by Jean Sidden

Created on: December 21, 2009

If you ever left your work life to be a stay at home mother, you understand what it's like to reenter the workplace after years away. Though anything in life gives you valuable experience, it may not be the kind that helps you ease into a job. The experience gap that exists from the time you left the nine-to-five world and your return will be felt and may produce some confusion.

Before you begin your job search you may want to assess where you stand as far as losing touch with new technologies and software. If there is a significant gap you might want to refresh your skills with a class or two to get you back up to speed.

Have a professional help you with your resume so your time away from the normal work life isn't so glaringly evident. There may be ways to doctor your past experience and make it stand out such that your resume appears to be more full and current.

Once you get in the door and have landed a position, don't be afraid to ask questions. One of the worst things about the experience gap is that we tend to feel embarrassed to admit where we have a need for some instruction. You know that you're an intelligent person who just needs to take the time to catch up so ask questions where it's necessary.

Find out if your company provides training opportunities. Many companies will offer ongoing classes in software or specialized equipment or procedures they have adopted. If you need to take classes outside of work, inquire if your company will reimburse tuition.

Don't feel diminished because you decided to do something else with your life for a while. There are many reasons why people step off the regular routine of working. Besides caring for children, you may have had aged parents that needed caring for, joined the Peace Corps, went back to school full time or had a prolonged period of unemployment. Be confident; if you were offered the job it means you have something the company wanted.

Go easy on yourself. You're under pressure to make up for lost time but you can only do your best. Remember that the time away from the workplace gave you valuable experience that may be useful in your new job. Take a deep breath, relax and remember that as time goes on you will become acclimated and the experience gap will close.

Learn more about this author, Jean Sidden.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.