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5 minute read

September 14, 2023

Juggling Study with Work Mid-Career Can Be Tough. Here’s Some Advice (PODCAST)

Yes, you want to reskill and upskill for your career. But hitting the books when you’re older has its own learning curve. Kaylene Wong shares more in this podcast about how she managed.

Podcast

You’ve read the articles, and you know the importance of reskilling and upskilling for your career health and to stay employable in an increasingly tough job market.

Of course, in between your kids’ ballet or football classes, your own personal passions, and spending time with loved ones (not in order of importance!) it can be hard to find momentum.

After all, there’s a fair bit of research to make sure you’re actually spending time on the right courses. On top of that, there’s the dreaded feeling in the pit of your stomach when you realize this also means hitting the books again.

In this latest podcast, we speak to Kaylene Wong, director at John Ethans International, an integrated HR services firm.

She shares more about her career journey after returning from a career break, how she got back into her learning groove, and what to do when your friends keep posting Instagram posts of fun times while you’re trying to study.

Need personalised guidance in your job search? Register for a complimentary session with WSG’s Career Matching Services today and get the support you need.

We also delve deeper into the Four Burners Theory – a way of thinking about work-life balance by David Sedaris, a well-known American author.

The theory is this: Imagine your life is a stove with four burners on it. Each burner represents one major part of your life:

  1. Family
  2. Friends
  3. Health
  4. Work

According to Sedaris, you’ll need to turn off one of the burners to be successful. And if you want to be REALLY successful, you’ll need to turn off two of them.

Hard choices! Do you really have to choose, or can you have it all? Listen in to the podcast below and find out.

Key highlights to listen to: 

  • (1:16) What cheat app to download when you’re trying to speed up learning
  • (3:35) Social life vs study life: how to manage?
  • (6:47) The Four Burners Theory- how and why juggling and pacing yourself is important

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