Getting back to work after a break

Sanjay Arora

Q.I have been out of work for the past four years as I had taken a maternity break after my daughter’s birth. At that time, I was earning Rs 5 lakh per annum. I have now been applying at different job portals and am able to reach the interview stage. However, the salary that I am being offered is less than what I was making 4 years back. I believe by today’s standards my earnings should be Rs 8 lakh per year. Please advise how I should go about it.— Amanpreet kaur

A.Firstly, it is important get back on your feet to work. Getting up and going to work after childbirth is not an easy task. Also, no matter how well you prepare, taking a break of more than one year means there will be changes. When you return to work, be ready to take on a few challenges before you settle back in. Another factor that might have changed, especially if you return from a maternity break, is your schedule. You might want to spend fewer hours at the office, and more at home with your child. If your job allows it, flexi-hours and working from home can come in very handy in such a situation. You can do the following before you take up an assignment anywhere:

• Do a trial run for a week before you begin: Whatever morning routine you come up with, try it out before you must be at work. This enables you to ease into your childcare arrangement, practice the routine to see what works and tweak it.
• You need to negotiate for additional flexibility more than salary. You should actively negotiate for work from home and flexi schedule rather than more money. 
• Take a job for long-term learning, a job that gives immense learning opportunity and gives that very necessary self-confidence back so that your market worth increases significantly, and you can make up for the short-term loss that you will be facing
• You need to have clarity around your career progression options, because in the long term it is not the salary but growth that matters.

It is about getting your feet in the door with an organisation that supports flexibility and growth. Salary would follow soon, right now getting back on track and gaining self-confidence is the key.