Updating LinkedIn after having a baby
I have decided not to go back to work after my maternity leave ends in the middle of October. I am going to be a SAHM for 2-3 years before I do any kind of contract or freelance, but likely be mostly home for 5 years before I go back fulltime.
What do I do with my linkedin profile in the meantime? Do I show that my current job ends in the middle of October, and then nothing for my current position?
I am quite proud of being a SAHM and think more women should be too. What do you think of putting something like Managing Director, family name., and listing the work I do as a mom (advance negotiation, scheduling, budgetting, etc., etc.,) in a way that clearly says I am at home, and I am “owning it”, or “leaning into it” if you will. I don’t feel like I have anything to be ashamed of, but also think it is a safer move after I get my next job.
If you are a SAHM LinkedIn doesn’t matter at all. It’s just for networking and job hunting. So don’t bother putting SAHM. It’s like saying you are wiping your butt. Like, okay, you are doing it and you’re not ashamed but people on LinkedIn don’t care.
You can just leave the date open or you can close the date of the last job. Whatever. LinkedIn isn’t Facebook. If people want to know what you are really doing in your life they can go to Facebook.
Penelope
So is the question the OP is really asking is – what do I do when I want to get back to work to explain the gap on my LinkedIn profile?
And for the OP – in five years time who knows how influential or useful LinkedIn will be in your job hunt.
But for readers in this position now? How to represent a maternity gap best on LinkedIn?
Why not just call it “Maternity Leave”?
When it’s a 3-5 year gap though I wonder if you need to add something else to resumes or sites like LinkedIn to combat any prejudice that after that length of time out of the ‘working world’ that you are still a good job candidate?
Depending on what type of freelancing you’d do, you might be able to continue it in an extremely limited, part-time capacity while your full-time job is motherhood. That way you’re not lying if you just fill that space with freelance *whatever* after maternity leave. No one has to know if you only do 5 -10 hours a week.
I have found this works for me while I’m attending school full-time and I accomplish it by only working for close family or friends. That way I don’t have to worry about contracts, and I only do a few hours a week, but I can add that to my resume when I graduate.
You should be doing something in addition to being a stay at home mom if you want to put something for the gap on your linked in profile. Maybe you are freelancing, volunteering, or taking classes? Add that. I would not leave just a 5 year gap on linked in.
hei im 20 yrs old n i don’t know what to do …n i got good marks n in matric 2012 but i rly want to upgrade them so i can go be admitted at any institution…..by that time i wl b 22
Am i too old to go to varsity?
It drives me a little nuts when SAHMs list all of the things they do to manage a household as work-related skills. Or when they insinuate that they are actually working the equivalent of a dozen jobs (chef, house cleaner, accountant, chauffeur). Being a SAHM or SAHD is a very hard job and absolutely worth recognition and appreciation. But most people, whether they work full time or part time outside of the home, or in the home, do things like cooking, cleaning, laundry, negotiating with kids, etc. These day-to-day tasks are part of being a functional adult.
I do yard work, but I’m not a landscaper. I help my child learn, but I’m not a teacher. My husband cooks for our family, but he’s not a chef.
I’m all for using non-job related examples to illustrate skills in a job interview or on a resume, but I would choose skills that are unique – not the things most people do most days. I’d also recommend doing volunteer work to fill the gap on your resume.
Own being a SAHM. Don’t feel you have to justify it by trying to make it equivalent to paid work. It’s not the same, but that doesn’t make it any less valuable.
Penelope, you are so right on the money here,
“Like, okay, you are doing it and you’re not ashamed but people on LinkedIn don’t care.”
You tell it exactly like it is without mincing words. Hurrah!