Leaving This World Behind

[Ansley]

For the last couple of months I have had lots of thoughts and questions about leaving this business. For now I will stick to this one question.

To a potential employer, how do I account for the last few years that I haven't been working a real job?

[pjorourke]

A rich uncle?

[Claudia Mara]

You owned and operated your own successful travel/concierge business?

[Ansley]

Very nice to see you Eve.

[guest051510-1]

House wife to a live-in boyfriend.

[ferdburf]

Turn the negative into a positive. Tell them, "I've taken a few years off to decide what I really want to do with my life. I've decided I want to be in 'this' business and I want to work for 'your' company, and here's why" . . .

[Carrie Hillcrest]

I think I speak for all of us when I chastise you for giving us heart palpitations with that subject line! Gah. Glad to see you're sticking around for at least a little while longer.

I like ferdburf's reply. It's honest without being too honest, and it serves as a good way to redirect the conversation back to stuff that makes you look like an awesome hire.

[atlcomedy]

It depends on what you want to do. For some things, it really is tough to explain a gap. Others, employers really don't care. This is one area where women have it better than men. The idea of being a stay at home wife/partner/mom even a caregiver to an elderly/disabled family member plays well. Not so much for guys. I would say something vague about "taking care of family" & leave it at that.

There is probably a desire to invent a story. Maybe a fictional small business. But, the details of a story have a way of getting complicated or unraveling & in many cases you can be fired for cause years later for making false statements in the pre-employment process.

[npita]

Originally Posted by Ansley

For the last couple of months I have had lots of thoughts and questions about leaving this business. For now I will stick to this one question.

To a potential employer, how do I account for the last few years that I haven't been working a real job?

You worked contract jobs doing something you know enough about to be convincing and for which your list of clients is confidential (as part of your contract.)

[looiecypher]

You took some time off after saving some money to clear your head so you could be fresh for the new career you hoped to begin soon.
You did some travelling,etc.You felt you needed some down time for yourself.
I would think just about anyone could understand these reasons.

[guest041110]

Originally Posted by ferdburf

Turn the negative into a positive. Tell them, "I've taken a few years off to decide what I really want to do with my life. I've decided I want to be in 'this' business and I want to work for 'your' company, and here's why" . . .

Originally Posted by Carrie Hillcrest

...

I like ferdburf's reply. It's honest without being too honest, and it serves as a good way to redirect the conversation back to stuff that makes you look like an awesome hire.

Ansley,

Both Ferdburf and Carrie give great answers as do the others but I think what Carrie and Ferdburf wrote is the best approach. Having been in corporate America for a long time myself, I have found it’s best to answer the questions of why you have not been around while taking a minimalist approach to those answers. Emphasizing what Ferdburf and Carrie posted is going to serve you the best if you re-enter the real world after a long absence.

Above all else, be positive, enthusiastic and honest without too much self-disclosure in your response to the prospective employer. Also sincerity in your answers to them is critical. In the corporate world, people have good BS detectors just as most in the P4P world do however the rules of the real world are different than the P4P world.

Good luck with whatever you do!

[Guest012211-3]

I struggle with the same issue. I will be entering the RW in May, and you should see my CV! I focused on Massage therapy, Salon/Make-up Artist, and leadership skills, LOL. I look like a royal twit! Fortunately I will be in the restaurant business, so I don't think they ask too many questions. However, explaining how I have the funds to move and pay for school is a very tricky situation.

[ElisabethWhispers]

Women can get away with being out of the workforce for a limited or not-so-limited time a lot easier than men can. The "I had a relationship" type of response sounds good to me.

I wouldn't just go on and on about it.

I've thought about this as well and the "I've lived on savings" still sounds to me like the savings ran out and now you have to work. Which could be the truth for many applicants!

All good advice above, I believe!

Oh ... and it IS nice to see you around, Eve!!! Hope things are going well for you!!!

Warmly,
Elisabeth

[Happy Diver]

Originally Posted by Nicole Preston

I struggle with the same issue. I will be entering the RW in May, and you should see my CV! I focused on Massage therapy, Salon/Make-up Artist, and leadership skills, LOL. I look like a royal twit! Fortunately I will be in the restaurant business, so I don't think they ask too many questions. However, explaining how I have the funds to move and pay for school is a very tricky situation.

You won't have any trouble. Restaurant business is full of people with "alternative" pasts. It's one of the few professions where you can jump in and be a star in a few years and no one cares about what you were "back when".

[atlcomedy]

Originally Posted by ElisabethWhispers

I wouldn't just go on and on about it.

Whatever tact you take, don't ramble on about. Have your answer ready, give it & move on.

Just my 2 cents, but the whole "take some time to find myself/see the world" tact sets off my BS detector if it is more than a couple of months.