Reentering the workforce after years of unemployment? Make your resume work to your advantage.
Every stay-at-home mom faces a great challenge when she decides to jump back to the workplace. No matter how good she is in managing projects, finding creative solutions to problems and doing tasks simultaneously, the noticeable gap in her resume may make it difficult for her to market herself to prospective employers. So, what can you do if you are one of the thousands of stay at home moms who want to reenter the workforce? You can start by updating your resume.
Top Resume Tips for Stay at Home Moms
Select the best format. Stay at home moms should not use the chronological resume format which includes a date by date listing of all your past employment since this will highlight the gap in your employment history. For best results, use a functional or combination resume format instead.
By using a functional resume, you can better emphasize your accomplishments and what you have to offer while downplaying your work experience (or the lack of it). On the other hand, the combination or hybrid resume allows you to highlight your most relevant qualifications while providing your employment history at the same time.
Take the initiative. Most hiring managers will readily assume that stay at home moms have outdated and rusty skills. Prove them wrong. Take the initiative to update your skills. Take a class, whether online or at a community college, to become more proficient at what you do. This can also speak volumes about your character and work ethics.
Put volunteer work to good use. If you did some major volunteer work and it involved making decisions, long-term planning, managing budgets, and dealing with conflict, then you should definitely include it in your resume. You should consider it as a job, although an unpaid one. Remember, any experience that required you to make decisions, take control or effect change carries great value and can be listed on your resume as long as it produced results.
Stand out. Think outside the box to outshine the competition. You have some serious issues to consider (your employment gap) so you need to impress your hiring managers. Do everything you can to make them see that you are ready to return to work and that you are the ideal candidate for the position.
Don’t rely on your resume. Stay at home moms who have been out of the workforce for several years will find it difficult to find a suitable job through online applications. To increase your chances of getting your foot in the door, you need to use your network to gain the opportunity to meet the decision makers in person and make them see that you are a perfect fit for the job.
