The Comeback Career Podcast with Fexingo: Returning After a Gap, Stay-at-Home Re-Entry

In this episode of The Comeback Career Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how a structured project management certification can be a powerful re-entry strategy after a career gap. They follow the story of Maria, a former marketing coordinator who took an eight-year break to raise twins, then earned her Project Management Professional (PMP) certification while still at home. Lucas breaks down the spec...

After an eight-year career gap to raise her children, Sarah Chen returned to clinical practice as a physician assistant. This episode explores how she used a structured re-entry program at a major hospital system, updated her clinical skills through a refresher course, and navigated licensing requirements. We discuss the specific challenges of returning to a high-stakes medical role, including cre...

Episode 105 of The Comeback Career Podcast explores how Sarah Chen, a former IT project manager, re-entered the workforce as a cybersecurity analyst after a five-year gap caring for her children. Lucas and Luna break down Sarah's strategy: how she earned a CompTIA Security+ certification during nap times, leveraged a part-time contractor role at a local bank to rebuild her resume, and framed her g...

In this episode of The Comeback Career Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how a career gap can pivot into academic advising. They follow the story of Maria, a former marketing manager who took a seven-year break to raise her children and then returned to work as an academic advisor at a community college. Lucas breaks down the skills transfer: how campaign management translates to student outreach, h...

Lucas and Luna dive into the story of Jenna, a former nurse who stepped away from the workforce for eight years to raise her kids and then returned as a clinical research coordinator. They break down how she refreshed her certifications through a local community college bridge program, leveraged her hospital network from a decade prior, and navigated the jargon-heavy interview process that often i...

After a nine-year career gap raising her kids, Jenna Martinez decided to return to the workforce as an executive assistant. She assumed her decade of pre-gap experience as a senior project manager would make the transition straightforward, but recruiters kept asking about the gap. In this episode, Lucas and Luna unpack the specific strategy Jenna used to reframe her career break as an asset, the c...

Episode 101 of The Comeback Career Podcast explores how a parent re-entered the workforce as a corporate recruiter after a seven-year gap. Lucas and Luna unpack the specific strategies this person used—from reframing volunteer coordination as hiring experience to leveraging a returnship program at a Fortune 500 company. We walk through how they rebuilt their professional network, tackled the 'inte...

In our 100th episode, Lucas and Luna examine the story of a former urban planner who returned after a 12-year gap raising twins. She started as a part-time permit reviewer for the city of Portland, Oregon, then used a mid-career fellowship to rebuild credentials and land a full-time senior planner role. Along the way, she overcame outdated software skills and a confidence gap by volunteering on a...

Episode 99 of The Comeback Career Podcast with Fexingo tells the story of Diane, a former stay-at-home parent who returned to the workforce as a commercial real estate analyst after an eight-year gap. Lucas and Luna walk through how Diane leveraged her prior background in accounting, took online courses in Argus and Excel, and networked her way into a junior analyst role at a mid-size CRE firm. Th...

After a seven-year career gap following relocations as a military spouse, Anna Velez started a virtual assistance business that now serves 12 clients across three time zones. In this episode, Lucas and Luna break down the specific strategies Anna used to rebuild her professional network from scratch—including how she leveraged a free online directory for military spouses to land her first client,...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how parents returning to the workforce after a career gap can rebuild confidence specifically for job interviews. They break down the psychological hurdle of the 'explain the gap' moment and share concrete techniques used by career coach Maya Chen, including the 30-second narrative framework, the power of reframing caregiving years as project management expe...

Episode 96 of The Comeback Career Podcast explores how a 7-year career gap led to a successful return as a financial planner. Lucas and Luna talk with Sarah, a former teacher who pivoted to finance after staying home with her kids. They break down her path to getting the CFP certification while still at home, networking through local mom groups, and landing a role at a boutique RIA that valued her...

Episode 95 of The Comeback Career Podcast: Lucas and Luna explore how a stay-at-home parent used her bilingual fluency to re-enter the workforce as a medical interpreter. They break down a real case: a former teacher who hadn't worked in 8 years, got certified in 3 months, and now earns $35-45 per hour on a flexible schedule. The hosts discuss the American Translators Association certification pat...

When Sarah Chen left her marketing manager role in 2018 to care for her twins, she assumed her career in brand strategy was over. Seven years later, she returned to the workforce not as a junior hire but as a senior brand strategist at a midsize agency. In this episode, Lucas and Luna unpack Sarah's specific playbook: how she kept her strategic thinking sharp through a part-time consulting project...

In this episode of The Comeback Career Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how a decade-long career gap doesn't have to derail your creative ambitions. They share the story of Maria, a former graphic designer who stepped away to raise her kids and returned as a senior art director at a mid-sized ad agency. Lucas breaks down the three key strategies Maria used to rebuild her portfolio: undertaking pro...

In this episode of The Comeback Career Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how a decade-long career gap doesn't have to derail a return to the workforce. They focus on the story of a former teacher who retrained as a mortgage loan officer and closed over $15 million in loans in her first year back. The hosts discuss the specific licensing requirements, the surprising overlap between teaching skills an...

Episode 91 of The Comeback Career Podcast explores how a seven-year career gap became an asset for Maria Santos, a former teacher who returned as a data analyst at a regional health system. After staying home with her three kids, Maria used a free online SQL course, a portfolio project analyzing local housing data, and a targeted informational interview to land a hybrid role paying $62,000 — $5,00...

Episode 90 of The Comeback Career Podcast follows the story of Anita, a former software engineer who stepped away from tech for eleven years to raise her children and care for aging parents. When she decided to return, she faced a rapidly changed landscape: cloud computing, AI-assisted development, and modern collaboration tools she had never used. Instead of trying to catch up on every skill, Ani...

This episode features the story of Maria Gonzalez, a former marketing manager who took a five-year career gap to raise her two children and later landed a sustainability analyst role at a mid-sized renewable energy firm. Lucas and Luna unpack the specific strategies Maria used: taking a free online ESG reporting course from Coursera, networking with two former colleagues who had transitioned into...

Episode 88 of The Comeback Career Podcast: After a six-year gap raising two kids, Mariana Reyes re-entered the workforce as a paralegal at a mid-sized immigration law firm in Houston. Lucas and Luna unpack her strategy: she didn't apply cold. She volunteered part-time at a nonprofit legal clinic for six months, building recent references and a current credential (a paralegal certificate from a com...

This episode of The Comeback Career Podcast focuses on one parent's return to the workforce as a corporate trainer after a seven-year career gap. Lucas and Luna unpack how Sarah Mitchell, a former high school English teacher who stayed home with her three kids, leveraged her teaching background to land a training role at a mid-sized tech company. They discuss the specific strategies she used: how...

In this episode of The Comeback Career Podcast, Lucas and Luna examine how a seven-year career gap led to a hybrid operations role at a mid-sized nonprofit. They follow the story of Priya Mehta, a former marketing coordinator who stepped away to care for her aging parents and later returned through a part-time administrative assistant contract at a community health center. The episode breaks down...

Episode 85 of The Comeback Career Podcast explores how a two-year career gap helped one parent return as a government affairs specialist. Lucas and Luna walk through the story of Jamila, a former policy analyst who stepped away from the workforce after her second child, then re-entered by targeting state-level lobbying roles. They discuss how she used her unpaid caregiving period to network with s...

Lucas and Luna explore how a parent re-entered the workforce after a five-year career gap by joining the U.S. federal government's Pathways Program. They walk through the specific steps: finding the 'Recent Graduates' track (which accepts degrees earned within the last six years), targeting an agency like the Department of Education, and leveraging the 'Schedule A' hiring authority for applicants...

In this episode of The Comeback Career Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore the story of a former teacher who, after a five-year gap to raise her children, returned to the workforce as a benefits consultant at a mid-sized insurance brokerage. They unpack how she leveraged her transferable skills—like explaining complex topics to diverse audiences and managing multiple stakeholders—to land a role that v...