Dreamstime
So you’re an empty nester? Sorta. The kids are back in school and it’s the first year since having children that you find yourself at home … alone … and you want to get a job. Getting back into the workforce after having kids can be intimidating. Add to that a business world that demands a laundry list of work history when all you feel like you have to contribute is the number of clothes you’ve washed and folded over the past 10 years multiplied by how many kids you have. It’s okay. You’ve got more to offer than you realize and your next gig will have you filling your confidence bucket faster than you can say, “I got the job!” Follow these six steps to help you get started.
- Start by figuring out what you want to do. If you have a college degree, that’s a good place to start. If you have a business degree versus an English degree, your job searches will look much different. Narrow down your interests and do an initial search online to get a feel for what’s out there. Bookmark all the jobs that interest you so you can go back and weed through them.
- Now that you’ve picked a few jobs to go through, see if you’re qualified to do them. If you need a degree for them and don’t have one but have always wanted to go back to school, maybe now’s your time? If you have the degree and meet all of the basic qualifications, decide if this is something you could see yourself doing. If yes, then go ahead and start your resume. The resume can be nerve-wracking if you haven’t done one in a while. And in a while, I mean, years.
- Type in your Google search bar, “How to write a resume” and you will be astounded at how many things pop up. The first couple of things listed are always the most popular so just click on one of those. You should get a template and be able to plug in your information when prompted. Most resume builders will give you examples of each action item that makes it easier than ever to come up with words and phrases that will catch your employer’s attention. This is the part that will have you sitting back in your chair, sipping your cup of coffee and thinking, “I’m really glad I volunteered at that camp. Or, that mentoring program I was a part of is really going to come in handy here.” Think of all the things you’ve done over the past few years, big and small, and write them down. You can always edit them out later.
- Once you have a rough draft of your resume, step away for a day and let things marinate. This is a great tip for making your editing go that much smoother when you return to your resume. Your eyes and mind need a break from what you’ve just written and sometimes it takes some time away from the material to see it with fresh eyes. Have someone you trust and respect look over your resume and give you both positive and negative feedback. You want to put your best foot forward when applying for a job so it’s important to have more than one set of eyes look over your resume before hitting send.
- Most companies will ask for a cover letter to accompany your resume. A cover letter is basically a formal note explaining who you are, what job you are applying for, how you heard about it, and why you are the best person for the job. Think of it as selling yourself.
- If the job you’re applying for asks for referrals, think of three to five people who know your character and who you trust to share their opinions of you with others. Always ask your potential referrals for permission before you include them on your application. There’s nothing worse than putting someone’s name down, not telling them, and then they get called and are caught off-guard.
- Applying for a job when you’ve been out of the market for a while is nothing short of scary. But hang on, give yourself credit where credit’s due, and make all of those volunteer hours, contributions and trainings work for you by making sure you put them all down for your future employer to see. Take one last look over your application, hit send, and get busy applying for another job.
With all three of her children in school this fall, Meagan Ruffing finds herself in a new season of life. She is learning to embrace it, love it, and go with the flow.