Many couples choose to have one grown-up stay at home, caring for the family needs when children are young. Returning to a corporate setting sometimes feels daunting after a period of being out of the workforce on a regular basis. This is in spite of the fact that running a home, family, schooling and schedules requires enormous skill, whether it’s a father or mother managing the at-home portion of the family lifestyle.

A number of years back, when Kara chose to return to work after her 3 children were of a certain age, she sought some practical job interview and search skills through coaching. She then discovered that two other experiences working with me added to her clarity and confidence as she successfully ventured back into the corporate world where she’s worked ever since. As you’ll see, Kara approached this major life transition thoughtfully, taking into consideration the people whose lives would be most impacted.

Read her experience here:

“Following my heart to return to the work world, after seven years as a stay-at-home mom, was a major transition for me and my family of five. I achieved it successfully—with support!”

As a stay at home mom for seven years—a conscious choice for our family and a focus I’ve really enjoyed—this past year I realized that what was once fulfilling was no longer satisfying for me.

I adore my growing family and home life, but there was more to me that clamored to come out! I needed a new challenge. I missed working adult interaction, plus the creativity and stimulation of using my skills.

With the two girls happily in school and the young one adjusting well to preschool, I partnered with my husband and we agreed it was time for a change. I knew this was going to not only impact me but also the entire family. I was more anxious than I thought about following my heart, my instincts. Not only did I need to present my work skills at an updated level, I was also reordering home life for four other people!

I’d been looking for the right job using my skills in communications and landed a position I’m thoroughly enjoying. My family adjusted to the new routines within a matter of days—and my husband says he wouldn’t go back to the old way! We discovered that sharing work and family roles is currently more fulfilling for both of us. He gets to fully parent and I get to fully re-experience work life. While an organizational challenge we both feel stretched and happy that we’re growing in new ways.

An unanticipated benefit is the spark it’s added to our already solid relationship!

Looking back, three things really helped in this transition. The first was career coaching I sought out along with taking a temporary position—these gave me confidence in my resume, interviewing skills and working capabilities.

The second was the PAUSE.REFRESH.REBOOT YOUR LIFE workshop. This retreat helped me identify and outline the things I needed to put in place to make a smooth transition, balancing my career and lifestyle at home as I returned to work full time. With the guidance of Dr. Jan, and working with the other workshop participants, I was able to put into place some steps to overcome the scheduling and emotional barriers of making a major career move for me—and everyone in my family.

The on-going foundation to all this continues to be the solid Big Picture Partnering skills my husband and I learned years ago that continue to benefit us to this day! We still talk about your work all the time as we continue to iron out the wrinkles in our plans — ideas like living your dreams, setting goals, talking and listening frequently, tabling an issue to revisit when we can talk reasonably and so on. I highly recommend it for all couples going through transition.

Kara P

Dr. Jan Hoistad
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