Dear Moms Who Left the Workforce

When we make career decisions, we tend to think about the here and now, forgetting that in 10 years, our toddlers will be teens busy with school all day. We forget that the unexpected happens, dramatically altering the course of our lives: job loss, illness, death. That what life looks like today will not necessarily be what life looks like tomorrow.

For years, I have traveled the country speaking to crowds, appearing on talk shows and writing about the importance of keeping up your career for the sake of your financial future. I have talked consistently about the grim statistics we face. As economist Sylvia Ann Hewlett has written: "The longer you spend out [of the workforce], the more severe the penalty becomes. Across sectors, women lose a staggering 37% of their earning power when they spend three or more years out of the workforce."

Yet so much has recalibrated in the last two years, and there is now a post-pandemic silver lining for women who have left their jobs to care for kids and want to return. The playing field has changed and your positioning has too.

Here is why:

1. You are no longer confined by your geography.

With the shift to remote and hybrid offices, business leaders are more inclined to consider and hire remote candidates than ever before. This means that you can live anywhere and apply for a job anywhere even if the listing has a location attached. Few employers are willing to lose a top candidate because of where she resides.

2. The pandemic has reshuffled the cards.

So many people have been out of the workforce or working from home, or changed positions, cities or circumstances, that it has made breaks and absences more common than before. This softens the otherwise negative impact of the hole in your resume, allowing you to place a greater focus on the depth of the background you do have instead of the recent experience you don't.

3. There are jobs jobs everywhere.

Across America, there are now 11 million jobs open, exceeding the number of people available to fill them. This means that employers are (in many cases, desperately!) seeking people with experience, even if your experience preceded a multi-year break.

In short, with so many people recently taking a break - willingly or not - your temporary step away from the workplace isn’t the albatross it once might have been. It’s time for your comeback. Go get 'em!

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