Say No to the nay-sayers!
Jobs after career break sounds scary. You must be wondering if you should start working again or not. Doubts will loom large about managing home and work, about getting back into the groove after being away for so long, and whether you can work again.
Oh! Don’t do it! The nay-sayers will tell you how difficult it will to balance home and family. And they will be right. It will be difficult— but this is critical to remember —it can be done. You need to organize, prioritize and have systems in place so that you can deftly juggle the demands of both the worlds. They will tell you how you will neglect your family and how it is not worth staying away from your children. This is an equation you have to work out for yourself. How much of yourself are you willing to put into work and how much at home? What are the outer limits you are setting for yourself? Remember to negotiate your requirements clearly with your employer before you take up the job.
Things have changed! You will find that things have changed in the work place since you were there last. Recruiters will express concern about you being out of sync with what is happening in the workplace. To them and yourself, say that you will do what it takes to come to speed with the current scenario. Take classes, read up, shadow someone, do whatever you can to make sure that your skills and knowledge is where others in your position are.
Technology is changing at a breakneck speed and redundancy is a very real threat. You may have to rethink what you can do after the break. You may not be able to go back to the same job you had before you quit. But there are many other options and though it might mean going back to learn a new skill, it will open new doors for you. Remember it is important to remix and rejig yourself before you go back. Acknowledge to yourself that you need to repackage yourself and keep in mind how you can explain the gap in your resume and what you are planning to do to make up for it.
Saying Yes! The big question to ask your self is why? Why do you want to start working? What is making the prospect of working alluring to you? Answer these questions as honestly as you can. What you should focus on is your need to work; the little voice in your head which is telling is to go back to doing what you were doing before you took the break. This call or feeling is very important to hold on to. This will give you the confidence and drive to face all the negativity and doubt when you decide to go back to work.
