Self-employed for 20+ years re-entering workforce - resume help needed!

Hi everyone, I could use your help! I'm in the San Francisco Bay area, self-employed 20+ yrs and have finally have faced the fact I can't make a go of my own business anymore.

I was a successful psychotherapist in private practice with side consulting as a business psychologist since the '80's. Got published, had successful workshops etc. I retrained in small business coaching to work with higher level clients, launched my own coaching and training company in 2000, and have continually trained in marketing. So a wide variety of skills & experience are there, but a financially viable client base is not, so I'm putting my business to bed and looking for a job.

Jobs I'm qualified for right off the bat are dismally few. Or maybe I'm just not looking with the right filters in place. No funds for another degree or a move, and need to work with what I've already got. Which is a lot but...what to do with it?

My first problem is that I don't even know what categories of job to look for - everything has changed considerably since I last worked in the public sector over ten years ago.

Any thoughts on that score, *please* let me know.

More relevant to this forum, the 20 years of self-employment on my resume I'm told, is the kiss of death for hiring managers.

I've had a few corporate gigs, one-offs, in the last 8 years but only a few, nobody's in the position they used to hold, so I have no references to count on from them anyway. I'm not sure whether I should include these with no way for an employer to verify them.

Any idea on how to spin the 20 years of self-employment? Or what kind of job I can get now with a boatload of serious experience but no public sector jobs in the last decade?

Thanks so much!

I have been going to a job service at a local church. They say to build your resume to show your accomplishments. Show your jobs (whether paid, freelance, or volunteer), and under each, have a very strong statement of your accomplishments were for each job, how you brought value to the job.

Hi Mary,
Thanks but this isn't really what I'm looking for. I've been consistently self-employed and in Silicon Valley this can be a problem. Never been out of work, it's just how to spin it in front of corporate hiring managers. Thanks for your help though!

Well to me you already created your resume, but now you just have to format it. I think you continue in the industry that you have already been working in. I don't think you have to be working in a "public sector" to be experience, working for yourself is experience in it self.

Gina Are you a legitimate, accredited psychologist with a doctorate, who focused on business or rather what are your credentials?

Gina,

If your business had a name, use that and refrain from calling yourself "Self-Employed," but give yourself a title relative to the position to pursue. Unethical? No. You owned the business and can call yourself whatever you want. Human resources uses schemes of sorts and sizes to disqualify you, so you're just as entitled to do what's necessary to stay in the game.

Try categorizing your accomplishments rather than a single and/or continuous list thereof. For example, "Sales & Marketing," "Budgeting & Finance,"

Always focus on results and shy away from narrative position descriptions. Why? If you were a hiring manager with 200+ resumes on the desk, would you want to read stories and job descriptions or see what an applicant can produce for you? The answer is obvious for any business wanting to remain in business. Plus, hiring authorities will most likely be able to deduce the duties from the title, so describing positions serves minimal purpose except repetition - unless, of course, it's a very unique, specialized or executive position. If you're in an academic field, use a curriculum vitae that lists your published works, presentations and research projects. The CV is more an outline or index than evidence of productivity.

Also, I encourage you to distrust "certified resume writers." Resume writers do not hire people nor do they have the merit to "certify" what wins an employer's favor. Resumes, just like all messages (no matter the means), need to win an audience, not the message sender.

Good Luck! Actually, I hope your search has already ended.

I'd suggest networking with others in your field. Make use of the valuable connections you have.