Lina was a Business Manager at an IT firm. She had worked hard to climb the corporate ladder, and she is also a mum to two children, aged 6 and 8. Lately, she was feeling torn between balancing her work, kids, and home. She wanted to spend more time with her kids and be there for them often. She also knew staying at home full time wasn’t what she would enjoy either. She was weighing in options to help her strike a work-life balance. She tells her story of how she found her middle ground to finding time for her children without giving up on her career.
“My work had been demanding. Being in a managerial position brings along a lot of responsibilities and concerns. I had worked so hard to be where I am today in my career, I didn’t want to give it all up. But I also had my children. I knew I had to slow down because missing out on their parent-teacher meetings, not being able to attend their sports day, or volunteer at their school events were making me feel incompetent as a mother. I knew I wanted to be there for them but I wasn’t sure how could I have both. One day, a friend visited us and when we got talking, she suggested Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. It got my interest. That night, after the guests left, I sat down and did my research. The more I read about the course, the more certain I was that this was my pathway to building my work-life balance.
As I read the requirements of working as a Trainer and Assessor in the corporate sector, I was able to tick the boxes. Although I have never had any experience in teaching or assessing before, I had a copious amount of workplace experience and I was about to have the required qualification too with Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. My only hitch was I didn’t want to be caught again in the web of work, kids, home, and now studies and stretching myself thin. So, to have my doubts cleared I had a chat to one of the course advisors of Frontier about the options I had of taking these classes. I was quite relieved to hear that I could take up Saturday classes where the trainer would assist in completing the units in the class and that the course completion timeline was only 6 months. During the course of the qualification, the trainer, Allan, was extremely supportive and helpful. Every time I raised a question or if I was at crossroads in completing the units, I was given prompt guidance as he was skilled in vocational knowledge and learning. I had access to my trainer and assessor directly which made the experience a lot easier of completing the course and having my concerns addressed. After the completion of the course, I was also given access to 6 months of free professional development to keep up-to-date with the industry trends and development.
Today, I am a corporate trainer in the field I am familiar with. I have managed to get out of the quintessential 9-5 rut and now I dictate my own hours of work. I can even conduct the training sessions online if I want to. My hourly payscale is a lot higher and less exerting than it was as a corporate manager. I am able to attend my children’s meetings at school, be their cheerleader when they are on the field and they have my attention when they talk. I am also glad that I am able to share my years of experience and skillset with a whole new breed of people starting off in the industry. My role includes identifying training needs and requirements of the organisation I work for, preparing and developing training materials, counselling employees and management, and evaluating and assessing training quality and effectiveness among others.
It is both a rewarding experience and a lucrative career with the option of deciding how much you want to work. I am glad I found my right space as a mother and a career woman.