Tips to follow when a stay-at-home mom chooses to go back to work!
Introduction:
Dream to get married… ✔️
Dream to have a beautiful family… ✔️
My dream to become successful… I want to, but can I? I have lost my experience. I haven’t worked for years. If I join now, will I be able to perform well? The answer is, AFFIRMATIVE! Get ready to check that off your list now.
In India, it is unpleasantly normal for a woman to quit her job for the sake of the family. It has almost become folklore ‘once a woman gets married all her time should be dedicated to her family and children’. Whereas, the fact is, you can have both family and job in your favor.
When should a stay-at-home mom choose to go back to work?
An honest answer would be whenever you are ready. If you feel it in your guts to gear up and go back to work, do it. If you feel the utter need to work again, do it. There are multiple ways by which you can still have a great bonding with your family. When a stay at home mom goes back to work, feeling lost and incredulous about syncing back to work is normal. It happens.
All, you need to understand is, if you are courageous enough to think about it, you are brave enough to do it. Emerging anxiety when stay at home mom goes back to work is acceptable.
This is merely a phase which will shade off in some time. All your confidence will be back before you know it. You might eventually perform even outmatch your performance than before.
There might be a question screaming within ‘How do I get back into the workforce?’ To help you through this tough time, we have some tips for you. Implementing these exercises will help you pass through this phase smoothly.
How stay-at-home moms can fight the working mom’s guilt and get back to work?
After a long break and when you feel you are ready to get back to work, there is a feeling of guilt. You think you are giving more importance to your career than to your child. You feel you are neglecting your child or missing out on your child’s most memorable moments like first steps, first words, first hug, etc. And when your child is sick and needs you, you being at work makes you feel more miserable. If your child is in school, you miss welcoming your child at the bus stop or the entrance of the house.
The conversations about school and friends while having lunch, your assistance while your child does homework, project work, exams, etc. will be missed when you opt for work. You have to squeeze in some time at the end of the day to know what is happening in your child’s life. But the child may be too tired or sleepy to share. And this guilt will affect your performance as a parent and as an employee.
6 Tips for a stay-at-home mom when she chooses to go back to work:
When there is a gap, many changes, and updates in the employment sector happen. Knowledge and skills get updated, which the stay at home mom is often unaware. During the interviews, she has to compete with women younger to her and those who are more experienced in the field. She has to be well prepared to face the interview questions and answer convincingly about the gaps in her career. Following strategy may help a stay at home mom to get back to work.
1. Decide on what career you want to opt:
When a stay at home, mom chooses to go back to work there are a few details she needs to sort out first. With the work experience gained earlier, analyze what you want to continue further. Pick up the area that you genuinely feel you excel in. Read or practice it a little to ensure your expertise. Above everything else, consider what better suits your comfort and requirements.
2. Keep your options wide:
Yes, you want that job badly. We understand, but it is always good to keep your options open. Try different companies. Send out as many resumes’ as you can. This will widen your chances to get a job you want. Sometimes it happens that you have to settle for a job that doesn’t satisfy your passion. Go for it anyway.
You can always get some good experience out of that job. You have the option to switch your job in a few years. Right now, all that matters is you getting back to work. And, who knows, that job will teach you more than the job you desired. So, keep your options open.p
3. Brush up your skills:
As difficult it is to get a job, so is blending in with it. If you are yet unsure about your skills and performance, brush it up. If possible, get a certificate or an approval for your skills. If possible, learn some new skills or do courses online that are in demand in the industry.
This will allow employers to know that you are genuinely committed to work. This way, even with a big fat gap between career, you can still have over other people.
4. Update your marketing profiles:
To put yourself out on the field can be hard, but you need to do it anyway. Prepare /update your CV to present your skills and achievements. It is fine even if you have no experience. It is never too late to begin.
5. Socialize:
Get in touch with friends, former colleagues and supervisors, and connections you have made as a mother. Let them know that you are on a lookout for a job.
6. When you face the inevitable question of your professional gap:
This is going to happen! When a stay-at-home mom chooses to go back to work, such questions are asked. Whatever reason you have, be prepared to answer. If your reasons are personal, you have the liberty to let them know that you can’t share the reason. If you can be honest about your reason, tell them right away.
Be careful about the reasons you provide. For example, explain that raising your child in his /her infancy and childhood was your highest priority as a mother. Now that they are grown up and not so dependent, you have decided to restart your career.
Mistakes to avoid when a stay-at-home mom chooses to go back to work:
Once you have grabbed a perfect job, your next thought is how you will manage the kids and housework before you leave for work and after you return from work. The biggest mistake a stay-at-home mom does is she thinks she can excel in parenting as well as work. She works hard and puts in more effort and time which eventually caused burnout. So when you become a working mom, you have to let go of some of the expectations. Have a heart to heart talk with your kids and let them know how they can support you by doing some of the chores on their own.
At the workplace, you let your colleagues and boss know that you have kids at home who wait on you as you return home from work so that you are not held up in meetings. Reserve elaborate breakfasts and meals only for holidays. When getting ready for work, avoid last minute rush. Instead, plan and keep the things required in advance. This can be about what you want to wear to work, what you plan to cook and carry, what errands you can do while going and returning from the workplace.
Ask yourself some vital questions before choosing this path:
Through this tough phase, some things often get slipped to acknowledge. So, before you start your journey, make sure you ask yourself some crucial questions.
1. Any daycare center/relatives to take care of your kids?
2. Do you want the same career to pursue?
3. How flexible are you get along with work and home?
4. Does this job allow you to have the lifestyle you want?
5. Are you comfortable with this job?
Closing thoughts:
Regaining happiness and confidence should be the top priority when the stay at home mom gets back to work.
As a stay at home mom, you transition to working mom, you need to put aside all your worries, anxieties and guilt aside and regain the happiness and confidence you once had before you were a stay-at-home mom. Accept that things won’t be the same as before. There will be ups and down which you have to take in your stride. And you don’t have to prove to anyone that you are the best mom or the best worker.
Remember, struggles are always there whether you are a stay at home mom or a working mom, with a difference. Get your family and colleagues to cooperate in times of emergencies. Do not have guilt that you are not able to put your best performance at work. There are working women who are without the pressures of childcare and still can’t perform as much as you do. In the end, your sincerity, integrity, and performance are what matters. Enjoy the quality time with your child and treasure the memorable moments he/she shared with you.
