Identifying the specific person with whom you will share the position allows you to present a realistic, workable job sharing proposal filled with the details which you and your prospective partner will have discussed.

There are many ways to find a partner:

1. Your Current Workplace: A compatible coworker or temporary worker who replaced you or a coworker during a leave are both possibilities. A pairing of two currently valued employees whom your employer would rather not lose could be your most favorable approach.

2. Professional and Personal Networks: Start putting the word out about your partner search to contacts in your professional association, colleagues from previous jobs, people in your exercise class, etc., all of whom can be a direct or indirect source of referral.

3. Placement Offices: Those of nearby colleges and universities might be a good source for identifying leads as many students are past traditional college age, with families.

4. Employment Agencies: If there are nearby agencies that specialize in your field, you may want to let them know about your potential opening.

5. Advertisements: Classified ads in local professional publications may yield results when other avenues are less fruitful.

Time and persistence in pursuing these pathways should result in finding several prospective job-share partners. After that, the next step is to choose the 'right' one with whom to propose your job-sharing arrangement.

Pat Katepoo is the developer of the e-workbook, Flex Success: A Proposal Blueprint & Planning Guide for Getting a Family-Friendly Work Schedule. Click here for more info.