We work with parents to help them to return to work after a career break, whether this is a short maternity leave or an extended career break over a decade or more.  One of the biggest things that our clients tell us is holding them back from getting the job or career they want is confidence.  I want to share one thing with you to help you to start boosting your confidence.

That one thing is: to understand what confidence is!

Confidence is an often over-used word that is generally discussed in it’s negative form  – ‘we’re lacking confidence’, ‘need more confidence’, ‘ if only I was more confident, I would….’.  Do any of these sound familiar?

Confidence has two key components:

• Self esteem This is our belief in ourselves – our sense of self and acceptance of who we are as an individual

• Self-efficacy This is our belief in our ability to achieve a task, to do something and be able to complete it effectively.

So if you are planning to make a significant change in your life, such as returning to work after a break or making a career change, your confidence level is worth attending to and working on.  Afterall, first impressions at interview are often influenced by whether you project yourself as a confident, self-assured person. Giving great first impressions get you hired.

If you’ve had time away from your previous career or have put career development on hold for a while, for example, whilst prioritising raising your children, you may have missed your professional identity. Dealing with all the demands of being a hands-on parent – weaning, nappy changing, toilet training, singing “The Wheels on the Bus” for the hundredth time in one day – it’s easy to lose sense of who you are and who you once was.  Appreciating who you are now and feeling good about yourself is part of building self esteem.

Another impact of having had time away from a job role, is that your self-efficacy may have reduced.  You might have become an accomplished multi-tasker at home, but can you still complete the tasks that you trained and worked hard to achieve in your earlier career? I remember struggling with the concept of whether I’d ever be able to have a business-related conversation again when I was on my career break. So how capable do you feel about being able to complete job-related tasks?  What can you do to update your knowledge, reconnect with previous colleagues and feel ready and able to achieve in a role going forward?

By raising awareness of confidence and sharing our understanding of the two parts of the confidence equation, you can assess where you should focus your preparation. Building self esteem involves developing your sense of self and your acceptance of who you are and who you are becoming.  Self efficacy involves building your skills, knowledge and ability to put these into practice.

As Henry Ford famously said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t – you’re right.”  Sometimes our lack of confidence can be the thing that holds us back from having the life we want to lead.  Don’t let it hold you back any longer by making a decision to take action.

Our Relaunch your Career coaching and workshops help prepare for a return to work after a career break.

If you are in need of a quick boost of confidence or want help to get started, book a Confidence Booster session with one of our coaches to help you put an action plan in place to build your confidence today.