Jackie Roosevelt Robinson

Jackie Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919, in a small town of Cairo, Georgia, to a family of sharecroppers. Jackies mother, Mallie Robinson, single handedly raised him and his four siblings. They later moved to Pasadena, California, where they encountered much racial discrimination. They were the only black family living on the block at that time so Jackie did not have a very pleasant childhood. He had no friends and never went out into the neighborhood. He grew up excelling in many different sports though, such as: football, basketball, baseball, and track. He went to high school at John Muir Technical High and played all four sports there. He then went on to college at University of California at Los Angeles or better known as UCLA. At UCLA he was the first athlete to be on four varsity teams. In 1941 he made the All-American football team. After college, he became a professional football player for the Los Angeles Bulldogs. He then enlisted in the ! U.S. Army due to financial pressure on his family. He eventually became a second lieutenant. Not long after that, Jackie was court-marshaled for speaking out on racial discrimination. He then was given an honorable discharge. In 1945, Jackie played in the Negro Leagues of baseball. He traveled all over America with the Kansas City Monarchs. He and his friends, Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson, heard about a man who was trying to integrate baseball. Jackie never thought that the man, Branch Rickey, would choose him. Jackie started his professional baseball career with the Dodgers. By the end of his first season with the dodgers he had married his love, Rachel Isum, had gotten 12 homeruns, 29 steals, and a .297 batting average, which means that every ONE-THOUSAND times he batted he got a hit 297 times. He also got the Rookie of the Year Award, given to the rookie with the best statistics. In 1949, he was selected as the National League Most Val...

How to explain career gaps in your resume to an employer

How to explain career gaps in your resume to an employer It’s easy to picture your career as one long, unbroken path, from the start of adulthood to the day you retire. You know what’s not so easy? Reality. Life can get in the way of even the best-planned career paths, causing gaps and disruption in your employment history. Maybe you took time off for personal health reasons or to take care of a child or family member. Maybe you got laid off, and it took longer than expected to find a new gig. Maybe, at one point, you decided to go backpacking through Lithuania for a year. Whatever the cause, you’re not alone. And a gap isn’t a dealbreaker- we promise. So let’s look at ways to approach breaks in your work history as you’re looking for a new job. 5 rules to explaining a resume gap1. Be honestLying on a resume is always going to be a huge no-no. (And in these days of easily Googleable personal info, it’s a fast way to self-sabotage.) If you’re trying to spin a work gap, don’t put dates on your resume that don’t exist.What you can do is format your resume so that brief gaps aren’t so glaringly obvious. For example, instead of saying that you worked at X company from March 2014 to February 2018, you can use just the years (2014–2018).2. Be selectiveYour resume doesn’t necessarily need to include every single job you’ve ever held, especially if you’ve already been working for a long time. It’s acceptable to omit jobs (especially far-back ones or jobs that are not super-relevant to the job for which you’re applying now) and focus on the most relevant.3. Be a format rebelThere’s no hard-and-fast rule that your resume needs to follow the oh-so-traditional format of header, opening line/objective, then work experience. Instead, if you’re trying to spin an employment gap, consider using a skills-based resume format, which puts the Skills section front and center before your work history.Remembe r: your resume is a professional narrative, and you control that. If you want to make the story your skills and qualifications rather than the amount of time spent in other jobs, you can make that the focus.4. Be productive during your time awayIf you’re anticipating an upcoming break or you’re still in one as you start to think about what comes next, make sure you’re using your time to stay current on any necessary skills or certifications you’ll need. Keeping your toe in the water can make for a much easier narrative to sell when you’re ready to get back to the full-time grind.5. Be prepared to talk about itHowever you decide to frame the gap in your resume, it may come up in the interview. This shouldn’t be a â€Å"hide your shame† situation. People understand that life throws challenges that require us to make choices or adjustments. Whatever caused the break in your resume, it happened. It’s okay to own that. But do keep in mind that potential employers aren’t allowed to make hiring decisions based on your personal or family status, so you’re not obligated to give details. It’s okay to keep it general.Like with your resume, this is your chance to make the narrative what you want it to be, and emphasize the positive aspects. Emphasize what you learned from the experience, and what makes you ready to pick back up with this new job.If you were fired or laid off: â€Å"I wasn’t expecting things to shake out that way, but it gave me a chance to dig deep into my career goals, build new skills, and refocus my energies.†If you chose to take time off to travel or similar: â€Å"I’d reached a point where I needed to take a breather and re-evaluate my career path. It helped me build my skills and taught me so much about working with people from different cultures and perspectives. And now I’m back with more energy and focus than ever.†If you had health issues: â€Å"I was going through a tough time, and decided to take the time to concentrate on getting better. I’m a stronger person for devoting that time to my recovery, and I’m ready to take on what comes next.†If you were taking care of family: â€Å"I decided to prioritize my family for the past two years. Now I’m in a position to pick up my career and focus on my professional goals. Plus, after juggling this care and other responsibilities, my time management and organizational skills are stronger than ever!†Explaining gaps in your employment history may not be your ideal situation, but it shouldn’t be a source of despair, either. Be positive and make sure you’re emphasizing all the things that make you a great candidate, and you’ll be ready.