There are many reasons you could have taken a break from your career, whether it was to stay home with your children whilst they were young, or even due to illness or other personal circumstances. Going back to work after an extended break is always going to be something that takes a little bit of getting used to. And it can be pretty overwhelming when you don’t really know what to expect on the job.
In this post, we have listed some of the things you can expect when going back to work after an extended break, so you can be better prepared for what things you may be up against and how to adapt as quickly and smoothly as possible.
Technology:
Technology is definitely something that dominates our world at the moment, and that includes the workplace. It is also something that moves at a rapid pace, so depending on how long you have been away from the working world, then you may have to learn and adapt to all new kinds of technology.
Things like email, digital project management tools, and internal messaging and chat apps may not have been in use, or possibly just getting introduced when you were last at work. If you find these technologies to be out of your depth, make sure to mention this to your employer so that they can assist you with getting to grips with them.
Procedures:
All businesses and companies have always had procedures and processes in place, but in the past 10 years, a lot of these will have changed – even in the past 5 years, many people will have noticed changes in how a business does things, so you may have to ensure that you are up to date and fully understand what these procedures are and how to follow them.
Again, though, if you have been out of the workplace for a while and are unfamiliar with these procedures, then making sure you speak to your employer about it will keep you right.
Education:
Depending on when you were last in the workplace, your education may need updating or may not be valid at all anymore since requirements change often in accordance with new regulations and even in order to be able to use new technology that would be required in order to do your job properly.
This certainly doesn’t mean you have to start from zero, but depending on the type of job you are going to be doing, then you may consider a refresher course, or even going and doing an online MBA if you want to go for a higher paying job.
Attitudes:
If you have been out of the workplace for a long time, you may find that not everyone is as welcoming or warm as you would hope.
Sometimes people have strange opinions or hold misconceptions about people who have been out of the workplace by choice for extended periods, so although it is not something you should tolerate if people are openly rude about it, but also try not to take it personal or let it get to you when you RTO.
