Hear from a woman who wanted to transition back to work, in her words, “Why I joined Prowess Project and what I learned from the certification.” She discusses her career journey, finding Prowess, her initial reluctance to the $500 certification fee and why it was all worth it. Want to join? Our next certification starts April 13th. Apply here.
Not new to working from home
I have been a participant in and a strong supporter of telecommuting for over 20 years. When I served as the CFO/CTO of a company, I was based out of the Dallas area, but my servers were located in Colorado, and my sales team covered a territory of the 13 western states and Guam. Using efficient technologies and choosing the right programs to support our business virtually was key to our success.
Being a stay at home mom with the itch to return to work
A few years ago, I was pregnant with my second child and was experiencing some health issues that required me to go on extended bed rest. I resigned from my position as a Business Development Director in the telecommunications industry and learned how to adjust in my new career, full-time stay at home parent.
Once my youngest entered part time pre-school, I found myself itching to get back to work, but on MY terms. I had started my own business consulting firm, but was finding it hard to find traction within my previous industry. I felt that I had fallen behind, that I had lost my edge, my reputation as an administrative whiz was no longer relevant. I was devastated that I wasn’t able to pick up where I left off in my career.
I was browsing a women’s discussion board chat about working from home and came across someone mentioning Prowess Project as a way to get remote, project-based assignments. I did my due diligence, and although their digital footprint was smaller and they were still a young company, I was impressed by their principles and message. I was very skeptical about the $500 certification course, but was assured after talking with Leah, the Chief Development Officer, about my concerns.
What did I have to learn from a course about working remotely? I’ve been doing it, well, for years.
Why I joined Prowess Project and what I learned from the certification
In retrospect, the class taught me a lot about the project management techniques and process. What struck me most, while going through the course, was how well-rounded the curriculum was. The course broke down project management techniques and tips very clearly, and offered up some great tips that I hadn’t been exposed to before. I felt that these lessons really broadened my skill foundation and gave me a new set of tools to go to my clients with and a boost of confidence from the final project, the 1:1 coaching and the Emotional Intelligence assessment.
What I had been doing for so many years in previous roles, was consolidated into an easy to follow online classroom structure that I could fit into my current household schedule.
To me, the most valuable benefit from the course was that I was able to shake the rust off, improve my tech skills, and increase my confidence.
Most importantly, I joined a network of supportive, intelligent, motivated women, who face similar challenges that I do in my everyday life. I have regained a sense of accomplishment and pride that I am serving a valuable set of skills to my clients through Prowess Project, and am not sacrificing quality time with my family. During today’s “new normal”, it is so critical to seek the activities that fill your internal bucket while you are making sure that everyone else’s is full. I am very grateful to be able to help contribute to my family’s bottom line while still being able to be involved in my children’s eLearning and continue regular communication with their teachers.
If you haven’t already submitted your application, what are you waiting for? I invite you to join the next certification course, April 13-16, 2020.
Good luck!
February 2020 Cohort
