Combating Ageism During Your Job Search
By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter
Ageism exists AND there are things you can do to minimize its impact in getting interviews and more. This is a link to the interview I did about writing resumes for the federal government
The Emotional Rollercoaster in Job Search (and How to Deal With It)
Ageism exists, and ResumeBuilder published a survey, where nearly 40% of hiring managers acknowledged reviewing applicants’ resumes with age bias. Within that survey, they pointed out that 80% of those managers indicated that they have concerns about taking on employees who are 60 and older and under the age of 25.
So if you’ve been working for more than a quarter of a century– you know, 25 years or more– do not list every bit of experience you have in your resume, because they’re really only interested, employers are really only interested in the most recent and relevant information.
So, as a general rule, try to keep your resume to two, maybe two and a half pages. Instead of putting your entire address there, just indicate city, state, and zip
code. Take graduation dates out of your resume. Unless it’s from a pedigree school, move your degree toward the end and just basically indicate where you went to school and what degrees you have. If you have additional education after school, you can list that there as well.
Email addresses. Don’t use Hotmail. Don’t use aol.com. Use a Gmail address. This is one of those classic ageist things as though you have out-of-date technologies, and skills, but make sure you stay current. Current basically translates into relevant for your industry and field.
Maximize the use of your network and with your network, don’t just simply think of age contemporaries. Think of those younger, as well as those older than you as being part of who you network with– former employees, former subordinates, and former leaders of organizations are great people to network with.
There are Age Friendly organizations and you can look for a certification from the Certified Age Friendly Employer program. It will indicate that they are less biased than others. And while you’re searching, don’t neglect government agencies. You have a great shot there. Now, on the federal government level, you have to have a different kind of resume that’s very thorough, and very detailed. And I’ll have a link to an interview that I did with someone named Katherine Troutman, who’s got a multi-edition book out on federal resumes. Working for government, whether it’s federal, state, or local governments, you are also less likely to be discriminated against.
I hope you found this helpful. I’m Jeff Altman. Visit my website, TheBigGameHunter.us. There’s a ton in the blog that can help you. I’m hired by people to provide no BS career advice. And in doing so, I help with job search, hiring more effectively, management, leadership, career transitions, and resolving workplace issues.
If you’re interested in my coaching you, you can schedule time for an introductory call, which I call a discovery call, schedule time for coaching, and find out about my courses, books, and guides at my website, TheBigGameHunter.us There is a ton there that can help you.
Also, connect with me on LinkedIn. My Network will probably be larger than yours. My page there is linkedin.com/in/TheBigGameHunter Have a terrific day and be great!
[svp]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyKEB6KgUiY[/svp]
ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER
Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter is a coach who worked as a recruiter for what seems like one hundred years. His work involves career coaching, as well as executive job search coaching, job coaching, and interview coaching. He is the host of “No BS Job Search Advice Radio,” the #1 podcast in iTunes for job search with over 2400 episodes.
Are you interested in 1:1 coaching, interview coaching, advice about networking more effectively, how to negotiate your offer or leadership coaching? People hire me to provide No BS career advice whether that is about a job search, hiring better, leadership, management or support with a workplace issue. Schedule a discovery call at my website, www.TheBigGameHunter.us
My courses are available on my website, www.TheBigGameHunter.us/courses The courses include ones about Informational Interviews, Interviewing, final interview preparation, salary negotiation mistakes to avoid, the top 10 questions to prepare for on any job interview, and starting a new job.
I do a livestream on LinkedIn, YouTube (on the JobSearchTV.com account) and on Facebook (on the Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter page) Tuesdays and Fridays at 1 PM Eastern. You can send your questions about job search, hiring better, management, leadership or to get advice about a workplace issue to me via messaging on LinkedIn or in chat during the approximately 30 minute show.
Classes On Skillshare https://thebiggamehunter.us/Skillshare
Freelancing or hiring a freelancer: fiverr.com https://thebiggamehunter.us/fiverr. or Freelancer: https://thebiggamehunter.us/freelance
To set up your freelance business correctly: incorporate
https://thebiggamehunter.us/incorporate
Connect with me on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/thebiggamehunter
Watch my videos on YouTube at JobSearchTV.com, the Job Search TV app for fireTV or a firestick or Bingenetworks.tv for Apple TV, and 90+ smart tv’s.
Thinking of making a career change and need some ideas that fit you. CareerFitter offers a free test and if you want more you can upgrade for the paid version.https://thebiggamehunter.us/Career
We grant permission for this post and others to be used on your website as long as a backlink is included and notice is provided that it is provided by Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter as an author or creator.
