Okay. Umm... Under "Weaknesses" you've put eczema.
May 1, 2012 3:46 PM Subscribe
Help me get back into the job market after nearly a decade of some combination of drug addiction and self employment.
OK so here goes. I have a BA in History from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. I have a year of grad school at SUNY-Binghamton in History but left (on good terms) before I finished my MA or (as intended) PhD but never went back as planned.
After leaving school I opened a bookstore which I ran for about a year before I got divorced and sold the store to my sister. Around the same time I started using meth and that went on for 5 or 6 years. All the while I was doing doing drugs I supported myself mostly by buying used books and selling them online. I never got drug charges or anything but I do have a misdemeanor theft charge stemming from some lame-brain stolen check scheme that's about 3 or 4 years old now. That's my criminal record. I have been clean for two+ years now. Since getting clean I have gotten back into the buying and selling books pretty hardcore, enough that I haven't really needed to look for a job. I pay myself legitimately through my company, pay taxes, am a regular law-abiding tax paying dude. But, well a lot of buts: I need a job with insurance and I don't make enough selling books to buy insurance, the book business is getting harder as some of my old sources have dried up so now I am working much longer hours and my expenses are getting higher (like everyone's) so turning a decent profit without amassing a lot of debt yadda-yadda-yadda, but mainly I am really bored with it (granted I will keep doing it as long as possible until I find something else) and want to do something at least tangentially related to my degree field because, after all, I pursued History over something safer because of my love of the subject and because I enjoy and am fairly adept at research.
My question is how to handle applications and my résumé with having a few "lost years" in there? Suppose I get my résumé out and get some interviews, how honest do I need to be about that time of my life? I am not fond of lying having done plenty of that in my previous life, but I also don't want to sabotage my chances of getting a job.
(Also, if anyone has recommendations for a certain type of (non-teaching) job that I should be looking for that I can actually put to use the skills I am still paying for when I send it my student loan payments that would be appreciated).
OK so here goes. I have a BA in History from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. I have a year of grad school at SUNY-Binghamton in History but left (on good terms) before I finished my MA or (as intended) PhD but never went back as planned.
After leaving school I opened a bookstore which I ran for about a year before I got divorced and sold the store to my sister. Around the same time I started using meth and that went on for 5 or 6 years. All the while I was doing doing drugs I supported myself mostly by buying used books and selling them online. I never got drug charges or anything but I do have a misdemeanor theft charge stemming from some lame-brain stolen check scheme that's about 3 or 4 years old now. That's my criminal record. I have been clean for two+ years now. Since getting clean I have gotten back into the buying and selling books pretty hardcore, enough that I haven't really needed to look for a job. I pay myself legitimately through my company, pay taxes, am a regular law-abiding tax paying dude. But, well a lot of buts: I need a job with insurance and I don't make enough selling books to buy insurance, the book business is getting harder as some of my old sources have dried up so now I am working much longer hours and my expenses are getting higher (like everyone's) so turning a decent profit without amassing a lot of debt yadda-yadda-yadda, but mainly I am really bored with it (granted I will keep doing it as long as possible until I find something else) and want to do something at least tangentially related to my degree field because, after all, I pursued History over something safer because of my love of the subject and because I enjoy and am fairly adept at research.
My question is how to handle applications and my résumé with having a few "lost years" in there? Suppose I get my résumé out and get some interviews, how honest do I need to be about that time of my life? I am not fond of lying having done plenty of that in my previous life, but I also don't want to sabotage my chances of getting a job.
(Also, if anyone has recommendations for a certain type of (non-teaching) job that I should be looking for that I can actually put to use the skills I am still paying for when I send it my student loan payments that would be appreciated).
Just tell them you run a small business, but that you're looking now for a full-time position. No one needs to know any more than that about the details of your medical history, and you can then transition into telling them about how all of the skills you've developed as a business owner will translate into awesome things you can do for their company.
posted by decathecting at 4:01 PM on May 1, 2012
posted by decathecting at 4:01 PM on May 1, 2012
Good news! You won't have to explain any of the tricky stuff, because this is a really clear narrative: you had a bookstore, bookstore didn't work out, you've been selling books online, now you're looking for something more stable given the iffy nature of the market for print books. Nobody will ask you another question, because that story makes perfect sense. You don't have to mention your medical issues at all--the story makes just as much sense without them.
I actually know two people who are in your same situation, without the substance abuse bit of the story. People are getting out of bookselling in droves right now.
posted by Sidhedevil at 5:43 PM on May 1, 2012 [7 favorites]
I actually know two people who are in your same situation, without the substance abuse bit of the story. People are getting out of bookselling in droves right now.
posted by Sidhedevil at 5:43 PM on May 1, 2012 [7 favorites]
Yes, and you have the added bonus of the bookstore being in the hands of your sister, so you can just basically skip over the 5 years of non-involvement, no? Good for you for turning it around, by the way. Don't let this "narrative" trip you up!
posted by thinkpiece at 4:11 AM on May 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by thinkpiece at 4:11 AM on May 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
It also has the benefit of being true.
posted by inturnaround at 3:54 PM on May 1, 2012 [3 favorites]