Episode Transcript

Chris Villanueva 0:04
How do I address a career gap? Should I add a photo to my resume, and why the heck am I not getting any interviews? This is the Let’s Eat, Grandma Career Warrior Podcast. My name is Chris Villanueva. We help mid to senior level professionals land their dream job and feel supported along the way, so you have a partner on your job search, you’re going to hear resume tactics, career coaching and updates thatwill further your career and I hope that this authentic episode with real Q and A from job seekers gives you a sense of hope, as well as knowing that there were other people who had probably shared the same exact question as you.

Chris Villanueva 0:39
If you want to ask a question for the show, head on over to letseatgrandma.com and submit your resume for a free critique. We’re going to be taking questions on the critique form, and if you are selected, you just might be on the show in the form of your question. So thanks so much. Head on over to letseatgrandma.com to submit your own questions here. All right, so this first batch of questions actually comes from our clients here at Let’s Eat, Grandma.

Chris Villanueva 1:06
Before they started working with us, they had some good questions. Going to keep these anonymous because I realized I didn’t ask for permission to use the name. So I’m going to use anonymous names forthe next batch. I will get permission and use real names here, but the first question comes from Jean, Jean asks, Should I add a photo to my resume?

Chris Villanueva 1:27
All right, so it is 2025 we have progressed kind of in the way that we create resumes. There’s a lot of a lot of prettiness out there. My stance is still the same as it always has been. Do not add a photo to your resume because it detracts, it detracts away from your accomplishments and the things that make you qualified for the job. Photos are more prominent in the CVS, but the thing about the photo is you don’t want people to pay attention to that.

Chris Villanueva 1:54
That’s usually the first thing that will pop out on paper. And so we are biased as humans. The resume should be a very cut and dry document that focuses on qualifications for the role and nothing else. What makes you qualified? Why should you come in for the interview? The photo, if you, even if you have an amazing one, does distract away from that, and you have to worry about design, and it’s something that simply does not look professional, at least here for business positions here in the United States.

Chris Villanueva 2:24
So I have a good, strong stance here. I would say, instead, focus on including a nice photo on your LinkedIn profile and for your resume. Let it be about the words. Second question comes from Joseph. Joseph says, I have a career gap. How would I explain that? This is a very common asked, commonly asked question here. Career gaps are something that are normal. They’re nothing for you to fear. But a career gap is something that you don’t want people to pay attention to when it comes to your resume.

Chris Villanueva 2:53
So first of all, make sure that the top half of your resume so the summary section as well as whatever section comes next is the strongest possible thing to where you’re giving people a reason to bring you in for an interview. You’ve accomplished something that inspires curiosity for somebody. You are putting out good numbers. You are including the right types of keywords that are a good match for job postings. That is the first thing that you have to make sure. And then the second thing, if the career gap, I would say, is a recent one that goes beyond just a few months, then I would say, Sure, include this in a cover letter and mention unapologetically why you may have that gap.

Chris Villanueva 3:34
Again, you’re not apologizing, but you’re explaining, perhaps what happened in a few words, and what you were doing to stay active, something on Coursera, volunteer work, things like that, to stay active. The fourth person comes from Amar. Amar says, I am in Pakistan, and my LinkedIn says, New York, for networking purposes, looking for visa sponsored jobs. Why am I not getting any interviews? Well, this is a complicated question, why you may not be getting interviews, and you have, yes, a complicated situation, being in Pakistan, but applying and networking at least in New York City, I would say you have the right idea in putting New York in certain keywords.

Chris Villanueva 4:14
I think this makes sense to get on LinkedIn and set locations in New York if you do plan on being there, and if you are physically able to get to New York and to apply and get jobs there, however, at the end of the day, people are going to find out that you are in Pakistan, and at the end of the day you want a company that is okay with your relocation and where you’re at.

Chris Villanueva 4:37
So what I would say, and this comes from Mayor and Robert Huntley, shout out to our Career Coach partner, you are going to have a harder job search. Yes, it’s going to be a bit more complicated, but you’re going to get there. And I would say the way you do that is you contact people at the companies that you’re going for who have been in the same situation, the same exact boat, as you you find you make that a part of your networking strategy, and you’re going to have people who have relocated from different countries, people who are so called expats, or folks who are traveled abroad, and find and talk to those people, see what they have done, and they more than likely would be more than happy to put you in touch with the right people. Essentially, all right.

Chris Villanueva 5:16
The fifth question comes from Matt, how do I list my skills in computer proficiency, if that’s the area that I lack, This is a good question. Depends on if skills and computer proficiency is something that the next job you are going to be applying for is calling for, and they need that essentially. If so, I would say you might want to consider applying for other jobs or upskilling. But if this is something that you feel like you have, at least something that is going to match the proficiency that the job postings calling for, then include that in the skill section.

Chris Villanueva 5:50
I think that’s perfectly fine. You’re gonna have a hard time including this any professional experiences. If you don’t have specific, specific projects you’ve worked on before that. You can say, professionally, you’ve been able to affect change for but I would say you can include this. If this is a skill you feel okay with.

Chris Villanueva 6:09
I would say again, certifications and projects can go a long way. So if you have a project that you’ve worked with a certain skill, even if it’s not a professional one, I would put that in its own separate section and certifications, there are so many options online and things that you can take advantage of, all right. So that wraps it up for today’s Q and A episode.

Chris Villanueva 6:31
Thank you so much for submitting your questions. We have so much good content coming up. So make sure to subscribe to this episode and share text, LinkedIn, post this episode to your friends if you found it to be valuable. Thanks. Career Warrior Podcast, and before you go, remember, if you’re not seeing the results you want in your job, search our highly trained team of professional resume writers here at Let’s Eat, Grandma can help head on over to letseatgrandma.com/podcast/ to get a free resume critique and $70 off any one of our resume writing packages.

Chris Villanueva 7:06
We talk all the time on the show about the importance of being targeted in your job search, and with our unique writing process and focus on individual attention, you’ll get a resume cover letter and LinkedIn profile that are highly customized and tailored to your goals to help you get hired faster again, head on over to letseatgrandma.com/podcast/ Thanks, and I’ll see you next time you.