Having a baby changes your life in many ways, not least because it gives you a whole new perspective on many outlooks of life, making you perhaps take a closer look at your career than before motherhood. There’s almost an element of “what ifs” once you’ve had a child as it’s a lot harder to make the decision to go back to train to be something completely different to your current career now. If having a baby inspires you to change your career, then there’s a lot of research and planning that needs to be done in advance for the move to be successful. But once that’s in place, the sky is the limit! Life after baby can be amazing, personally and professionally.
Why do You Want a Career Change after Having a Baby?
Before you take on any big decisions about your career, you need to ask yourself why? What is it about having a baby that has made you reassess everything you once knew? Is it a deep desire to change to be in something you’ve always wanted to do? Or, is it that you worry about returning to your previous job or continuing on the same professional path?
As mentioned above, having a child can make you reconsider everything, from what kind of foods to eat for longer, healthier life to how you are going to do your job as well as before in-between kindergarten drops. This new perspective isn’t one to ignore as why should you go to work if it’s not a job you enjoy? Build on this recent passion to try something new and research how you can achieve it.
However, also be aware that it might be the change of lifestyle that worries you more than the job itself as once women have children, their confidence can drop. That often happens when the feeling of tiredness of being a new mom combines with changes in body shape. Plus there’s the fact that someone else may have been doing your job while on maternity leave; it can be a very scary thought indeed!
Try going back to your job for a few months and see if you adjust and settle back to the old routine to make it work for you again. But if this still isn’t what you want, start exploring what else you can do and how you can do it.
Life after Baby: Look at Who You Are
Start at the beginning. Start with you; in other words, assess your strengths and goals. What do you love to do? What spurs you on? What’s your passion?
If you ask yourself all of these questions, then you have a starting point as to where you can head next in your career. If you love cooking, then start researching local cooking courses at college with a vision to be a chef. Alternatively, if playing sports is your passion then take a look online for a guide to career in sports massage. The possibilities are endless.
Another great way to start a career change is to ask all your friends and family what qualities you possess, not only as a career woman but as a person. Then, take this list and try to find a career that fits and feels least likely like a job, and do it!
It feels amazing to be loving what you do!
Get the Support
As with any huge change in your life, the last thing you want to do is undertake it on your own. Thus, look to family and friends for support. If you have a partner, knowing they have your back is huge. Plus you need to make sure your family will have the income to provide a comfortable lifestyle that meets everyone’s needs.
Once you have a list and a few ideas of what you could do work-wise, speak to them about the pros and cons. Or even consider going to a career coach to really find out if this is what you want to do as a career in this amazing life after baby.
Use your support network to promote your self-efficacy. After all, if you believe you can do something then you’re more likely to achieve it. So make sure your network helps you work on that.
Get Networking
Once you have a set idea of what your career change will be, get networking. Networking is the single best way to do research as you will get a feel of what your potential career is going to be if you speak to people already working in that profession.
If they’re totally honest while networking with you then you’ll really get the “nitty-gritty” from them as to what it’s like as a job. The benefit of this is also that if you network effectively and make an impression, then once you go into the chosen career you can use these networks to help and support you as needed. That’s a great way to develop in your chosen field.
Update Your Resume
Don’t think that your curriculum vitae (CV) is timeless! If you’re applying for new roles that require you to submit your CV, then really take a good look at it. The reason is that work experience that was relevant when you started your job, possibly years ago, may not be as relevant now, especially if you are making a complete change in your career direction.
Plus, life after a baby can really enhance your abilities. Motherhood can bring out many great qualities, and you can include those skills on your resume as they relate to the job openings that you’re applying for each week. Indeed, motherhood is a job that gives you the skills necessary for business success.
Update your CV to include roles and responsibilities you have at your current role as well as any training you have done. Also, add a good opening paragraph outlining briefly who you are and what makes you unique. Potential employers see hundreds of CVs so anything to make yours a bit different from the rest will always be helpful.
Show Enthusiasm at Interviews
Once you get to the interview stages, the best advice is preparation. Make sure you show enthusiasm to learn, especially if it’s in a field you have little or no experience in right now.
Also, show potential employers that you have a strong interest in the sector by giving them concrete examples of what you know. Showing them how conscientious you are is always going to get you far and this is possible by providing them with scenarios from your previous jobs and in your day-to-day life.
Embrace Life after Baby
It’s very hard to take a career detour, especially after such a big life-changing event as having a baby. But if your passion is the job you’re returning to after maternity leave isn’t there any longer, there’s no reason why you can’t experience something completely new and different. It’s an exciting time to think you could be doing something very different, all while being paid for it!
Do you think a career change after recently having a baby is realistic or possible? Why or why not?
When you have a baby, you priorities usually change and that baby comes first in your life. This often doesn’t fit in with the corporate career ladder as they, reasonably as they are paying you, expect your first priority to be your job. I am one of the few women from my year of articles that is still working in corporate and client facing. Most either take a more administrative role which doesn’t have the client demands or leave and either go into something less demanding or don’t work at all.
Great tips and nicely summarized!
Nice and helpful post..
nice share….useful for new moms