From a Career Coach For Moms: 12 Tips to getting back into the workforce
Are you a mom going back to work after a long gap or maternity leave? Here’s what to consider in your job search for a smooth transition, and positive experience. FREE downloadable pdf Back-to-Work Planner included.
Written by Nadine Stille, who coaches moms with careers to ditch their daily grind and bring more joy into their lives.
Yeay! It’s a momentous time to be a mom going back to work.
Did you know, that for the majority of Mamas surveyed in the US, the extended home stay is around 2 years after having children, according to this study? Obviously, it’s very different from mom to mom, and country to country, but most Mamas do stay home for a while and eventually, are faced with either making the decision to be a stay at home mom or get back into the paid labour force.
Here’s why you’re a kick-a$$ mom
For many, going back to paid work, can be a big bag of mixed emotions. Anything from being glad to talk with more adults again, and using more professional skill sets, to finding it a bit daunting, mixed-in with mom guilt, and other big emotions.
So, yes. It’s a change.
But you do change! Remember?
You adapted in your previous work, when you grew a new human being inside your body, made it through the transition of becoming a Mama, and are now raising the next generation, and are flexible with all the transitions associated with that.
During the last years at home, you’ve become the Event Organizer, Wellbeing Officer, Private Chef, Success Coach, Director of Education, Facilities Manager, Entertainment Executive, Personal Chauffeur, VP of Operations… and the list goes on.
All this is to say - Own the story of your career break.
You can and you will succeed in getting back into the workforce, acing a role that you’ll enjoy.
12 Tips to getting back into the workforce
These strategies here will help you make the transition a positive and smooth experience. Feel free to download this Back-to-Work Planner to use alongside these tips.
1. Get clear about your ‘why’ and adapt your mindset if needed.
What’s the reason you’ll be going back to paid work? For most of us, it’s likely because we want and need to earn a living. Our financial circumstances, or maybe even contractual obligations, mean that, if we want to or not, we’ll be getting back into the workforce. For some of us the reason might be to feel more fulfilled, or to start a new chapter in our lives. Do you want to get a job or do you have to?
The narrative and the mindset attached to it matters as it determines our motivation levels and how we might experience our transition back into the workforce.
If the motivation is high to start with, then it might be somewhat easier mastering potential challenges along the way and the positive outlook may drive the job search and transition experience faster.
If you find yourself in a position where you need to find paid work, then that can influence the job search negatively and there’s a risk of settling for any job offer, rather than the best possible that works for your situation and makes you happy, which would obviously be ideal.
However, I do understand that there are circumstances when any job and money in the pocket are preferred to none at all. Ultimately, you’ll know and act on what’s best for you at any point in time depending on your circumstances.
Either way, it’s worth checking what your general mindset is at the outset and work on either shifting it to a more positive one, or ensuring to maintain it as this’ll set you up for success.
Ask yourself:
How could this be fun?
How could this be meaningful?
How could this be easier?
2. What do you want from your new job and what type of job do you want?
Another topic to get clarity about from the outset is what our career can do for us. This’ll help with the job search criteria, confidence and motivation levels, negotiations, and essentially save time and effort going after something that may not be right in the first place.
So, make a wish list of what you’d love your first job after a career break to have.
Do you want a full time or a part time position? What industry do you want to work in? What salary would you ideally like to earn? What benefits are important to you? What about flexible work hours or sick pay? Do you prefer working by yourself or as part of a team? Do you prefer working from home or seeing people face to face? What about professional development opportunities or options to travel as part of your job?
Write it all down, knowing that you may need to be flexible about some points.
Also note down what your 2-3 non-negotiables are.
Ask yourself:
If I had all the options in the world, what type of work would I love to do?
What do I need from my job?
How do you want to feel at the end of a work day?
Not sure about your options? Consider collaborating with a Career Coach.
3. Grow and engage with your professional network.
This is a bit of a balancing act at the beginning, as you’d want the collective network of people you know help make you aware of potential roles asap, but you may not yet be fully prepared (i.e. have a current resume).
On the other hand, you may not want to lose time and potentially miss out on roles while you’re preparing and setting yourself up.
So, start with family and friends. Say that it’s early days, but ask for them to keep their ears and eyes open for you, and connect you with relevant sources or roles. Once you have a bit more clarity about what you want and what you are looking for, you can scale up the networking activities.
Either engage online (especially via LinkedIn - see Point 5 below), or in person.
Check back in with former colleagues and peers. Catch up on what they’ve been up to, and also let them in on what you’re looking to achieve.
Keep an eye out for a potential mentor who could help you along professionally in the job field of your choice.
Ask yourself:
Who are 5 friends I can reach out to?
Who are 5 former colleagues I can reach out to?
How can I reach out to, and network with, 5 new people who are relevant to my desired job?
Once you’ve reached out to them. Start out again with new names on the list.
4. Upskill and refresh your skills.
Having done a recent certificate course, or an online course to upskill or refresh your qualifications, can do wonders for your confidence levels and have a positive effect on your resume.
Start by checking out free courses on LinkedIn, showcase your course or certificate in your desired profession. It also doesn’t have to cost the Earth or be time intensive. These here might have what you are looking for: Coursera, LinkedIn (has a free month trial), Open University, Udemy, Open Culture, Stanford Online. However, there are plenty of options available. Simply search online.
Ask yourself:
What’s my main goal for taking a course (i.e. higher confidence levels, getting a certificate, learning something new)?
What course content, if any, would be the most beneficial to my job search?
Who could be my accountability partner to help me stay on track?
5. Update LinkedIn profile (or other portfolio page).
Having an up-to-date LinkedIn profile is essential for most job searches, as:
it’s an easy tool for professional networking and job searches,
it’s valuable to help showcase your expertise,
there’s an option to apply for jobs directly through the platform, and
recruiters are likely to check out your profile and expertise.
Other LinkedIn features that are definitely worth taking advantage of:
Activate the “open to work” feature to let recruiters know you are looking for a job.
The free trial for online courses.
For some jobs, LinkedIn may not be the best way to showcase your expertise or to network online. Depending on your desired job, it may be your own website, or accounts on Instagram, TikTok, or Pinterest.
Ask yourself:
What would it take to get started?
What would I mainly want to use LinkedIn (other Social Media accounts) for?
Who’s LinkedIn (or other Social Media) profiles do I find inspirational?
6. Update your Resume.
It’s essential to have an up-to-date resume ahead of your job search so you can act quickly when you come across the job of your dreams.
Ideally, you’ll have a longer resume template that lists everything potentially relevant, and then you’ll be able to quickly edit and adapt it to each specific job you’re applying for without having to start from scratch.
Know and craft your story about your break from work, concentrate on your soft and transferable skills you can apply to the new role, and portray yourself with confidence, ensuring not to undersell your accomplishments.
Remember to name what you have been able to achieve in previous roles (yes, that includes your tasks as a stay at home mom) and quantify this with numbers wherever possible.
Definitely have someone look over your resume to provide recommendations and feedback.
Ask yourself:
What have I been able to do on a daily, monthly, weekly, yearly basis?
What may seem obvious to me but is actually an achievement that needs mentioning? (An example could be a fundraising activity you’ve launched, organizing a virtual learning circle or play group, a community project you initiated, etc. )
7. Would a Part-Time/ Contract/ Project-based Job be an option?
If you find the notion of a totally new schedule and the change to your days/ week too daunting, keep an open mind to start with either a part-time (if possible), contract, or project based job, to ease you in. This would also give you the opportunity to see if this type of work, in this type of role, is something you can imagine yourself doing full-time.
I also recommend considering volunteer work as an option here, as a way to ease yourself back into work. If this is something you can see yourself doing, and its the right way for you to gain insights into a job and the work life again, then that’s totally fine.
Volunteer work can pay off in non-monetary ways. However, I’d encourage you to first look for a position that’s actually paid, and to not take volunteering as a default option to get relevant work experience. Care work, raising children, and being a stay at home mom are severely undervalued jobs by society at large, and not paid. So, if you’ve decided you’d like to reenter the workforce after kids, then I’d like to encourage you to look for a job that actually pays you.
Ask yourself:
If I could, what type of work would I like to do? Why?
What steps could I take to explore this option further?
8. Use trusted Recruitment Agencies.
Why? In short, they do the job search work for you. Check which ones in your area have received a high ranking and are trustworthy. Then give them a call or reach out for a chat to see how you can work together.
Ask yourself:
What would good support from a recruiting agency look like?
How many would I like to reach out to to explore a collaboration?
9. Brush up on interviewing skills.
Getting prepared for interviews is also one of those tasks you’d want to start on before you’ve actually been invited to your first one. You want to brainstorm questions Hiring Managers and Recruiters might ask, and prepare your best answers.
Do your prep by researching the company (for instance on Glassdoor or the company’s own website), and their mission and values again (to brush up since you last read these in your job application stage). Then, bring this up as part of the questions you’ll bring along for them. An interview is also an opportunity for you to ask a potential employer questions.
Participating in mock interviews with a trusted person with recruitment experience can also be very helpful. Have you considered working with a Career Coach?
Ask yourself:
What would need to be in place for me to feel confident going into an interview?
How can an interview experience be fun for me?
10. Up your Confidence Level.
Most clients I’ve worked with who are in a career transition of any kind, but especially those who haven’t been through the interviewing process in a while, really benefit from coaching towards higher self-esteem and confidence levels.
If you are not confident about your accomplishments and what you can bring to the role, it may be difficult for a recruiter to find confidence in your abilities too.
Be sure to know your story about your career gap and how you want to bring it across. Showcase all the amazing skills and abilities you will bring with you to your new role.
Ask yourself:
On a scale from 1-10 (10 being the highest), how confident do I feel about my job search success?
What number on that scale would I like my confidence level to be?
What can I do today, to get one step closer to that desired number?
11. Consider working with a Career Coach for Moms.
A Career Coach for Moms is your All-in-One Support and Care Package as you transition back to work after a gap.
While you, as the client, always dictate the topics you want coaching on, common areas include:
Feeling less stressed while navigating uncertainty during the transition into a job.
Being at ease and more confident pursuing a role that works for you as a mom after a break.
Co-creating a game plan for the job search, and implementing this during the first few months to make it as smooth and positive as possible.
A collaboration with a coach would mean specific, personalized help for your situation, and takes in your needs, from getting clarity at the beginning, to strategizing, putting the steps into action, remaining accountable, and celebrating at the end.
Ask yourself:
What impact would a Career Coach for Moms have on me and my transition back into the workforce?
Which areas of my career search would I most benefit from while working with a coach?
12. Have a plan for your return to the workforce.
If you’re reentering the workforce after kids, then it’s totally normal if you feel a bit out of your comfort zone, and unsure about what’s coming up. You don’t need to have all your ducks in a row to get started.
Let none of the points mentioned here hold you back from getting started and organized while you’re setting yourself up to find a job that truly works for you.
I’ve created a free Back-To-Work Planner that encompasses all the points mentioned here in this article and a few other aspects you may want to be clear about when looking for a job.
One last thing…
Have you heard this quote before?
“Men apply for a job when they meet only 60% of the qualifications, but women apply only if they meet 100% of them.” It’s a statement from Sheryl Sandberg’s bestseller “Lean In”.
As a response to this statistic, I’d like to pass the sentiment from this article on to you:
“Apply for the job, ignore the ‘qualifications." because I don’t want you to talk yourself out of a job before you’ve even taken a shot at it.
In my opinion, the ‘qualifications’ section is a ‘best case scenario wish list’. It’s worth investigating what are absolute ‘must-haves’ for a role, and also what transferable skills you would bring to the table that they might need but have not listed.
Just apply for the job if it’s one that resonates with you.
Ask yourself:
What will I gain from the entire application experience?
What if I was successful?
My wish for you, Mama, is to believe in all the amazingness you already have in you.
Own your story. Own your future.
Unapologetically!
If you have decided to move back into the workplace this year, or aren’t yet 100% sure and still considering, this free Back-To-Work Planner will be a great starting point for you to get clarity about your options.