10 Jobs to Consider After a Career Break [Men & Women]

Benitta Christie
Infinite Publications
2 min readMay 2, 2024

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Photo by OSPAN ALI on Unsplash

Life circumstances or personal needs can lead many professionals to step away from their careers temporarily.

You might have been stuck with parenting, health issues, relocating with a spouse, or general burnout.

But there is always a second chance!

When you’re ready to return to the workforce after a career break, you may be interested in exploring new opportunities beyond your previous role.

Here are 10 diverse jobs that can be excellent paths for relaunching your career:

  1. Customer Service Representative: Many companies hire for customer service roles with just basic computer skills required. It’s a fairly easy transition, allowing you to get back into the work mindset. The interactions can be demanding yet rewarding.
  2. Virtual Assistant: If you have strong administrative, communication and tech talents, you could work virtually as an assistant providing data entry, scheduling, inbox management and more to clients across industries.
  3. Substitute Teacher: For those who love working with students, being a substitute teacher is a flexible option, especially if you have a four-year degree. You choose which days and schools you want to accept assignments for.
  4. Retail Sales/Customer Service Associate: Retail stores and businesses hire for customer-facing roles assisting shoppers or clients. It’s a great way to leverage your social skills and re-acclimate to a work setting.
  5. Accounting Clerk: Did you study accounting, finance or business? Your skills could make you an ideal hire as an accounting clerk handling accounts payable/receivable, data entry and other processes.
  6. Freelance Writer: If writing is a passion, consider picking up freelance blogging, copywriting or journalism gigs. You’ll get to flex your creativity while learning about new subjects and setting your own schedule.
  7. Medical Coder: With the proper training program under your belt, you could secure a job as a medical coder reviewing patients’ records and assigning codes for insurance reimbursement.
  8. Call Center Representative: Call centers are constantly hiring people with clear communication abilities to be customer service agents, sales representatives, or technical support providers.
  9. Child Care Provider: For those who have parenting experience or simply love working with children, child care opportunities like being a nanny, babysitter or day care employee can be very fulfilling.
  10. Rideshare Driver: If you don’t mind being on the road and can meet licensing requirements, driving can be a lucrative career option with many companies providing paid training.

After a career break, finding the right job fit comes down to exploring opportunities aligned with your existing skills and interests or that allow you to get trained in something new.

With flexibility, resourcefulness and passion, you can restart your career in a role that’s rewarding.

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I’m a storyteller at heart, navigating life through ink-stained pages. I write about life, technology, self-help and stuff.