A brand-name employer we work with was hoping to hire more sales consultants for their IT services division. “You know,” the hiring manager said. “Some of our most successful employees are former teachers.” The manager had noticed something: these former teachers — because of their experience working with students, parents, and administrators — had exceptional skills in understanding and adapting to the needs of different customers. Put another way, the…
“Where do I start?” has probably crossed your mind if you’re back on the hunt for a new job. Not only do you have to figure out all the jargon that might be new since you were last in the workforce, you also need to decide what it is you want to do now. The lucky ones already know exactly what job they want, but for many of us, there…
Returning to work after a career break can be daunting in many ways. One common uncertainty among returners is what level of jobs to apply for. Many returners who’ve achieved seniority in their professions assume that, because of their breaks, they’ll only be offered positions that are lower than the previous career level they’ve managed to achieve. However, when job searching — with or without a break — the best…
When people come to me for advice on restarting their careers, I always start with the same question: “Why do you want to go back to work?” There are a lot of ways to return to work. The path (pun intended) you choose may well depend on what your primary motivation is for returning. Having talked to hundreds of people looking to restart their careers, I can say that there…
Financial security should be a big part of the equation when women consider a return to work, says Kathryn Sollmann, author of Ambition Redefined: Why the Corner Office Doesn’t Work for Every Woman & What to Do Instead. She suggests thinking about work and compensation in a way that’s likely very different from when you were in your 20s and first starting out. In a Q&A with Path Forward, Kathryn…
You’ve decided it’s time to return to the workforce. But you haven’t decided on the type of job you want to pursue. It’s “I don’t know what I want to do when I grow up” and is more common than you might think! The reasons vary. Perhaps you see this as a chance to pivot into an entirely different career than the one you had before. Or maybe your previous…
When you’re trying to re-enter the workforce, navigating salary negotiations can be tricky. There are so many factors that go into salary offers. Plus, it tends to be an emotional topic, which can further complicate things. How do you create realistic salary expectations for yourself? And what do you do when asked to go significantly below your previous level? These four steps can help you manage your salary expectations during…
It’s commonly mentioned that the work that people do outside the paid workforce when they’ve taken a pause for caregiving gains them skills and experiences that are valuable in the professional environment as well. But it’s less common to find good advice on how to translate those experiences in a way that recruiters and hiring managers will understand. The better you are able to articulate how your experiences have gained…
