Her Next Chapters

101. Bridge Roles: Smart Steps Between Where You Are and What’s Next in Your Career

• Christina Kohl

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In a year of major layoffs and shifting industries, Christina, a career coach, shares practical job search strategies for navigating transition through bridge roles—including temporary jobs, part-time positions, seasonal work, and volunteer projects. Discover how flexible roles can boost your confidence, refresh your skills, and lead to long-term success. Perfect for women returning to work, midlife career changers, and anyone facing job loss or uncertainty in 2025. Listen for real-life examples, proven resources, and renewed hope for your next chapter.

Resources mentioned:
Christina's Strengths-First Resume Template
Flexjobs - find vetted part-time work options
Catch-a-fire - find impactful volunteer opportunities

  • Want to chat about your career goals? Schedule a free call HERE.
  • Send me an email ---> christina@hernextchapters.com

Connect with me on LinkedIn ---> www.linkedin.com/in/kohlchristina

Grab the Free Strengths-First Resume Template - it's perfect for anyone in career transitions, whether with a long career gap, a career pivot, or just ready for a change.






Christina Kohl:

Hi and welcome to Her Next Chapters Podcast. I'm your host, Christina Kohl. I'm a mom of three and soon to be an empty nester. I'm also a certified HR pro who restarted my career after being a stay-home mom for over a decade. I created this podcast to connect with moms who have an empty nest on the horizon and are wanting to redefine their identity outside of motherhood, which might include adopt search. On this show, we'll have long conversations about our ever-changing roles with moms. We'll hear from women who restarted their careers, and share tips for adopt search after a career break. So if that's you, you're in the right place, friend. Let's get started.

Christina Kohl:

started.

Christina Kohl:

Hey friends, it's Christina. Welcome back to her next chapters. If your news feed has looked anything like mine lately, you've probably heard a lot about layoffs. As of early November 2025, approximately 1.5 million jobs have been cut in the US this year. That's the highest total since 2020. And over 100,000 of those have come from the tech sector, with companies restructuring and adopting more automation and AI. And of course, the federal government has also seen massive cuts. It's a lot to take in. And if you've been thinking about returning to work, changing careers, or even just updating your resume, it can feel really heavy. Like the timing couldn't be worse. But here's what I want you to remember: layoffs don't erase opportunity, they just shift where the opportunity shows up. There are still ways to move forward, to stay active, visible, and confident while you're navigating uncertainty. And that's what today's episode is all about.

Christina Kohl:

So today we're talking about bridge roles. These are short-term, flexible or part-time opportunities that help you stay engaged and build momentum while you figure out what's next. These roles can give you a paycheck, expand your network, and keep your skills sharp, all while you continue working towards your long-term goals. Because here's the truth: even in a tough market, there are always ways to move forward. Sometimes it looks a little different than you expected.

Christina Kohl:

All right, let's dive in. What is a bridge role? What is it that I'm talking about in case you've never heard this phrase before? A bridge role is any role that helps you move from here to there. It might be a temporary or contract role through a staffing agency, or short-term position covering a maternity or medical leave. It could be a part-time job that fits your season of life, or a seasonal role, helping out at the holidays, or a role that just for right now, it just pays the bills. Or it could even be a strategic volunteer project that builds your skills and your confidence in an area that you want to grow in. The goal isn't perfection, it's progress. And each of these options can help you stay visible, relevant, and confident while you build your next career chapter.

Christina Kohl:

So let's talk about temp and contract roles. They can be a powerful way to restart or redirect your career. I want to tell you about Tanya. Tanya wanted to break into HR and she went to Temp Agency and let them know, please, if there's any opportunities for work on an HR team, please think of me. And they did. And they put her with my team. We had a short-term assignment helping getting us caught up with all of our employee files and doing an I-9 audit. I'll tell you, it's not glamorous work, right? But it gave her experience, gave her new context. Hello, I was one of them, and it gave her a current reference. So we were able to speak to her abilities. And it also was something that she put on her resume. It was only for two weeks, but it did cross two months. I think it was like end of March, beginning of April. And so she put on her resume, those two months that she was a contractor at the at my employer, and that and what she did, what her project was. She was able to build confidence, refresh some of her skills, and open new doors with new connections. So I'm still in touch with Tanya to this day. And this is gosh, many years ago. It was like probably five or six, no more than that. And then let me tell you about Stephanie. When I left one of my HR roles, I had given her my two weeks' notice and we brought in a temp to cover my desk to like so I could cross-train someone to get to hand everything over to someone who could keep the work going in my absence. And she was so proactive and so dependable that they wound up hiring her full time after I left. So she wasn't expecting that, right? She went to a temp agency to fill a temp role and she wound up getting hired. And you guys, this happens more often than you would think. So that is an excellent resource is a temp or a contract role. And if you were in between jobs, my recommendation is you sign up with two or three staffing agencies in your area, especially those that specialize in your field, and treat every assignment like a long interview. Because it kind of is. Show up curious, helpful, professional, because you never know where it could lead. And even if it's just references, like you're expanding your network and you're obviously learning new things. Get in touch with all of those people that you work with during that temp assignment. Reach out to them on LinkedIn and connect. And again, you never know where the where the introduction is going to be that's going to be to your next long-term role, whether it's with that company or somewhere where somebody knows somebody. All right.

Christina Kohl:

So the next thing is a leave coverage type of role. So these are temporary jobs that fill in for someone on maternity leave, a medical leave, or sabbatical, typically lasting three to six months. One of my clients, I'm going to call her Kay, she is applying for a maternity leave cover role right now. What I love about this for her is that there is less competition for these positions, right? Because not very many people who are currently working aren't necessarily going to jump at an opportunity that has an end date that's going to be only three to six months. But for someone who's re-entering the workforce, it's an ideal situation to take on a temporary role. So if you are pivoting, re-entering the workforce, or testing a new industry, a leave coverage role can give you structure, current experience, and again, those great references, all without a long-term commitment on either side. And sometimes it turns into something permanent. And I hate to say permanent, but it turns into a regular position. So where do you find these positions? A great source for flexible work in general is flex jobs. That's flexjobs.org. And they verify legitimate remote and flexible opportunities. And it would be a great place to search for maternity leave coverage, or just even use that in your search, your search um bar, whether it's Google, LinkedIn, wherever, maternity leave coverage or leave coverage, or temporary contract or something, you know, short-term assignment. Search for those because they are good opportunities for you to step in and you never know, someone might change their mind and not return to that position. And who are they going to hire? The person who's been doing the role for the last three months, probably. So it was not a promise, but it's a possibility.

Christina Kohl:

All right, so the next type of role is part-time work. So this is, in my opinion, one of the most underrated bridge options out there. And if you don't know my story, I actually restarted my own career in a part-time HR role. It was perfect. I had three school-aged kids still at home, none of whom were driving yet, and I needed the flexibility. And that role allowed me to re-enter the workforce, build my confidence, and keep up with changes in the field. And over time, I grew in the role and was promoted to a full-time HR manager. So part-time work can also be a great entry point for students or career changers. An example I want to tell you about is my daughter Abby. So Abby got a job working part-time, 16 hours a week, as an administrative assistant for a home remodeler. This is while she was studying to be an interior designer. They ramped up her hours to like 30 hours a week while she was finishing her last couple classes. And then once she finished her classes, this is just back in May, they've hired her full-time and promoted her to junior designer. If she would have been like, no, I don't want to do an administrative role. I'm an I'm an interior designer. She would have missed out on this incredible opportunity. You never know how things are going to unfold. It was a perfect bridge role for her into her career. And like I said, now she's working as an interior designer. So it's been a wonderful opportunity for her and was part-time admin. So you never know how the roles are going to grow with you, but part-time roles can be flexible, they are resume worthy and definitely confidence-building and especially useful when you're managing other priorities at home. And again, you will find plenty of verified part-time opportunities on Flex Jobs.

Christina Kohl:

Okay, I can't, we don't can't talk about bridged roles without talking about seasonal roles. We are, if you're listening in real time, this is the first week of November, and retailers are ramping up for the holiday season. And you may be like, yeah, Christina, I really don't want to work in retail. Okay, that's all right. But if you have been laid off and money's tight, this is a great opportunity just to be getting a paycheck, but it's also going to give you those references. It's going to give you your networking, it's going to grow your network. And retailers, shipping companies, customer service team, and event venues are all hiring temporary staff right now. My sons and their college friends have all taken seasonal jobs. It is a great way to earn extra money and meet new people. And I want to tell you about one mom that I knew from my daughter's elementary school. Her name is Marnie. She started a holiday retail job at a candle store because she loves candles, right? And that extended beyond the season. They kept her on. And within the year, she became the store manager. So don't discount seasonal jobs. And I would encourage you to, you know, go somewhere where you want the employee discount, uh, somewhere that you shop, that you enjoy, get those employee discounts. That's always a bonus. And again, it now you never know what it's going to grow into.

Christina Kohl:

And then finally, the last category of bridge roles I want to talk about is strategic volunteering. So volunteering with purpose. Obviously, this doesn't include pay because it's, you know, by definition, you're volunteering. But this isn't just helping out, it's choosing projects that align with your professional interests and the direction you want to go. A peer of mine, she was an HR manager, she volunteered to review an employee handbook for a nonprofit. This is something that she wanted to do to strengthen her HR skills, and it gave her a fresh project to add to her resume. And talking about myself again, when my kids were younger, I volunteered on the PTA board at our elementary school as a communications chair, and I served on the principal interview committee. So those experiences kept my professional muscles strong. Communication, interviewing, collaboration, all skills that transferred beautifully when I returned to HR. If you want to find structured opportunities, check out catchafire.org. They match skilled volunteers with nonprofits that need short-term help in writing, design, HR, strategy, event planning, and more. Strategic volunteering can give you purpose, structure, and momentum when you're in transition.

Christina Kohl:

All right, so let's recap. Fridge roles come in many forms. There's temp or contract work through an agency, short-term leave coverage roles, flexible part-time work, seasonal or right now jobs, and finally strategic volunteering. Each one helps you stay active, connected, and build your confidence. And they often lead to new opportunities you could not have predicted. If you're in transition right now, I encourage you to pick one of these to explore this week. Maybe that means applying for a part-time role in FlexJobs, or calling a local agency, or browsing catch a fire for a volunteer project that lights you up. And if you want to make sure your resume is ready for those opportunities, grab my free Strengths First resume template. It's designed to help you highlight transferable skills and recent experience in a way that stands out. You'll find the link to this in the show notes, along with FlexJobs and Catch a Fire. And remember, bridge roles aren't detours, they are stepping stones. They build your confidence, expand your network, and get you one step closer to that next chapter in your career. You've got this friend. Thanks for listening to her next chapters. If today's episode encouraged you, share it with a friend who's in transition too. That's it for this week's episode. I will talk to you next time.

Christina Kohl:

Thank you so much for listening today. I hope this episode hit home for you. And if you haven't already, be sure to connect with me on LinkedIn and say hello, like a part of my thank you for listening. Until next time, remember your story is unique in your home. And your next chapters are ready to begin the fourth episode.