I want to try to get a part time job. One of the biggest obstacles is going to be explaining my large gaps between jobs. I’m guessing it’ll probably come up during some interviews. These gaps extend over multiple years (up to almost 4 years). Also, all of my employment stints have been pretty short. I worry that the gaps along with not being able to keep working a job for very long are going to be detrimental to my ability to get a new one.
How confidential are interviews considered? I am wondering if trying to explain my mental health situation is even an option at this point. Would it be smarter to try and be less specific? Maybe just say I’ve been taking free courses online/helping around the neighborhood and waiting for the right opportunity to present itself?
I am going to discuss this with my therapist as well.
As I’ve posted here previously, you can say that you took time off to care for a sick member of your family. You don’t need to disclose that the sick member of your family you were caring for was you. If pressed for info, just demur and say that you’re not ready to talk about it yet. It works and it’s close enough to the truth. Lying is a thing to be avoided.
I’m a little leery of this one as it is based on revealing your illness which many counselors or employment agencies I’ve run into kind of advise against. But it’s an option and there’s some good information here.
We on here say to tell them you were taking care of family or taking care of a sick family member. Ninjastar said they dont have to know the sick family member was you. I have never told an employer about my mental health definitely not during the interview or any other time. I think you have a very strong chance of sabotaging your chance of getting the job if you were to tell them you have a schiz diagnoses during the interview.
If you’re not in school and you say you’re in school, that’s a tad dishonest. Also problematic if you’ve been out of the workforce for an extended period. It’s possible to check enrollment records. Will McD’s check you out to flip burgers? No. Could it haunt you later if you move up into a significant role in a company? Yup.
My advice is just to be careful with making claims that aren’t true. I learned my lesson about dishonesty when I was drinking, stuff catches up with you even decades later.
I’ve come across this problem as well. I just tell the employer/interviewer that I’ve been dealing with “health issues”, which is the honest truth but doesn’t exactly divulge too much info. If they press and ask what health problems I’ve been having, I just say I’ve been dealing with an “anxiety disorder”. Also true.
I just walk into an interview and announce I’m schizophrenic and tell the interviewer I want his job or the CEO’s job and there’s nothing that will stop me. It’s been the catylist for many long, long vacations.
