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by throwaway14831 858 days ago
As someone who hires people, hence the throwaway:

* Just apply to everything, you'll get used to it. Don't be picky, don't focus on backend, look for testing, QA, etc.

* Polish your CV. Do NOT try to explain anything regarding the last 3 years in your CV. The CV is just there to get you into interviews. Just state the pure job facts as they are.

* The most important thing is to get you into a job. ANY job. Be flexible with compensation. Once you are back in the game, it's much easier to find something else.

* Never, I repeat: NEVER, mention ANY kind of mental issue, be it depression, anxiety, whatever. While you might get sympathy, it is a huge red flag to any HR department and will result in you not getting hired. Seriously, pretty much ANY other explanation will be better than dealing with mental problems (well, maybe don't use "jail"). Don't be afraid to lie, your personal issues are nobody's business. Just say you traveled the world. Learn to lie convincingly, details matter!

2 comments

Good advice in general, but...

> Don't be afraid to lie, your personal issues are nobody's business. Just say you traveled the world. Learn to lie convincingly, details matter!

Agree, don't talk about personal issues, but, don't lie! Then you have to keep up the facade and it's exhausting. If you want to be honest, perhaps smile and say the last three years are behind you...

> "smile and say the last three years are behind you"

No offense, but that would be a terrible answer. IF you really, really want to be honest, say you had medical issues, but that it is all fine now. No interviewer will dig deeper here, as it would be plain illegal to do so. Still, I think there are better answers than that. I'm sure the OP did SOMETHING in the last three years. Maybe you traveled abroad a bit, read a few books, so just say you took some time to grow as a person, whatever. It's not really lying if there is some truth in it.

Sure, this we can agree on :)
I'm in a job and I get mostly positive reviews but I have issues getting tasks done due to what I ,(and my GP) consider ADHD. I wish I felt comfortable telling my boss so they could help manage me properly, but I'm afraid it would come off as an excuse after such a long time at the company.