We talk a lot about hustle in this industry. About growth, ambition, momentum. But we rarely talk about the pauses, and what those pauses actually mean.
There’s this unspoken expectation that the moment you leave a role, you should already be stepping into your next one. Recruiters comb through CVs like they’re forensic reports. Any gap between jobs is flagged, questioned, frowned upon.
I’ve even read posts about how to “spin” your career gaps, as if it’s something to hide. As if you’ve failed. As if your value is somehow tied to being constantly employed.
Here’s a more honest answer:
Sometimes, I didn’t find the right opportunity.
Sometimes, the market wasn’t moving.
And sometimes, I just wanted a break to consider my next move, without rushing into something for the sake of appearances.
Not out of laziness. Not because I wasn’t trying. But because I didn’t want to take a job I’d regret later — or one that would pull me off course just to fill a gap. Even when I felt desperate, I respected myself enough not to let that desperation make the decision.
What I did with that time — whether I explored new ideas, upskilled, freelanced, reflected, or simply rested, isn’t a flaw in my story. It’s part of it.
Those gaps speak to self-respect.
To resilience.
To the ability to wait, when waiting is the braver choice.
We need to stop treating time away from work like a red flag.
Sometimes the gap isn’t a problem.
Sometimes, it’s the smartest move a person can make.