You lost your job a year ago and in the meantime, have taken on a couple short-term jobs to pay the bills.

The question is: should you include those filler gigs on your resume? Or skip them?

On the one hand, if you don’t include them, it might look like you’ve been doing a whole lot of nothing while unemployed. On the other hand, if you do include them – and they’re not relevant to the position you’re applying for – it could detract from your chances of landing an interview.

So what should you do?

First, stop sweating it so much. As Houston recruiters, Murray Resources can tell you that hiring managers know the past few years have been ugly, even for the most talented among us. And, as a result, they’re more judicious than they were in the past when it comes to short-term jobs and resume gaps.

In addition, if you’ve had a stable work history up until the economic collapse, than you’re simply a victim of circumstances. Your short-term jobs are a blip in an overall steady background. If you’re really good at what you do, a hiring manager will see that.

That said, if you’ve held a half dozen temporary jobs or short-term jobs in the last year, you may not want to list every single one. Their sheer number will overshadow all that great experience you accumulated in the past.

So rather than listing all the short-term jobs you’ve held and looking like a job-hopper, choose one or two to promote. Select the ones that are most relevant to the positions you’re applying. The ones you list may be different, depending on the job opening, but that’s fine. You’ll want to tailor your resume for each position you apply to anyway.

Also, when it comes to short-term work, you may want to avoid listing the months and years of your tenure in your work history and list the years only. This will give you a little wiggle room.

And finally, when you do get an interview, be prepared to answer questions about your spotty work history over the past year. Just let the hiring manager know you’ve been taking short-term work to pay the bills, but didn’t include it all on your resume because it was outside your area of expertise. There’s nothing wrong with taking a less-than-ideal job to support yourself in tough times; in fact, the hiring manager may respect you more for it.

Want More Job Search Help from the Experts?

Let Murray Resources know. As Houston recruiters, we will work to get to know you, your background, skills and personality – all so we can match you with job opportunities that are a terrific fit. Contact us today to learn more.