How to Prioritize Your Career When You Have Young Kids

When was the last time you thought about where you're headed in your career or what the next phase is for you?

For a lot of the women I talk to, the answer is "not lately!".

They've been focused on other things - raising kids, taking care of daily life, and making it from one day to the next.

Because when life gets busy, you have to trim things down and focus on what's absolutely critical to keep life moving forward. Anything "extra", like thinking about the bigger picture of your career, has to go.

But at some point, you'll inevitably be asked some variation of the question - where do you want to be in 5 years?

If not by an employer or potential employer, then from yourself. You'll wonder, why am I doing this? What's my end goal? What am I working toward?

I honestly don't think you can definitely answer those types of questions because, who really knows?!?

But what I do know is that you'll be clueless if you're not actively looking for clues along the way. From every position, responsibility, project, opportunity, colleague, and team member, you're getting information that can form the future of your career.

From being in conversations, getting exposure to new projects and opportunities, staying in touch with, and yes, networking with peers and colleagues, you're gathering clues. So that someday down the road, when you want to think about answering those bigger career questions, you have a wealth of ideas.

You have all of these seeds you've been planting along the way that have taught you what you enjoy growing and what you don't.

But how do you find the time to invest in your career, to plant seeds, when time is so limited?

By fitting it in in small, manageable pockets of time. By allowing 5 minutes here and there to be enough. And by creating a routine that makes it easy to fold into what you're already doing.

Because what if making connections, being 'in the know', and maintaining visibility around your career didn't have to take a ton of time or energy?

Here are some potential routines to help you plant seeds that could help you know where you're headed in your career:

1. BE IN THE KNOW (weekly reading)

This is honestly half the battle when it comes to thinking about your long-term career and the good news is, it's also the easiest. Information is everywhere so how can you get plugged into the right sources that will help you stay active and current with what's happening in your industry or what you're interested in? Maybe you can subscribe to a weekly email digest, follow key accounts on social media, or get notified of job openings so you can know which positions and fields are growing. Then take a block of time when you would normally just mindlessly scroll your phone and spend those 15 minutes skimming the latest news instead. Be knowledgeable and follow your curiosity.

2. STAY TOP OF MIND (weekly engaging)

When conversations, projects, or positions are happening in your area of expertise, are you top of mind? Whether you like it or not, a lot of decisions are made based on who you know and more importantly, who's thinking of you. I talk to a lot of women who are frustrated by this old-school way of doing things because it's hard to be out and about, shaking hands, and being seen when you're raising young kids, but the pandemic changed all of that for the better. And it can be as simple as being active online. Can you schedule 15 minutes each week to use LinkedIn intentionally? To be active, liking and commenting so your name appears? Can you send an email sharing an interesting article (see idea #1) with a colleague? Sit down for those 15 minutes with the intention of putting yourself top of mind for your network.

3. ONE NEW CONNECTION A MONTH (monthly meeting)

Getting out in front of people is not always the easiest thing as a busy, working mom. Every minute is precious and accounted for, but with a little advanced planning, it is possible to make time for a coffee or lunch to stay connected. Not just for your career but for your mental health! I don't think I've left a coffee date yet that didn't leave me feeling energized and excited to just be outside of my normal routine, talking about something different for a change. Can you make an initial list of people you'd like to reconnect with? Whether those are former colleagues, people you meet via mutual introduction, informational interviews… whatever you’re comfortable with. Then look at your calendar and commit to just one a month, no more. Once a month is doable and it ends up being 12 people a year that you're making meaningful connections with.

4. MONTHLY/QUARTERLY REVIEW

With so much going on, it's natural to move from one project, one deadline to the next and not look back. But it's the looking back, the celebrating, and the reflecting that helps you see where you might want to go moving forward. This will be the hardest routine to establish because it takes a little more time and there's no one waiting for you at the coffee shop to hold you accountable, but I promise it will be the most impactful. Once a month or once a quarter, whatever feels doable, I want you to create a list of all of your biggest accomplishments, what you learned, what you enjoyed, what you could do better, and what results you created with your work. Not only will it help you analyze and connect the dots in your career, but it will also be a wealth of information from which to draw if you ever end up applying for a new job or changing careers. It's so easy to forget your accomplishments after they've happened. This can be a simple running list in Word or Google - nothing fancy or well-formatted, just a collection of your thoughts that will accumulate and help you as you continue to navigate where you're headed in your career.

THIS IS THE PERFECT TIME

Aside from the monthly in-person connection, none of these routines take more than 15-30 minutes because anything more than that isn't realistic. If this is going to work and be sustainable, you have to take things at a pace that makes sense for you right now. So if you need to start with just one idea for now, that's great! Just reading this is a start.

Career growth doesn't have to stop because you're also raising kids. It's actually the perfect time to be thinking and experimenting with new ideas and your next evolution. You just need to cultivate that creativity with a little intention and a couple of simple routines.

If you're ready to step into the next version of your career with the confidence that you can do the work AND still maintain your time with your family, I can help. My clients are taking control of their careers, taking on leadership roles, and managing bigger, more visible projects while still being there for their kids and making time for themselves. I am accepting new 1:1 clients and would love to coach you. Click here to take the next step.