When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade right?

Not exactly.

When everything soured, I took a career break.

It wasn’t my choice.

These past few years have been difficult for everyone. We all had to adjust to a new normal.

Mine was not working. In March 2020, the #liveevents industry completely shut down.

Five other people were living with us – all three adult children, my daughter’s boyfriend, and an exchange student. Seven mouths to feed, seven different personalities and all of us afraid.

My mothering and #eventproducer experience kicked into high gear. I created a schedule for sharing household duties, curated three meals a day, and developed fun activities to relieve our stress. This lasted for months.

Until my own mother broke her hip. Then, I had to level up my expertise to become a caretaker. I lived with my parents for a few months.

All of this was challenging but also very rewarding. I felt grateful and privileged to be able to share this time as mother and daughter.

Finally, with no work and no money on the horizon, I made a difficult decision. Instead of seeking work outside of my field, I decided to build new skills and hone some rusty ones.

I returned to writing, I began hosting on-line events, and I used my expertise at being a #connector to build new relationships. I even taught a class.

But how would I explain these lost years – this career break - on my resume?

Thankfully, #LinkedIn has introduced Career Breaks to add to our profile so we can share these experiences and what we’ve gained. Whether they are COVID-related stories or personal journeys, LinkedIn is encouraging #jobseekers to use the new hashtag #IAmProfessional when sharing them.

I was surprised to read that "50% of hiring managers believe career breaks create valuable skills for the workplace."

So maybe that’s lemonade after all.

#hiring#experience#work