By Corinne Stuart

After a career break you may choose to move down a couple of rungs on the career ladder.

You may choose to opt for a job that is less well paid but less stressful for a better work life balance.

In the current economic climate it may be wise to look for an alternative to your previous employment if that market has been particularly hit by the recession.

You need to think carefully about how you market yourself if you are “downsizing” or moving into a new field.
How much do you need to earn and what is the typical salary for the job?

Look at recruitment company websites who operate in the field you are investigating. Some industry job sites publish salary checkers which give you a feel for what is a good rate of pay and what’s not. Talk to anyone you know in that industry to find out who are the best payers. There’s always one cheapskate in every industry.

Follow your dream
If you’ve made the decision to downsize then this is the opportunity to do something you’ve always wanted to do. It may require you to retrain so careful thought needs to be given to financing but see it as an investment in yourself and your long term happiness. After all, you’re worth it.

Test the water
If you’re not sure whether you are going to like this new path, why not volunteer in your chosen area or offer your services free of charge to an employer as job experience? Many employers need all the help they can get at the moment and if it costs them nothing what do they have to lose?

Change your CV
If an employer thinks you’re over qualified for a position they will see you as a risk. They risk that you will see this job as nothing more than a stop gap and move on once something better comes along with all the associated expense for the employer in terms of time and recruitment costs. Read the job description carefully, emphasise the match to your skills and experience and how you can benefit the employer but go easy on the glittering career bit.

Fishing in a bigger pool
A big plus for downsizers is that you do tend to be fishing in a bigger pool of opportunities. There are more openings available the lower you move down the pyramid.

Write a compelling cover letter
You would be amazed at how few people bother with a cover letter but it enables you to sell yourself to the employer before they have even looked at your CV. A compelling cover letter will paint a picture of you for the prospective employer and help your CV and application stand out from what may be dozens of others. It will help you get the interview.

Be flexible
In your ideas and approach. Make it easy for an employer to see you as an asset.

If you’re downsizing because there really isn’t anything else at the level where you feel you should be and you’ve exhausted all lines of enquiry then think positively. See this as a stepping stone to where you want to be. It doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the job or do well does it? We can’t always have the life we would choose but we can choose how we feel about it.

Corinne Stuart is the founder of The Confidence Hub at http://www.theconfidencehub.co.uk a UK based website dedicated to helping you return to work in today’s tough job market.

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