What to say about the elephant in your CV

I know, I know. There’s a yawning chasm between my most recent employment and the one before that. Ten fat years, seemingly unaccounted for. Big. Red. Flag. What recruiter wouldn’t flip right on past such an obviously unworthy candidate? 

Sure, my current job title sounds impressive enough, and my job description highlights exactly the kinds of skills and experience that would make me more than qualified for mid- to senior-level management positions. 

But that gap…

It’s the reason my next professional move will likely involve a step down in rank, responsibility, and salary. Until some recruiter, somewhere, sees something in me that’s worth taking a huge risk on. 

I know I’m not the only woman with a gap like this. And I know my gap isn’t unique. But here’s the thing about the gap. If my gap had its own CV, I could show you that during exactly zero moments of those unaccounted-for years was I idle. I was accruing some of the most valuable experience a person can gain, every ounce of which has contributed to my success in my current position (but none of which is acceptable on the résumé of someone applying for managerial positions).

As a part-time tutor, I became an expert at communicating challenging concepts from multiple angles in order to help students with different learning strengths succeed.

When I picked up my life and moved to a new country, I discovered how to adapt to and function in an unfamiliar environment, even under the most difficult of circumstances.

While I was pursuing an advanced degree (in a foreign language), I harnessed my natural curiosity and became an excellent researcher, someone who can uncover answers and synthesize solutions to any question or problem.

While I was undergoing years of invasive and demoralizing fertility treatments followed by a horrendous high-risk pregnancy, I learned to withstand adversity, pain, and trauma and remain optimistic.

While I was caring for a terminally ill parent, I practiced taking the reins and getting all the work done—even the jobs that no one wanted to do.

As the mother of two young children, I can calmly manage any crisis and keep the chaos to a minimum.

As a woman who needed to reinvent herself after a long employment gap, I am adept at teaching myself new skills and knowing when and how to find talented people to lean on and learn from.

My 10-year gap made me smarter, stronger, and scrappier than most of the candidates against whom I will be competing for my next position. My ten-year gap made me who I am. And until someone takes a chance on me and bumps that ten-year gap off my résumé, I’m going to be the only person who knows that.

About the author:

Part of our Fall/Winter 2024 Issue. New stories, poems, and essays now through December 2024.

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