Building career resilience after a long break, such as raising children, can be a powerful barrier that puts you off, but it doesn’t have to be. With some self-reflection and a positive attitude, anyone can bounce back into a work situation as though they never left. However, there are some things that will help, from finding supported mentorship to easing back into things.
Upskilling, Certification, and Education
Taking a break from work, even for a relatively short amount of time for some sectors, can result in feeling like a beginner all over again. For example, the IT industry moves very quickly, and you can be a fish out of water if you don’t keep up with the sector. However, there are some ways to transition smoothly, such as with an Accelerate Scholarship program, attending funded skills bootcamps and building or rebuilding foundational knowledge with educational courses.
Supported Mentorship and Training
Mentorship and in-work support are pretty common these days, with standard workplace practices such as onboarding, shadowing and on-the-job training. These are excellent alternatives to applying blindly to a role, especially one that requires specialist skills or training. Many companies and employment programs can offer work with a formal return to work scheme that can last between a few weeks and over a year, but it might be necessary for specific roles.
Building Career Resilience with an Updated CV
Raising children is a massive responsibility, and many parents take years or even decades away from work to raise their kids. As such, 87% find the transition back into work a major challenge. Whether you need to work to bring in additional money or to build something as an empty nester, it all begins with getting your CV right! After a long break from work, you need to impress, and you can frame your career break with transferable skills you learned raising kids:
- Assigning tasks and motivating teams.
- De-escalating challenging situations
- Managing your own and others’ time effectively
- Reading non-verbal cues and moods
- Bouncing back from setbacks and moving forward
Ease Back into Work with Smaller Tasks
It can feel like you are being thrown into the deep end when you have been away from a specific role for a while, especially if things have changed. A professional or skilled job can make you feel like it’s your first day again, even if you previously did the job for years. However, you don’t need to feel like you can’t get back into your previous career. Instead of jumping headfirst into your job, begin with small tasks through freelancing or even working from home.
Connect with Others Who Can Help
Support is necessary and recommended for a wide range of things in life, and returning to work is one of them. There is no shame in looking for a helping hand, and there are many people who have been in the same position. You can use services such as Career Returners Professional Network to connect with others who have found it hard to return to work after a career break, but find it much easier once they find the supportive networks they need for an easier transition.
Summary
Upskilling and education are two of the best ways of building career resilience after a long absence from your previous role. After raising children, for example, you will also need to update your CV, and you can include the many soft skills it takes to raise a family if it needs padding out a little. However, if you are finding it hard, there are online support services.
