Why do we value the work of someone caring for our car more highly than the work of someone caring for our children?

This is the question I heard someone ask on the Radio 4 programme ‘Woman’s Hour’ this morning, and it really knocked me for six.

Of course, I’ve thought about this before – how what is seen traditionally in this country as ‘woman’s work’ – childcare, cleaning, possibly even teaching – is somehow seen as less valuable than the traditionally male pursuits of say, managing finances and fixing things.

There’s no doubt about it, wherever you are in the world and whatever your circumstances, the future feels pretty uncertain right now. Nobody, not even our political leaders seem to know how long this health crisis is going to go on for, or how it is likely to affect our economy.

In the midst of these worrying times, it can be tempting to sit tight and to stay with what is known and safe, while we wait to see what is going to happen.

AND, what I’d argue is that the people who will thrive in the new reality in which we will eventually find ourselves will be those who have started preparing themselves and their career for the future.

[…] If you really want to make sure that this is the year that everything changes for you, you’re going to need a bigger and more fundamental shift in how you are approaching your career change. You need a rocket up the proverbial backside as big as the one I had when I became a mother last year - one that completely shifts your priorities and your beliefs about what’s possible.

Are you hiding your light under a bushel? Do you feel like a catherine wheel that’s never been taken out of its plastic wrapping and is sitting in a box somewhere in someone’s attic?

I write this in the UK on the day leading up to Guy Fawkes Night, when the sky comes alive with explosive beauty and colour, and normally quiet residential streets resound with a fizzing cacophony of bangs and booms.

Who’s on your team? Do you have people you can reach out to when the going gets tough?

 If you’re planning a career change, you’ve got to get a supportive tribe around you. You probably wouldn’t try and organise a wedding all by yourself and a career change is potentially a far more complex and challenging project.

What are your career priorities right now and how do they differ from previous stages of your life? What do you think will matter to you in the future that isn’t so important now?

Last week I was in a card shop picking up a “new baby” card for a friend, when I realised I also needed to buy one for a funeral (of a very dear ex-colleague) and a wedding – all of which took place in the same crazy week. Also last week, I was speaking to a friend whose children are just about at the stage of going off to university, leaving her with the exciting, but also potentially daunting, possibility of completely re-shaping her life and self-image, no longer bound to the primary role of parent. Unsurprisingly, these experiences got me thinking a lot about life and the “big questions”…

Whether or not you have children, there’s been a distinct “back to school” feeling this week. The morning air’s a little chillier, the supermarkets have all ramped up their stationery aisles, and there’s a general sense of the Summer fun coming to an end and that it’s time to get serious again.

When you’re unhappy in your work and wanting a change, this time of year is particularly laden with significance.

Your alarm sounds and what’s the first thing that enters your mind? Not excitement at the promise of a brand new 24 hours on this planet, but instead a sinking heart and despair at the thought of yet another day in the office…