Stay in childcare or not?

I have been in the childcare field for 20 years now. I still love kids but there is just something in me that wants something new or different.

Do I:

A) Stay in the childcare field but move to an administrative position such as Director or Assist Dir where I can still work with children but can be more on the admin end of things. Another position I鈥檇 love is working for the State Registration Organization. Training prospective Child Care Providers, making home visits to new and existing home day cares including inspections.

Or

B) Do I go back to school for a broader degree (business is what I had in mind) and try an entirely different field? Some of the things I鈥檇 like are:

飩?Personal Assistant
飩?Office Manager in such offices as housecleaning business, Apartment Complex, etc. A place where I can still be involved with customer service and work with people
飩?Working for a state agency involving the environment. I would LOVE to work at a State Park where I can be outdoors and in the office.

If I decide to stay with childcare then until I move to DE in three years I鈥檇 have to stay in the childcare field here in NJ. But daycares in NJ do not pay enough so I鈥檇 have to keep a nanny position. Is it worth it even though I鈥檓 really tired of it?

I am afraid if I get away from it over the next three years and do something else like Personal Assistant, it won鈥檛 look good on my resume if I want to get back into daycare down in DE.

Jen, For your personal circumstances, I suggest you can have your cake, and eat it, too.

If you are able to select an administrative and general management position within the childcare field, you will be able to get a higher responsibility job than if you change fields. (either the center director or the SRO)

If you like it, you're done. If you are still itching to get into another field, you have done no less than adding a few years of admin/ management / customer service experience to your resume.

I don't think you'd need to get a degree for those jobs you mentioned,unless you just want to get a degree for personal reasons.

And if you do decide to do the Personal Assistant route, I would not worry about it for getting back into child care. Child Care is a demanding field and there are never enough amazing people who enter it as a career. It will be quite obvious to your hiring manager that you love the work and the children and the families, when you explain why you wanted a break (who wouldn't after 20 years...) and why you are eager to get back into the field.

I don't think you can lose, with your options!