And no sooner do you get busy catering to your family’s needs and becoming an integral part of your children’s everyday routine than it is time for your children to pack their own little colorful briefcases and start going to school. Life at home is suddenly more under control and you feel ready to put on your pin-stripe suit, pick up your agenda, pack your laptop bag and make your way back into the workforce. But are you really ready?
The Bayt.com career experts offer stay-at-home Middle Eastern moms their8 top tips to pave a smoother way back into the workforce after a long career break:
- Stay abreast of industry happenings and the latest trends in your field: Being a stay-at-home mom does not necessarily imply you completely isolate yourself from the business world. Remain an active reader and knowledge seeker via online magazines, newspapers and industry publications to ensure you stay up-to-date and your knowledge base is not obsolete. Yes it's tough sometimes finding time to read anything but the back of a cereal box when kids are demanding your full attention, nevertheless seek to find a few minutes a day for ‘’you’’ time and devote these precious intervals to enriching yourself and catching up on readings whenever possible.
- Sharpen your skills: As a stay-at- home mom planning to re-enter the workforce you can also make it a point to keep your skills sharpened by either attending conferences relating to your field of work, registering for online courses (that you can take at your convenience from home) or even registering to earn a new certificate related specifically to your field and for which you can study from home, for e.g. CPA for accountants, CFA for financiers, PMP for project managers, new software certifications, etc. This not only gears you up mentally to renter the workforce but it also ensures your skills are cutting-edge and potential employers know you are serious about your career and mean business!
- Love online networking: Being a stay- at-home mom can actually offer you a whole additional universe of networking opportunities through new mothers you meet at playgroups and in the children’s social circuit. Additionally, with an online connection at home and a direct access to the region’s top social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) with their wealth of career-related contacts and groups, you can make sure you’re networking in the right circles, staying up-to-date on career opportunities and even finding platforms to ask advice about jump-starting your career (i.e. in online groups targeted for working mothers). Moreover leading regional job sites such as Bayt.com have their own social networking groups and communities where you can meet and network with like-minded professionals.
- Volunteer in your field of expertise: Volunteering in your field of expertise not only helps you make a positive contribution to the well-being of your community, but also refreshes your knowledge, puts your technical skills in good use, allows you to meet a slew of interesting community-minded new professionals and adds plenty of relevant fodder to garnish and upgrade your CV.
- Consider your career options: Now is a great opportunity for you to make a career move if you wish to. Is your previous job “THE” job for you? Do you wish to re-engage in the same job responsibilities in the same industry and company type? Did your volunteer work, online surfing and social networking groups give you insights about new career trajectories that you would like to seriously consider? Perhaps you are interested in launching a business of your own? Consider your options and weigh the pros and cons. This is the right moment for you to define what you want to do with your career in the long run, and formulate a plan to do it. (Are you considering sitting for a very useful psychometric test as you assess future options? Visit Bayt.com’s Psychometric Evaluation section for more details)
- Aim for an ace CV: You might not have been employed on a full time basis for a while but you have nevertheless been very productive. Have you been doing volunteer work? Studying for an online degree from home? Attending training courses to boost your computer skills? Freelancing for an online website? Even organizing regular playgroups or cultural outings for the neighborhood kids? Add your professional development highlights very clearly to your updated and professionally written CV and ensure that is posted online on a leading regional job site and ready to attract employers when needed. Visit Bayt.com’s Career Services page to find out more about professional cover letter and CV writing and evaluation services.
- Browse through job vacancies: With the strength and reach of online job sites such as the Middle East’s #1 job site Bayt.com, you can today very easily and instantaneously access Top jobs in your country of residence (or any other country in the Middle East) and drop your online applications to positions that suit you best from the comfort, convenience and privacy of your own home. You can also use filtering tools to look specifically for part-time jobs or freelance jobs if you wish. For more info, visit Bayt.com and build your online Bayt.com CV free of charge.
- Seek guidance: Enlist someone on the ground / in the market to help you make the right career decision. It might be your ex-boss, a trainer, a former colleague or a professional peer you have met through the Mom circuit. Make it a point to have someone in the workforce whom you can turn to for guidance and advice when needed. Mentors are an invaluable source of guidance and inspiration and the sooner you find one the sooner you will regain confidence in your professional abilities and benefit from the sounding board, counseling and advice they provide.
