You have taken an extended career break but are now ready to re-enter the formal workplace. How might you best present your career history (and your break) in an interview situation?
Firstly, own the break. Don’t hide it. The chances are you did some career enhancing things during the time out. Gained new skills? Did some training? Took on a charitable role? Went travelling? Perhaps set up your own business? And/or you were focusing on bringing up your young family during this time.
Remember that we do not lose skills in a career break, we gain new ones. This can easily be forgotten and yes, you may feel rusty, but your skills are still there waiting to be dusted off.
Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse your 1–2-minute intro. This is vital as you need to be able to answer the opening invitation that goes something like, “So, tell me a bit about yourself and why you are here”. Our clients at The Tall Wall often find this hard to answer succinctly, confidently and with aplomb. The template above is simple to use and will help you structure your response.