Hey, everybody.
It's Sinéad within Indeed's career tips series.
Welcome back to our channel.
According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, 9 out of 10 people
have a gap in their employment.
So I think it's pretty safe to say that gaps in employment
are common.
The truth is life happens, whether it's
starting a family, caring for loved ones,
travel, illness, losing a job, life
looks different for everybody, and various life experiences
can lead to gaps in our work history.
So today we're going to cover how
to confidently address career gaps during a job interview.
And be sure to stick around until the end
to learn how to address gaps on your resume too.
All right, now let's get ready to shake off the nerves,
focus on the good, and get to learning
how to discuss your career gaps like a professional.
So what are career gaps, and why do they matter?
Employment gaps are periods of time, both brief or extended,
where a professional experiences unemployment.
These gaps can range from a period of several months
to several years and may be voluntary or involuntary
leaves.
In other words, some gaps may be taken by choice
while others are forced or simply unavoidable.
Voluntary gaps may include a sabbatical or family leave.
So sabbaticals are an opportunity
to focus on personal growth and development.
Now, this could be a chance to volunteer,
explore other careers, or essentially just learn.
Taking time to be introspective, work on your goals,
and/or venture to new places is respectable
and can be effective for professional growth.
Family leave, on the other hand, may not
feel as invigorating as a sabbatical,
but this type of leave is honorable, selfless,
and it demonstrates a high sense of integrity.
Another common reason for a career gap
is taking time to support a family member.
Whether you're educating the kiddos at home,
caring for an elderly parent, or nursing someone
through a chronic illness, your time
is vital to another person's well-being and prosperity.
This type of gap is admirable and should
be addressed with pride.
Involuntary gaps may include situations
like layoffs or medical leave.
Now, layoffs are of course never easy to talk about.
But the truth is, many of us face this exact same situation
when the pandemic hit.
Again, this gap is common.
It's OK.
And many recruiters are aware of this trend,
so you should feel comfortable addressing your situation.
Other layoffs could result from a company downsizing
or restructuring, or maybe you are
let go because your organization relocated or decided
to outsource your position.
There are so many reasons why this
happens to workers, so just try to be as honest as possible
when discussing your situation.
Perhaps you yourself are dealing with a medical issue.
This may be a chronic illness or a short-term disability.
Either way, it's important to focus on the progress
that you've made with your health and readiness
to return to work, especially if it's following your doctor's
orders.
Whether your gaps are voluntary or not,
the trick is to demonstrate hope and positivity.
Try to recognize your growth, personally and professionally,
as well as the skills that you've gained
from this period in your life.
Now, before we go any further, please give this video a big
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Also, head down to the comments section
to share your own success addressing employment gaps.
Your words just may spark inspiration and encouragement
in others.
So how do you address gaps in employment?
Whether your leave was voluntary or involuntary,
some circumstances can feel really difficult to discuss.
But try to stay calm, just relax,
and know that there are other applicants
in the exact same shoes as you.
And then follow these steps.
Step one-- prepare for an explanation.
Gaps won't necessarily keep you from getting a job.
However, employers will probably expect
you to give some sort of reasoning
behind why you were unemployed.
So take the time to think about what you're
going to say ahead of time.
Try practicing in front of a mirror
or recording yourself on your cell phone.
Go back, replay it a few times, and then see
if you sound authentic.
Which brings us to step number two-- be honest and upfront.
In other words, just don't shy away from the truth.
As you open up about employment gaps,
strive to be as truthful as you possibly
can without oversharing.
As an example, let's say that you took some family leave.
To explain this you could say something like,
over the last six months, I have acted as the primary caretaker
in my family.
I'm grateful for having the ability to be there
for my family during that time.
Obviously it was a difficult decision
to take time away from working, but I always
knew this leave would be temporary.
I'm now ready to refocus on my career and return back to work.
Now, try to avoid getting into the details like who was sick
or what the sickness was.
Again, of course, be honest and upfront.
Just try to stay focused on your eagerness to get back to work.
This basic template always works well for me.
First explain the reason for the gap.
Why were you not employed?
Then discuss what you did during the gap.
How did you spend your time?
And finally, sprinkle some optimum
as I'm into your response and explain why you're
ready to get back after it.
How do you anticipate to fill the gaps of unemployment?
Which brings me to step number three--
fill the gap.
All right, yes, it's time to get specific on how
you spent your time unemployed.
Now, you may want to include things
like how you've stayed in touch with the industry
or what you've done to prepare for re-entry.
For example, if you've experienced being laid off,
you could say something like, last year my former company
made some organizational changes which eliminated my position.
To be honest, it was a really difficult time.
But since my departure, I've done a lot of self-reflection
about what I'm looking for in a career
and which skills I can offer as an employee.
In reviewing the job description,
it looks like my interests and strengths align
with the needs of the position.
That's what leads me here today, and I'm
looking forward to learning more about this opportunity.
Now, you could also mention freelance work or volunteer
work that you did.
Both provide increased experience and a glimpse
of your passion or interests.
Now, if you took time off to further your career
through gaining additional education,
you could definitely discuss that as well.
For example, you could say something
like, I took time off from working full-time
over the last four months to focus
on attending a coding bootcamp to gain
skills to further my career.
During that time, I learned how to program in Java
and completed several coding projects that
demonstrated my new skills.
Now that I have completed this training,
I am so excited to return to working full-time
in a junior developer role.
I look forward to learning more about your company and the role
that you're looking to fill.
After identifying the wins during your time
away from work, tie them to your next career step.
How has your experiences prepared you
for returning to work?
Focus on transferable skills, knowledge, and experience.
For example, let's say that you have
a gap from being on maternity or paternity leave
but you're ready to get back to work.
Consider the skills that you've gained while becoming a parent
and then connect those skills to the working world.
Because let's be honest, becoming a parent
will help you thrive in any high pressure environment.
Yes, I know from personal experience.
Here's an example.
About four months ago I celebrated becoming
a parent for the first time.
I made the decision to leave my former company
because I wanted to fully focus on this new chapter in my life.
I spent a lot of late nights reviewing
marketing online forums to keep a pulse on what's
happening in the industry.
I'm now at a point where I am ready to return to work.
After reviewing your company's About Us page,
it seems like you promote and encourage
a strong work-life balance.
This is something that has become increasingly more
important to me.
Based on what I know about the role,
I feel like my experience helping companies
grow their brand could help you achieve
your immediate and long-term goals.
Maybe you have been recovering from an illness or injury.
Now, that is not easy, my friend.
Battling an illness requires tenacity, courage,
and commitment.
You don't have to go into great detail about your situation
but be sure to acknowledge the challenge
and that you are now ready to return to work.
Here's an example.
About eight months ago, I was diagnosed
with a health condition that required me to take time off
of work.
I wasn't excited to take the leave
but it was necessary to focus on my recovery.
I'm not used to having that much downtime
so I kept myself busy taking online courses.
Over the last eight months, I have gained certifications
in Microsoft Excel, project management,
and business communication.
Now that I'm able to manage my health,
I'm looking for a role that would allow me to utilize
my new found skills and leverage my previous experience
in business management.
You can bridge this gap for any position.
Be open-minded and give yourself the credit that you deserve.
Step four-- keep it brief and exit if you need to.
Everybody takes time off for all sorts of reasons.
But sometimes they are personal and hard to share.
However, just remember a lot of professionals
have gaps in their employment.
So try to address your gaps with confidence.
Explain your situation and then steer the conversation back
to the interviewer.
And if you feel like the conversation is going somewhere
that you don't want it to go or it's
making you uncomfortable in any way,
you can politely decline from answering their question.
You could say something like, I'd
prefer not to go into more detail.
However, I am very interested in sharing more
about my experience in--
There is no need to shy away from a career gap.
Most of us have faced them at one time or another,
and we all learn and grow during this time.
All right, now, the last step in explaining your career gaps
is step number five-- practice sharing your story.
Let's face it, for most of us, nerves
are inevitable during job interviews.
But by practicing your responses to potential questions
about these gaps, you can ease some
of that anxiety and stress.
Practicing helps you stay level-headed, poised,
and in the moment.
And you can do this with friends or family or your bathroom
mirror or by recording yourself on your phone
like we talked about earlier.
As promised, it is now time for our bonus tip.
Consider using a functional resume.
Functional resumes focus on areas
of expertise, not time periods.
For example, if you're applying for a legal assistant position,
you may have a section on your resume dedicated
to legal experience and another section focused
on your administrative skills or assistant work.
This option allows you to completely omit career gaps
and may be the best option for those of you
with several or larger career gaps.
We actually have an entire video on functional resumes, which
you can check out right up here.
But for those of you using a chronological resume,
you could include your gap.
Instead of a company name and a position title,
use a term or phrase that fits the time period.
For example, personal development, caregiver,
student, sabbatical, medical leave, personal leave,
et cetera.
Include a few bullet points to share
what you accomplished, learned, and experience
during this time, and make it clear
that this chapter in your life led to your enthusiastic return
to work.
Often gaps in our work history can stir up feelings
of insecurity and can lead to anxiety, but they shouldn't.
All of us at one time or another have unexpected or planned life
events that require additional or sometimes
all of our attention.
Find your pride, confidence, and truth
in these chapters of your life.
And let's quickly recap what we learned today.
One, what are career gaps and why do they matter?
Do not be ashamed of taking time off.
Whether it was voluntary or involuntary, gaps happen.
Two, how do you address career gaps?
Prepare, be honest, fill in the gaps, keep it brief,
and practice to eliminate your nerves.
And three-- our bonus tip-- consider
using a functional resume or owning your gaps
on a chronological resume.
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so that you never miss out on a Indeed's career tips.
Check out more from us, and don't miss our video
on informational interviewing.
Thank you all so much for watching.
I'm Sinéad, and I'll see you next time.