Linkedin - What to do about gap being a SAHM?

[BonnieBumble]

I have recently set up a business as a consultant and have one client and a few potential clients.

I have a large employment gap (5 years plus) as I have been a SAHM, it hasn't been an issue with my current client and contacts as I haven't been asked to give a breakdown of my employment history. I now need to create a linkedin profile and I'm concerned about the gap. What should I do? Should I not bother listing any employers and just concentrate on detailing my skills and experience?

No way!

There is a massive positive spin you can put on your SAHM years..

Advanced skills in conflict resolution.

Many years' experience in multi-tasking under extreme pressure to tight deadlines.

Strategic management and purchasing authority for own business.

Early years educational consultant

Design and creative art to defined briefs Easter Bonnet, fifth shepherd's costume

Basic and advanced first aid

or

Return to the workplace reinvigorated from a period of personal growth and reflection, bringing a wealth of widely applicable skills....

and good luck with the job x

I hear what you are saying I just worry that people will dismiss all that as it isn't really relevant. If it wasn't for linkedin I wouldn't be too concerned because as I say it doesn't seem to be an issue for the people that I have met as they haven't asked and I haven't volunteered the information! It's just on linkedin it's there in black and white for everyone to see and I feel exposed..

I think for any half-decent employer this shouldn't be an issue. I work ina small male-dominated company who recently recruited, explicitly mentioned in passing while writing the description that the job might suit someone coming back to work after 'career break' - surprised me!

I'm not sure if timetosmile was joking, but I certainly wouldn't start writing anything like that on a public LinkedIN profile.

I mean, Early years educational consultant - unless you write in your job title that you've been a stay at home parent, this might actually detract from your professional image if e.g. your area of expertise is in the quality management of widget manufacture. And if you DO write it to clearly indicate what you've been doing for those years, you'll just come across as twee.

I know I would wonder at the professionalism of someone who wrote anything like that on there, anyway.

Either:

• Leave a gap on your public profile (just list the years of your jobs before and after)
• Just write in your current role (of course, this hides any glowing aspect of your professional history, which might be a huge negative - e.g. if you've been employed for many years in the sector's number 1 employer)
• Write something professional to explain the gap briefly, but don't write anything contentious (I've seen people write 'career break' with the date and NO details... or something. don't try and joke around or pretend you've been solving world peace, that's all

I think you're making it into a bigger deal than it needs to be - but whatever you do, DO NOT do what timetosmile suggested.

Parisian Wife. I was considering just listing my current role in the employment history but including all my experience and skills in the skills section so it will still be obvious that I have 15 years experience and am not just starting out.

Or alternatively I could put that I have been freelance and a SAHM for the last 7 years, I have done the odd thing for friends but as a favour rather than on a paid basis. I'm not sure if I'm being dishonest if I exaggerate this.

Either one of those would still be fine, I really wouldn't worry about it - you clearly have a wealth of experience to back up any claim to expertise.

Personally? I would put the freelance info (just write Various under the Employer field) - even if it's not strictly on a paid basis, it's still truthful that you've worked on relevant projects. Either that or I'd leave the gap and write nothing. I realise this is highly subjective though.

As long as you don't write anything a) contentious (see timetosmile's suggestion) b) anything that detracts from your professionalism/expertise or c) that's not truthful, you're onto a winner whichever option you finally decide on.

Good luck!

OK, I'm (kind of) joking....my point really is that those SAHM years don't represent a 'blank' or an absence of work(!) or skill development.

A lot of what I people gained during those few years at home transform the way we approach our previous careers, so there's scope for translating some of it into 'bankable' experience.

timetosmile, I just don't agree with you on this. I agree that it's not a blank, but SAHPs who pretend they learn expertise in financial management, child development, task management... this just doesn't ring true in a corporate environment.

I mean, would you seriously claim to have "excellent financial management" skills (for example) because you'd ran a household whilst looking after kids, potentially in an environment where you'd attend meetings with CFOs? It just strikes me as wanting some recognition in an area where it's inappropriate.

That's all.

Perhaps I'm bias - I've never had the opportunity to be a SAHM for anything more than a couple of years - but it just strikes me as desperate and, frankly, unprofessional when women (yes, it's always women) claim to have gained XYZ abilities from being a SAHP... you'd never get a man up-talking a period of SHAPing in the same way. You just wouldn't.

I think if I had been a really good SAHM and tackled it in the same way that I have approached tasks within the workplace I might be able to claim that some of the skills are cross transferable.

But frankly my performance as a SAHM has not been promotion material, there have been times where I have considered inviting myself to a disciplinary hearing for failure to perform...