Returning to work after a break

According to a study by the World Bank, 20 million Indian women quit their jobs from 2004 to 2012, 70% of which did not rejoin the workforce after taking time off due to motherhood or marriage. With women consistently performing better than their male counterparts across primary, secondary, and undergraduate education, this statistic presents a societal and an economic issue that we need to address.

There are many challenges women face when they return to work. From falling behind their erstwhile peers who later come up as superiors, or simply needing more flexibility at work, these challenges mean women tend to lose confidence in their own abilities when
attempting to restart their
career.

However, there are some basic steps one can consciously take to try and address these issues and return to work guilt free and high on confidence even after a long career break. Here are a few ways:

Analyse your skills and reassess your goals: The first step one should take while considering their future career path is to take time and list possible career options based on their strengths, past experiences and most importantly, one's own passion. The industry or role one worked in before the break may not still be a suitable career choice for many reasons.

A career break is also an opportunity for women to identify what work they want to do, what they are passionate about and based on that, shift to a different line of work altogether. Being a stay-at-home parent not only allows women to hone soft skills such as people
management, collaboration and delegation but also gives them time to analyse the gaps they find in terms of hard skill sets.

Update and develop new skills: It is vital for women to stay updated in an ever-evolving work environment. Reading and staying connected with the industry will ensure upskilling and keeping one abreast of new trends. No matter where a person works or what they do, every job would require a certain set of skills.

Consider taking up training modules or pursuing a course to update skills before rejoining the workforce. The competition is always going to be tough and developing skills will help build professional confidence. Today, there are companies that understand the potential of women and offer transition management programmes and return-to-work courses which help returning women polish their skills and return to work full-time. There are also short-term online courses that provide flexible learning opportunities. These courses help bridge the gap between where women are after their maternity breaks and where they aspire to be.

Take up voluntary or vocational work: Another way to refresh skills is through volunteer or vocational work. It not only helps in gaining new skills but also gives one confidence about her ability to effectively contribute in a work environment.

On-the-job experience is extremely valuable and helps facilitate a knowledge upgrade and can also help people find new opportunities they may like to explore more deeply. In addition, flexible internship programmes, industry meet-ups, and participation in various networking forums are avenues that women must explore to broaden their spectrum of opportunities.

Be willing to embrace change: When resuming their careers, women might not get to start from where they left off. The job they left years ago may require a different set of skills today or may not even exist today. In deciding to restart their professional journey, rationalising of expectation should be done so as to not put too much pressure on oneself. The aim at this stage should be to simply get a foot in the door with an open mind.

Last, but not the least, a break should not be considered a learning holiday. Learning and training oneself should be a continuous process.

(The author is founder, KLAY Schools, Bengaluru)