Weekly Wisdom: July 5, 2010

Looking for a job when you have been out of work is tough.  It's exhausting.  Some days it feels as if the forces of the universe are working against you.  Looking for a job if you're 55 or better can feel nearly impossible, but only if you let it. 

Here are some additional tips for older job seekers:

Step 1.
Don't walk into the interview a victim.  Shed previous negative interview experiences and thoughts of age-discrimination; focus on what you bring to the table instead of all the reasons why they may not offer you a seat.  Connect, be enthusiastic, your experience is an asset--don't downplay your resume, use it to demonstrate that you've got what they're looking for.

Step 2.
Talk about (and think of) your experience in terms of skill sets; not lengthy stories about relationships with past employers.  Highlight your accomplishments instead of your years of experience; what you did is far more important than how long you were there.

Step 3.
Shatter stereotypes: be flexible, energetic, tech savvy.  Buy a Blackberry or an iPhone, use a laptop, spend time brushing up on your computer skills.  Hang out on Linkedin.com, visit the company website and make full use of the available online tools.  If you are a true novice, acquire basic computer skills: start with Microsoft Office applications and learn to do Internet research.

Step 4.
Your resume should be honest (really honest, not technically true but purposely misleading), however, don't feel obligated to share every detail.  If you don't feel comfortable listing the year you graduated, leave it off--but don't bristle when someone asks you to confirm your year of graduation.  Try a functional resume; group your skills, highlight your accomplishments, pull out what they need to know if they don't get past the first half page of your resume and list your employers and tenures separately.  You don't have to go all the way back with dates, but list all the companies.

Step 5.
Be prepared for questions you won't want to answer such as "How long do you plan to work?" and "Do you believe you are overqualified for this job?"

Step 6.
Seek out age-friendly employers and look for organizations that will be a good cultural fit; you should probably limit your applications to young, hip technology startups where the entire executive team was born after 1980.  Check out the executives and middle management online, find out who your peers would be--look for the people you want to work with and work for.

adapated from SFGate.com (with additional notes by HITRecruiters)