I worked in local government for almost 12 years when my dad (who lived alone) fell ill and needed a caregiver. He couldn’t afford to hire one, and I’m an only child. I felt it was my duty to care for him, so I moved out of state to do so and was forced to resign from my job as they do not allow out-of-state employees and could not accommodate my request for sabbatical.
While caring for my father, I started driving for DoorDash as I needed the autonomy and flexibility such gig work provided so I could prioritize taking care of him. It’s been three years now, and my caregiving role has come to an end. I’m revamping my résumé and am struggling with how to explain my situation.
My previous position paid $80k a year in a legal support role. I’ve been living off of savings, minimal pay for caregiving, and a pittance from DoorDash. I added a career break on my LI profile and noted that I was caregiving for a relative. I also added a period titled “self-employment” but am struggling on how to define this. I am concerned that if I state that I’ve been driving for DoorDash, potential employers are going to take one look at my recent history and pass me over. I haven’t yet applied for anything and want to get my résumé and LinkedIn dialed in before I do.
Should I label the entire 3-year period as self-employment and bypass mentioning the caregiving career break? How do I explain the “self-employment” on my LI and résumé, or to a prospective employer if I get an interview? I want to be as honest as possible without shooting myself in the foot.