Restarting Your Career After a Caregiving Break

One of the best things about working in recruitment are the sounds of excitement, and maybe even a little bit of nervousness, on the other end of the line during my phone screens. People are enthusiastic to have received the call and now have the opportunity to tell me about their story. I love this part of the process, getting to hear the stories of others, how they landed where they currently are, and what inspires them to seek a career change. Not all of these stories have conventional elements and nearly everyone has found themselves in varying circumstances that effect the decisions they made in their life and for their career.

A special story to bring attention to are the people who left their careers to care for others. A common scenario of this is when parents leave to take care of their children, but other scenarios include those who have found themselves as the primary caretaker for a family member or friend, and even those who have taken time off to care for themselves. They may have aimed to take off for a year, maybe two, but as time goes on, circumstances change, and the gap on the resume can grow. Those who find themselves in this position have described the process of restarting their careers as difficult, intimidating and uncomfortable. Because of this, many are trepidatious about embarking on the return-to-work pursuit.