We are seeing more people over the age of 50 losing their jobs. They worry about ageism, which is a legitimate concern. When you are close to 60 or older, the discrimination becomes even more apparent. John, age 60, was an HR director at a Fortune 500 company where he worked for 20 years. Having just been laid off from his job, he contacted me for job search and resume writing assistance. He became very worried when he realized his age was an obstacle to securing a new job. John has the same issues I see in many older workers. He didn’t know how to sell himself in his resume, on LinkedIn, and especially not in an interview. Recent accomplishments were few and far between. A resume that should be full of achievements only had generic job descriptions. Often a mature worker’s resume is tremendously outdated, screams “I’m old,” and won’t be an asset.
Let’s compare John’s situation to Mary, a marketing director, who called wanting resume writing help. Mary was 64 years old, and as we talked, she mentioned that she had white hair and wrinkles and wondered if that would stop an employer from hiring her. As we started compiling her past achievements, she had a lot of accomplishments in the last few years. Everyone liked working for Mary—she was a great manager and had evidence in her work history to prove it. It was clear she had developed high-performance collaborative teams that beat expectations. Mary didn’t do things the same way just because they always had. Instead, she attended conferences, listened to thought leaders, watched relevant TED talks, and stayed on top of new industry trends. With that new resume in hand, it’s no wonder she quickly found a terrific new job.
When it comes to resume writing, many mature workers need a crash course on what they need to stress and what to eliminate. Employers love to see outcomes and results, so always focus on noting those.
Marc Cenedella, CEO of Leets Resume and founder of Ladders, has also seen a lot of resumes from older workers. He offered some good advice on what to change when creating your resume to prevent age discrimination from being a problem.
- Chop your work history section. Ancient jobs from 20 years ago have no relevance to the hiring manager. Instead, focus on the last 15 years, cutting your resume down to that. Put heavy emphasis on your last 5-7 years and stress relevant experience.
- Drop your college grad year if it’s before 2005.
- Watch the technology you mention. Tech changes every day. Only advertise your software skills that are needed and valued now. Anything you did in the 1990s or 2000s isn’t relevant. Drop any mention of things such as Autocad or WordPerfect that are not used anymore. List popular software employers want like Excel (advanced user), SQL, Marketo, Salesforce, Slack, Illustrator, and cloud skills working in AWS or Azure are good to mention.
- Emphasize you have a team mentality. Drop any reference that says you avoid or dislike change. No “my way or the highway.” Instead, show you are coachable, and if you are the manager, describe how you mentor team members and focus on their professional development. The goal is to show you have built high-performance, collaborative teams.
- Don’t appear out of date. Your resume must reflect that you are a continuous learner and apply the knowledge or new skills at work. Consider getting some current certifications to enhance your background. Classes like project management to improve or gain a new marketable skill are valuable, too.
- Drop old-fashioned email addresses. If you’re using an AOL, Hotmail, or Yahoo email address, it’s time for an update. Using AOL tells hiring managers you are a low-tech person and haven’t bothered to keep up with trends for 25 years. Instead, switch to a Gmail address.
- Don’t list your home address or home phone number. City and state and a cell number is all you need.
Don’t sell yourself short. You still have a lot to offer. Your resume is an advertising tool, so be sure it markets you in the best possible light.
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