidance. You can practice these things while you’re still at home. This is important because you should also be able to identify what’s ‘dangerous’ and what’s ‘fun’ especially when you’re looking after the kids. Although we encourage you to learn these prior, this doesn’t mean you are not allowed to ask questions anymore. The best Au Pair knows how to ask questions when necessary so that they can learn and do it properly all by herself.

Don’t Hesitate To Volunteer

Don’t be shy when offering help! Host Family loves an Au Pair who volunteers! You can be that best Au Pair if you volunteer to clear up the table after dinner, watch over the kids while host mum is checking her emails on her laptop, offer to make dinner when you see the host mum is overly exhausted after arriving home from work, or ask permission to take kids to the park for a little weekend fun! Offering help even when no one asked you is a special trait that any Host Family would appreciate from an Au Pair. The most magical moment you can give a host parent is sending them a text with “btw I saw we ran out of milk and toilet paper so I took the kids to the supermarket and bought some. The receipt is on the kitchen bench.” If you attach a photo of all of you having fun at the supermarket – it will truly melt their hearts and make you indispensable!

Always Be Respectful

You may have already heard your parents, grandparents, or school teachers telling you to always be respectful, we are only reminding you this again. The best Au Pair knows when and how to use the two magic words – “please” and “thank you”, as these are the words of respect. If they have a personal belief and preferences that are different from your own, you must learn to respect them as they would to you. Ask your respective Host Families how they prefer to raise their children. How they guide, motivate and even discipline their children and confirm that they want you to follow the same.

Practice Honesty at All Times

The best Au Pair is someone who is honest. You will only have a good lasting relationship with your Host Family if you are honest about your abilities, experiences, availability, and preferences. If you lie about these things, you will more likely have misunderstandings with the family in the long run. Don’t be afraid – be honest with what you feel. If you made a mistake, say sorry and politely ask what you can do to make things right or avoid it from happening again. Your host family will most likely appreciate your honesty more than your lies. It can be hard to tell the truth sometimes but it helps to build trust between you and the host family. It’s about what you learn from your mistakes not about not making them at all.

Become a Good Role Model

Host families appreciate an Au Pair who is a good role model to their children and overall in the community. Are you respectful, helpful, and honest? Are you proud of your own culture and would love to share it with others by talking about your country, sharing some words in your own language, and teaching the kids some traditional games or songs? Do you treat kids like siblings and love hanging out with them? The best Au Pair can become a good role model to anyone she meets by showing a positive, fun, and grateful attitude throughout!

Be true, be you and have fun!

But most of all be true to yourself. If you are an introvert and just don’t have a bubbly personality, that is absolutely okay. Don’t try to be someone you are not. Just be clear about your abilities and limitations and communicate them with your host family.

The way they experience you in the first week, that’s how they will assume you are. Your Host Family might not see that you are sad and homesick if you don’t say it. They might think you are not warming up to them or the kids and won’t be able to help you through this phase.

Think of this time as an opportunity to find yourself, explore new things and come out the other side as a stronger, more mature and confident person. Be open to new things, places, people and ways of thinking and doing things. This is your time, so enjoy it! And who says you can’t be silly and have fun with you Host Kids? Make it your objective to laugh every day and make the kids and parents laugh too – that’s what magic moments are all about. And these might be the most moments of all!

We hope the tips we gave you will help you become the best Au Pair to your Host Family. You might not become the “perfect Au Pair” but you can be the “perfect match” to a perfect family. You only need to really get to know the family before you make any commitments.

Are you ready to start your Au Pair adventure? Get in touch with us to find your perfect match today! We will do our very best to help you find the right Host Family and make your Au Pair experience a great one.