The numbers are pouring in.
61% of women are planning a significant career change post-pandemic, according to Forbes.
While we won’t know for a while what the economic ramifications of COVID-19 will be, what seems increasingly clear is that unprecedented numbers of those whose jobs were put on hold, downgraded, or eliminated have had lots of time to think long and hard about their professional lives.
And get this: 1 in 4 workers (26%) plan to look for a different job now that the pandemic is subsiding, according to Prudential’s latest Pulse of the American Worker Survey, conducted by Morning Consult in March.
Many of the more than 2.4 million women in the U.S. who lost their jobsduring the pandemic are beginning to emerge with a renewed sense of perspective and resilience.
A survey by the women’s professional network AllBright found that:
- One-fourth of women surveyed are setting up a new business.
- The sectors with the most growth are health and fitness and publishing.
- Over half of women surveyed believe that COVID has provided new professional opportunities.
It’s worth listening to Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski’s recent interview with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Mika asked the Speaker what advice she had for women who are in the process of re-evaluating their professional lives.
“Take inventory of who you are and what you have inside of you, and what you have done,” said Pelosi. “Give yourself a gold star for being the unique person that you are. When the challenge is there, you’ll be ready.”
It’s also worth checking out Mika’s Know Your Value microsite, which she founded in partnership with NBC. She calls it “an empowered community that helps women recognize, and be recognized for, their personal and professional value by developing and inspiring their individual growth.”
Many women are stuck in neutral, knowing only that they want something else, something more. They’re staring at an outdated (pre-Covid) resume and scrolling through endless job sites looking for inspiration and a sense of direction.
It’s all about finding your superpower, of not being afraid to throw all those pieces up in the air and seeing what lands. You are much more than your CV, but only you can define what that looks like going forward.
Don’t just hang on and wait for the opportunity to find you.
As we begin to put the last devastating year away, I predict that with experience and resilience, our most productive days lie ahead.