Re-entering the Job Market

Summer is in full swing and, while many of us are still on lockdown, stay-at-home parents are anxiously awaiting schools reopening. And when kids are entering kindergarten, many parents are looking forward to the opportunity to re-enter the job market and pick their career back up.
But it’s not that easy, is it?
Your resume has been on hold for 5+ years, times and technologies have changed, new terminology arises daily. Where do you start? How do you position yourself as a prime candidate? Are you even ready?
Here are a few dos and don’ts to help guide you along this transition:
Do: Volunteer. Dust off your skills and get your experience up to date by volunteering with a local non-profit organization. Treat it like a paid job, measure your results, and record your impacts.
Don’t: Undervalue your skills and experience. Your experience may be outdated, but don’t be afraid to apply for your dream job. It’s all about how you position yourself!
Do: Get professional help. Your search won’t be cookie cutter. Your resume will need special tweaking and presentation. You will need to relearn how to talk about your experience, your goals, and experience. A career coach and professional resume writer can make a world of difference in the success of your search.
Don’t: Include “CEO of the Smith Household” on your resume and treat it like a job. We know being a stay-at-home parent is a lot of work, but it has no place in your professional experience.
Do: Consider a functional resume instead of a chronological resume. Functional resumes allow you to highlight your experience rather than your most recent job, so they’re a great choice for those who don’t have “perfect” traditional experience.
Don’t: Draw attention to the fact that you haven’t been in the professional world for several years. Don’t lie about it either. Just keep the focus on the positives and give them reasons to keep you in the “yes” pile.
Do: Get networking. Check-in with your former colleagues, consider attending industry events, meet new people and don’t be afraid to let them know you’re looking to get back at it!
Don’t: Expect to reenter exactly where you left (or higher) with stale experience and skills. Would it be awesome to do that? Absolutely! Are you setting yourself up for failure with unrealistic expectations? Probably.
Do: Take some formal training courses to freshen up your skills and/or add new ones. This will be much more impressive when they ask what you’ve been doing in recent months than saying you’ve been binging Disney+ with the kids.
No matter how you approach your search, be sure to set realistic expectations and hold yourself accountable for putting the effort necessary. And, most importantly, make sure you have a supportive cheering section to get you through this stressful time!