Back from
maternity leave.
Ready for the AI era!

Small experiments.
Real momentum.

My starting point was the work already on my desk.

I used ChatGPT and Codex to explore technical questions, sharpen communication, and work through familiar challenges. Each attempt helped me ask better questions, provide better context, and assess the answers more carefully.

Some approaches worked. Others needed another try. Either way, I was learning something I could use.

One useful result gave me the confidence to tackle the next problem. Progress became part of my working day.

My experience
gave me an edge.

The more I worked with AI, the more clearly I saw the value of what I already knew.

I understood the business context. I could spot missing details, question an assumption, and recognize when an answer needed evidence.

That experience helped me get more from the tools.

Soon, I began turning recurring workplace challenges into reusable AI skills and tools. Seeing something I had developed become available to colleagues was a proud milestone!

I was contributing ideas, building useful solutions, and taking ownership of a new way of working.

That felt like a win
worth celebrating.✳

Returning to work?
Bring your ambition!

If you are coming back from maternity leave or a long career break, here is what I would pass on:

1. Pick one real problem.Start where your knowledge is strongest.
2. Ask questions early.Get clear on what has changed and what matters now.
3. Put learning into practice.Give yourself a small task and build from the result.
4. Own the outcome.Check the work and apply your judgment.
5. Make the pace sustainable.Ask for support and make room to learn during your working day.

You can be experienced, ambitious, and learning something new—all at once!

This chapter
has my name on it.

I returned as a working mother with experience to offer and fresh goals to pursue.

Since then, I have expanded my skills, built tools for others, and grown more confident in the contribution I can make. There is satisfaction in looking at a challenge that once felt unfamiliar and thinking, I can do something with this.

There is even more satisfaction in doing it!

For anyone preparing to return: your experience comes back with you. So does your ability to learn, solve problems, and create something useful.

Take that first step back
with your head held high.
There are wins ahead!

With curiosity & a little courage,
Sailee