How to Explain a Resume Gap During an Interview

We all have a few questions we hope an interviewer doesn't ask. One of the most common such scenarios is when we have a gap in employment.

It's easy to feel unsure and on the defensive when we anticipate being asked, "So, what was happening from May 2004 through July 2005?"

The Pongo Blog features a post written by Rick Saia on this topic. It's as good advice as I've seen on how to explain a gap in your resume.

In a nutshell he advises to keep your explanation brief and factual, highlight the positives, and bring the conversation back to your qualifications and interest in the job for which you are interviewing.

Rick also describes whether and when you should disclose all of the jobs that you have held.

I've worked with people who have felt not only unsure but plagued by the gap in their resume. If after reading Rick's post you still aren't sure how to explain your resume gap, try these steps:

1. Explain to someone (or yourself in the mirror) in very blunt terms why there is a gap. Don't sugarcoat and don't put a spin on it - just be brutally honest.

In this way you get your baggage out of your head and onto "the table" where you can see it.

Examples of baggage could include:

• I did a really bad job of looking for work after I was laid off, so it took a while.
• My boss didn't like me, I was fired, and it has taken a really long time to find a new job. I feel like a loser.
• I quit without any other job in hand and regret my rashness. It took a long time to find work and I think that looks bad.
• I was trying to make a career change, but was unsuccessful. Now I feel I need to get back to my old career, and I'm not happy about it.
• I was depressed and unable to work. Now I'm much better but I don't want to tell anyone I was depressed. It isn't their business, anyway. But what do I say?

2. Differentiate between the facts of your situation and the negative emotional judgments you're making. You might want to ask a friend or a coach to help you make the distinctions.

3. Put away the negative emotional judgments for the rest of this exercise.

4. Working with the facts of the resume gap, craft a 2-3 sentence response to an anticipated inquiry. The response needs to be truthful, yet it does not need to include all of the details or the background story.

5. Make a plan for what you will do with the negative emotional judgments, so they don't take over your job search experience or show up inappropriately during an interview.

It's much easier to decide how to describe a resume gap in an interview after you've had the chance to fully explore the facts and your feelings about it on your own.

Too often we grip our "baggage" tightly, never putting it down and definitely never talking about it. But when we do this, we lose perspective about its significance and what to do about it.

It's possible that the situation you're worried about or embarrassed about might not be difficult to explain at all. Share your baggage with someone else to get an objective take on it and what your options are.

Posted by Heather Mundell

Comments

[billiesucher]

Heather, your post is outstanding! Another thing I encourage my clients to do (whether they are gainfully employed or in transition) is to address potential "areas of concern" upfront, very matter-of-factly, forthrightly as a part of the "Tell Me About Yourself" scenario customary at the beginning of the interview. My clients have found this extremely helpful and valuable in setting a positive tone for the interview. Practice pays big dividends, so as job seekers, don't practice on the employer, practice with a friend, or a career coach (or somebody) until you get more comfortable in speaking about the employer's anticipated concerns. Thanks for writing about this subject.

[Sabrina]

Excellent post. We have many members who have faced this challenge. Additional advice that has served them well is to make good use of this "down time" - improve their skills or learn new ones, volunteer - making sure that the work they do is in line with the work they are looking for (you can still show ROI), and doing consulting work. Being up front and getting the subject out of the way immediately is the best plan of attack. Thanks again. A very timely subject.

[Rick Saia]

Thanks very much to Heather for citing my post, and thanks to Billie and Sabrina for their very valuable additions to this discussion. Two points I want to add:

(1) There's no substitute for candor, as long as you're not leading with your jugular. Be forthright about an employment gap, but make it clear that you've moved beyond it. If you are what they're looking for, the hiring manager will admire your honesty, which is something just about all hiring managers value highly.

(2) Alluding to Sabrina's comments, you can avoid any self pity by just plugging away every day by either doing something to find a new job or doing some consulting work. That will also impress a hiring manager who wants people who will take initiative.

[Louise Fletcher]

Oh I SO agree about honesty! I can't count how many clients ask me how they can explain away this or that problem. When I help them practice telling the truth, it's like a huge weight has been lifted. 'Oh, you mean I can just say that?' Of course!

I just saw Barack Obama comment that the truth is a powerful weapon. I couldn't agree more!