First Person: Explaining the Employment Gaps on My Resume
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With the number of unemployed Americans now in the millions, finding a job can be a daunting task. Job seekers have to make themselves stand out in a crowd of possibly thousands of applicants just to get an interview. Then, when the seemingly impossible interview date has come, the applicant has another set of tough questions to answer.
One of the hardest things that applicants have to explain is the dreaded employment gap. Many employers want to know just what you’ve been doing between jobs and the answer to this question can make or break an interview. Here are some ideas that I have either used myself or seen used when hiring employees that are very effective.
Re-Charge Your Batteries
Several years ago, I took off an entire summer to spend time with my family. I have a long stable work history and I made sure to point this out to potential employers upon returning to the workforce. I explained that my sons were entering their teenage years and would soon be too big to spend time with dad. This accomplished two things for me. First, it demonstrated to the potential employers that my family was old enough to not be an issue with my career. The second thing it did was allow me to explain to the employer that I was re-energized and ready to move forward with my career goals.
Brush up on your skills
More recently, I was laid off as a member of management of a nationally franchised restaurant company. While laid off, I immediately took classes to enhance my PC skills. Being in finance, it’s important to have a well rounded knowledge of financial systems, so I took this opportunity to take some certification classes in different billing and financial systems. I made very clear to perspective employers that I didn’t simply sit around and watch courtroom shows and soap operas. In addition to this, I have had some applicants tell me that they have taken various free Microsoft classes offered through the local unemployment offices. This demonstrated to me that this applicant was a go-getter that would help out in different areas when called upon as opposed to someone who’ll simply sit around and wait to be told what to do.
The Entrepreneur
One potential employee showed the zest and energy that I was looking for by going after an idea he had been toying with for years. The applicant explained that when he was laid off, he took that time as an opportunity to attempt to launch his own business. Saying this is easy, but this applicant thoroughly explained the time and effort he put into making his idea come to life. Even though the attempted business idea turned out to be a failure, it demonstrated to me that this guy was a worker who would put in the extra effort when needed.
Don’t wait for the Interview
When you have an employment gap on your resume, the employers see it long before the interview. Knowing this, why would you want to wait for the interview to explain it? A cover letter is a perfect place to explain a gap in employment. Not only have I used this, but I’ve seen it done by applicants time and time again. I’ve seen thorough explanations that covered gaps caused by layoffs to caring for terminally ill family members. If emailing your resume, be sure to take the time to explain these gaps in the body of the email as well by pointing out the explanation in your cover letter. Attention to detail like this stands out in the minds of an employer and can be the difference between getting the interview and getting your resume deleted.
More from this contributor:
How to survive when living paycheck to paycheck
