How to Return to Work After Burnout and a Career Break: Identify Your Transferable Skills and Negotiate Flexible Part-Time Work

How to Return to Work After Burnout and a Career Break: Identify Your Transferable Skills and Negotiate Flexible Part-Time Work

June 25, 2026 · 13 min · Episode 730

About this episode

This episode discusses how to return to work after burnout and a career break by identifying transferable skills and negotiating flexible part-time work.

If you've taken time away from your career and you're wondering how to come back without explaining the gap or apologizing for your time off, this episode is for you. Caroline spent 17 years at one of the Big Four firms before hitting full-on burnout. After years of being passed over for promotions and navigating a system that forced competition over collaboration, she woke up one day and thought, "I can't do this anymore." She resigned. Took two years away. Moved countries. Completely reset her life. Then she had to figure out how to come back. This wasn't a standard return-to-work story. Caroline used a strengths assessment to identify her transferable value, named exactly what she wanted instead of apologizing for the gap, turned down the first offer that didn't fit, and ended up with a role at a mid-size entrepreneurial company working three days a week, 24 hours split across her schedule. This episode unpacks how to return to work after burnout and a career break, why your transferable skills matter more than your job titles, and how Caroline negotiated her way into flexible part-time work that fit both her home life and her work life. What you'll learn: How to translate…

People in this episode

Host: Scott Anthony Barlow

Guest: Caroline

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Big Four

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