I want to talk about something a lot of job seekers ask me about: explaining employment gaps on resumes. 😱

Remember your resume should be curated based on your target role and your experience.

And your past work experience should be in chronological order.

It doesn't mean if you have a "work gap" you should lie or make things up - that's no bueno because you could be asked about it in an interview.

The truth is, it's very normal to have career gaps and most job seekers panic about it way more than they need to, imo.

Maybe you took time off to: 

👉🏽 Parent 
👉🏽 Travel 
👉🏽 Take care of a family member 
👉🏽 Take a sabbatical 
👉🏽 Go back to school 
👉🏽 Recover from illness
👉🏽 Medidate on a moutain 
 

Whatever the reason, it's all good.

Believe it or not, having "gaps" in your employment is not as off-putting to employers as most people think.

Everyone, including the hiring team, knows life happens and things come up, so you don't need to hide it.

In fact, I suggest you do the opposite of hiding it - be upfront about it so everyone understands what you did during that time.

As long as you can explain it and it makes sense, people won't fault you for it.

The key is to make it part of yourcareer narrative.

Eitheraddress it right on your resume or in your first interview.

Keep it honest, concise, and confident. 👈🏽

There's no need tell a long story about how you feel guilty but how you had to take time off from work, blah blah blah. Just be direct.

This way youaddress the question in people's minds right awayand you can all move on.

Here is an example of what you could write on your resume:

"Travel Sabbatical - Visited 7 countries while completing coding classes online at Gyfted, June 2018 - December 2018"

Short and sweet and to the point.

There is no reason to be ashamed about these experiences and time gaps, employers get it. 

As long as you are able to explain it in your career story and tease out relevant skills and learnings, you should be good. 

If an employer thinks it looks bad that you had a gap, well then it’s probably not a fit anyway!

I repeat...as long as it makes sense and is personal, people usually don't flinch, they just move on with the interview questions.

Das it.

Control your narrative and be proud of your story!