Are you a stay-at-home mom thinking of going back to work after spending several years at home with your children? Do you feel a little scared about stepping out of the comfort of your at-home routine and going back into the "adult" world? Take heart - with a little planning and positive self-talk, you can find your way back to the world of paid work while still feeling good about what you've accomplished at home with your little ones.
Follow these tips before beginning your job search:
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Make a list of your skills and interests. What do you love to do? What are you really good at? Sometimes stay-at-home mothers have lost touch with themselves due to focusing so much on caring for others. Decide if you want to work full-time or part-time and what kind of schedule and salary you are ready to accept. Surveys show that most success stories involve a return to full-time work, but part-time can still be an option if you are willing to accept lower wages and fewer benefits. Do some volunteering before you're ready to go back to work in order to have a better idea of what the workplace is like now. This is also a great way to acquire new skills for free. If you want a career instead of a job, get information on the training you'll need to take beforehand and figure out a way to get it. If you are returning to a career, make sure you get up-to-date about the requirements and training you may have missed out on during your absence from the workforce. Update your resume, making sure to explain gaps in your work history in an honest manner. Try to show that you have kept certain skills up-to-date throughout your time at home (e.g. time management, financial management, organizational skills) and through any volunteer opportunities you have had over the years (e.g. fund raising, heading a committee, organizing events). Take a look at employment opportunities announced in your local newspapers and online, and let people around you know that you are looking. Don't be afraid to ask if a business or organization you're interested in is hiring. When interviewing for a job, be honest about your availability. Are you going to have full-time child care or do you need a flexible schedule to still be available for your children at certain times (e.g. to pick them up after school or take them to lessons)? It's also very important to communicate your enthusiasm about getting back into the workforce! Make an effort to stay positive throughout the whole process of going back to work. You've been a stay-at-home mom for a long time, taking care of others and maybe frequently forgetting about your own needs. Confident, enthusiastic self-talk can do wonders for helping your transition back into the paid workforce.
There are around 81 million mothers in America today, all doing the best they can to care for their families and themselves. Stay-at-home mothers are in the minority and can often be made to feel inferior for having chosen to forsake their career and stay home with their children. But the truth is that every woman has the right to choose her own path through this journey called motherhood and to be proud of her accomplishments, be they juggling a career with duties at home, or being home full-time.
Whatever you do, don't diminish what you've accomplished at home over the last several years. Realize that you never stopped being a productive member of society, even though our society applauds paid labor more than unpaid labor.
Like all new beginnings (e.g. motherhood), your transition from stay-at-home mother to working mother may be fraught with difficulties and feelings of insecurity at first, but with a little time and determination, this, like all new experiences, will get much easier.