Being a mother is often seen as the most important job in a woman’s life, and it is one that is treasured and valued above all other career aspirations. It is not without its challenges, as with any job, but it can also be incredibly rewarding.
How long women choose to stay at home with children is a deeply personal decision. For some, it will be a relatively short time, perhaps just the standard maternity leave. Other mums may choose to stay home until the children are old enough to attend nursery or perhaps when they are much older and in school.
The reality is that many women will make the decision to return to work based on several factors and not just a solitary consideration. In some cases, financial pressures may be a deciding factor while in others there may be an opportunity offered through their employer that makes returning to work a step up the corporate ladder.
For some mums, going back to work is more about keeping their own identity. Professionals often miss the day-to-day interactions, the sense of accomplishment and the ability to create small or large change in a company that is very different from being a mum. This isn’t to say these women don’t love their role as a parent, but being a parent doesn’t mean that being home with the child is the only way to have an identity.
In fact, it is more than possible to have the best of both worlds. At Career Mums, we work with mothers at all stages of being a parent. Some of our mums have been out of the workforce for a decade or more while others are interested in returning to work within a few months.
With our coaching service, we can help you to determine your unique motivation to return to work. We are also here to help you assess and evaluate the timing of re-entering the workforce. Through working with our experienced coaches (Sally or myself Nish)i , it is possible to avoid jumping back to work too soon or delaying your return even when you know in your heart it is the best thing for you and your family.
One of our clients, Amy, summed it up beautifully in some feedback provided about her motivations for returning to work:
‘It took me some time to get pregnant and I thoroughly enjoyed my maternity leave and the friends I made in my local NCT group. Some of them will be lifelong friends and even though we are all so different, our group works so well together bouncing ideas off each other and often letting off steam! I was the only one out of our small group that decided that going back to work straight after maternity leave, and I went through many emotions deciding what was the best for me and my family. Guilt was one of them; surely I should want to take some time out when it took me so long to have a baby? However, after doing the coaching with Career-Mums, I figured that having some time out to ‘become me again’ was important and for me that meant connecting back with my professional identity and working again. I realised I was missing that ‘part’ of my life, the Amy before I had a child. I figured that having some independence in this way would make me happier and I would be a happier mum and wife at home. I found the coaching invaluable and had just two sessions with Career-Mums. I was able to put together a plan that worked for me, which included things like domestic planning as well as confidence strategies which I admit I did feel a lack of when considering my options about going back work. For the small cost of the coaching and the boost it has give me at work as well as life I believe it was worth every penny.’
We run regular workshops and one to one coaching. In Amy’s case she preferred the one to one support and felt that she needed an overall boost of confidence on her return to work journey. For more information about our coaching services and how we can help you with your personal journey following a career break, contact us at info@career-mums.co.uk
