how do i get ready to return to work after maternity leave?
It doesn’t feel like 5 minutes since you put your ‘Out of Office’ on, and now suddenly you’re viewing nurseries and talking about KIT days. For most mums, this throws up loads of emotions - maybe some excitement, maybe some trepidation, or maybe a bit of both. Returning to work and becoming a ‘working mum’ is yet another huge transition point in your motherhood journey. And like all transitions, it can feel rocky at times but preparation, thought and a lot of patience can make a huge difference.
I recently launched my motherhood coaching offer with a specific focus on returning to work. More than 25% of women either don’t return to their jobs or leave within a year of returning from mat leave, with lack of ‘reintegration support’ a key factor for them leaving. That’s a huge amount of women - many of whom may well have been happy and thriving in their roles before maternity leave. Accessing coaching before your return to work can help you feel more confident, clear and calm about your return.
And I’ve already had some great feedback - one mum taking action on a childcare question that had been hanging over her, within a week of our session; and another saying she already felt less overwhelmed after just one hour.
If you’re interested in what goes on in group coaching, have a go at the exercise below - we work through prompts like these, have time for group discussion and share our learnings and reflections. There’s never any pressure to share anything you don’t want to, and all your journals are totally private. And we have a coffee and a cake! Babies are welcome at my group sessions, which take place in a lovely local play cafe. If you’re interested in joining my next cohort, please fill out this form.
Designing a return that works for you
(Based on an exercise from the excellent ‘Working Mother’ by Rachel Morris)
Grab a journal and make sure you have about 20 minutes to yourself.
Imagine there are no barriers and no risks. What would your ideal return to work look like? Spend a few minutes journaling what that would like. Go totally wild - allow yourself to really be honest about what that would like.
Now (sadly) we need to add in reality. Write a list of barriers or reasons why we can’t proceed with our ‘ideal’ return to work. For example ‘I want to work 3 days a week. Barrier: my employer won’t let me reduce my hours.’
Next, let’s unpick which of these perceived barriers are based on FACT, and which are ASSUMPTIONS. Facts are only ‘facts’ when we know them to be true. So if your boss has previously said no to flexible working to other people in your team, but you haven’t actually asked them about your flexible working - that is not a fact, it’s an assumption. However, if your flexible working request has been declined, that’s a fact. Be really tough on yourself - how many of these do you know to be a FACT?
Now, let’s set out the actions we need to take to turn our assumptions into facts. Maybe that's ‘I can’t afford flexible childcare (e.g. a nanny or childminder)’ - do turn that into a fact, we need to investigate what is available locally, the price and whether we can use our free childcare hours towards them.
Next, prioritise your actions so you’ve got a clear list of prioritised next steps to move you towards your ideal return to work, or as a minimum, really being clear about what you want and what you can actually do.
How was that? I would love to know if it was helpful! Any questions just let me know!
