By Ranjan Guha, President North America, Interra Information Technologies Inc
As long as you’ve got passion, faith, and are willing to work hard, you can do anything and have anything you want in this world.
One can view the career path as more of a journey, and not a destination. Almost everyone has some significant career aspiration or a goal to achieve in the future. Everyone has their own individual career ladder at which they climb at different paces depending on their goals in life. Some may take career break to start a family, while others may step back to enjoy different experiences, or to rediscover themselves.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 73% of women takes a career break due to family reasons, while 47% of males takes a break due to personal reasons.
Whatever the reason may be for taking a career break, there might be a time where an individual decides to jump back onto the career ladder. It is undoubtedly correct that getting a job is daunting, but it can be even more unnerving once an individual takes break from work.
Don’t jump onto the first job offer
One may feel anxious, nervous, or worry that they have skills that are not currently in-demand. Many of us have come across such situations. Tackling these fears is an understandable a challenge, but it is possible to overcome them by applying the right skills at the right time.
A lot of us make mistakes by jumping onto the first job offer or securing a job that is not necessarily the best suited for them. To avoid such situations one must assess their situation and decide what they want to do. A candidate must remember that what was right for them before career break may not fit them now.
Career gap can be a differentiator
Many candidates believe that having a career gap is a handicap that can ruin their career. Rather than thinking that, it can differentiate them from other candidates. As skills acquired during career break can be beneficial since even at times revitalizing activities like travelling the world during career break can boosts one’s confidence.
Also, while applying for new job after a career break, we often forget to make use of our existing connections. One must never forget that reaching out to previous colleagues, clients, friends and family can open doors for perfect job or be able to point you to the right direction. So, one must create potential references as it always support any individual during a new job application.
Be well versed to answer questions related to their career break
Most importantly, a candidate must be well versed to answer questions related to their career break during an interview. They must be prepared for an interview emphasizing passion, drive, and focus that directed towards the new job or opportunity. Also, the candidate must be clear about what they did during their career break & why did they decided it was the right thing to do. They must tailor their answers to demonstrate the benefits acquired from career break which is suitable for any role they are applying than trying to camouflage the reasons for the break.
Do search for various careers return programs
A candidate, other than using job boards to search for jobs, should also search for various careers return programs that can provide tailored support and experience to help an individual readjust to being at work after taking a career break. No doubt that getting back into career pool can be nerve racking. However, the most important thing is to be confident about one’s abilities as low confidence often leads to under performance. They should harness their strengths and be aware of their weaknesses. If they are no longer up to date, they should take some refreshers course that can help them find a best job after a career break.
Make best use of resources and educational opportunities
We all know that there are countless transformations which unleash to next wave of digital disruption. To make the best use of time in hand, a candidate must examine their current skills and should make the best use of the resources and educational opportunities – free & online available easily today on portals like cousera, Udemy, Lynda and so on to acquire new skills. Several offline professional courses like MBA, Masters, etc. can also be a major contributor towards up scaling skills during any career break.
There are a number of reasons that can prompt a person to take a break from their work life, such as family reasons or even medical issues. Integrating oneself back into the workforce can be daunting, but by taking the right steps forward, it is certainly possible.