How to deal with questions on 9 month Bench time..?

[northernladuk]

My ltdco has its own webtulipe and I just put <whatever job title I'm pitching for> working for www.moorfieldtowers.com ... to cover the bench time. Works all the time.

Someone shoot me please.....

[TheFaQQer]

I'm currently at 5 months and counting. I tell the agents "I turned down an extension at my last contract because I'd been away from home constantly for three years and wanted some family time. It's been great - got to do some dad things like taking the girls to school and picking them up, but now I'm ready to start looking again..."

It's true (which helps) - although I have been looking during that time on and off.

[TheFaQQer]

Someone shoot me please.....

Have a break....

Change your password on CUK to some random gibberish. Do not write it down. Log out.

Then, when you've had a break from the depression and bile that is CUK, you can reset your password and pick up where you left off. In the meantime, you get a break from here and can (maybe) do something productive.....

That's what I did.

[NeverBeenNorthOfTheM25]

Someone shoot me please.....

Ouch! Quite highly strung on this topic aren't you ......... they are only fudging a little ......... nothing to go shooting themselves (or yourself) over.

[Darren_Test]

thanks very much for the fantastic response..

During my bench period..

- Started a website dealing with technical discussions in my area, though its in a very early stage (spend £300 for that..!).
- Worked on beta testing of couple of products via "Rent a coder" (did not make much money though..!).
- Took 5 different certifications most of them after self training using trial software.

I have n't put any of these in my CV (except certifications), because if I put this as my last job for my XYZ ltd company, issue will be this role will be my most recent role. So most of the time interview will be focused on most recent role & in this case I donot have too much to discuss except talk abt web site & beta testing.

How you guys manage it when the interviewer started drilling down on most recent job ie this freelancing stuff for own ltd company..?? That again might look like a filler job than real job.

[thunderlizard]

Just talk about it with enthusiasm, and if possible relate it to what you might have to do for him. More likely they'll be asking because it sounds interesting, rather than to try and trip you up.

[DieScum]

If you look through CVs on linkedin it's very common to see some obvious gap fills

- CEO/Director/Freelancer MyCoolBiz.com - obviously just their own company and usually for short time periods.

Thing is who can say that you aren't genuinely trying to run your own business?

[JimBobTwoTeeth]

What a load of tulip. I hope the comes back and bites you big style and I know it does! A colleague applied a bank (that is taking a lot of contractors on at the mo) and lied about just this topic. He had to go throught the basic credit check and employment check and failed cause he lied. Walked off site, in the middle off the office, didn't get paid as he hadn't submitted time sheet blah blah

Ok sit there happy in your job you got it from lying.. good on you... you got lucky!!!

You can be creative, I don't have a problem with that but an outright lie? Thats for idiots. It is illegal to lie on a CV. There is no need if you use a bit of thought and be honest.

My advice would be to mention career break/training/family but do NOT put anything that just isn't true on your CV..

thats my honest opinion.

So was this an outright lie such as making up a role or was it a small lie like adding a month to a role?

[northernrampage]

Any one with long bench recently got success in getting an interview..?? Or even got job..? If so how thy handled these questions on bench period...?

Thanks..

I've had 19 mths

7 mths unemployed, 12 before caring for someone. I have a paragraph at the top explaining that I finished off my degree, and cared for a relative.

Before Christmas, I had 7 interviews in about 8 weeks. About 4 for contract jobs, 3 for permanent. Unfortunately, I get anxious about interviews, and also made some dumb mistakes, so didn't get anything. The time-off made me feel worse.

Last 2 weeks, had 2 phone interviews, and 2 other interviews. One of these, I'm now onto my second interview. Only reason I was able to finally relax was because I started exploring back-up options, and a friend has offered me a temp job in another field, so I didn't "care" as much.

So... what I'm saying is yes, you can get interviews even with a gap. Some agents feedback that it's an issue..... but I'm not so sure it's that big a deal. I get interviews despite the gap on my CV.

I do get agents trying to lower my rate (which is fair enough) however for the 2nd interview next week that's not the case.

As long as you have an explanation I don't think the gap is a problem. For me, it was my mindset. At interviews, the employees generally don't seem to care about gaps.

[worzelGummidge]

I was out of contract for 11 months. December 2008 to November 2009
I was honest.
There is a recession on. First couple of months I looked for contracts, next five months I arranged and did some major work on the house and the next couple of months I waited for the right contract.
The stupid or greedy agents were not interested but they were the ones with either the poor contract roles or taking the highest percentage cuts.
The professional agents were interested.
I am now enjoying a very interesting contract on the best daily rate that I have been on and very close to home.

Stick to your guns, be busy and enjoy.
It might be your first recession but it will not be your last. If money is tight then do anything to earn your rent/mortgage and go on a few technical courses.