Age Discrimination or Attitude Adjustment?
While counseling a new client one morning, he mentioned that when he (finally) gets a call from someone from one of the “thousands” of resumes he has sent out into the universe, he always says the same thing to the person on the other end of the receiver. “I am 52, is that going to be a problem?”
I assured him that no HR professional who knows employment and hiring laws and has any sense of ethics would answer that question any differently than “Absolutely not! However, this call is simply a courtesy call for sending your resume to us; someone will get back with you if an in-person interview is required!” And, of course, he’ll never hear from them again.
The fact that he actually got a phone interview to begin with was a surprise since his PRE-Blue Flamingo Productions resume was truly a mess; it was a concoction of various “cut and paste” wording and sections from bits and pieces of other people’s resumes and wording he found while surfing on the net; it was confusing to follow and made him seem, to the reader, unsure of where he wanted to be in his professional life. However, this client is a licensed, certified, well-educated, highly-trained, and experienced specialist in his particular field, so it is possible the few calls he had gotten were a result of that potential employer needing someone with his credentials, however unappealing they may have been presented. But bringing up something he has absolutely no control over in life and that he is clearly bothered by is not going to win him any place on the “Let’s call this guy in for an interview!” pile.
Everyone is insecure about something – at some point in life. If you don’t feel you are “too old” to get hired, maybe you feel like you are too young! (Think you are perhaps too inexperienced to land that managerial job?) Maybe you think you are too heavy, too short, or too educated. Whatever the insecurity or fear is, leave it at home when you go to that interview or answer that phone. No one knows what you are thinking or feeling about yourself unless you articulate it or show it in your body language.
No matter what the issue is for you, remember, you are applying for a job that probably doesn’t require someone to be a certain height, a certain weight, or a certain age. Unless you are wanting to be a jockey, a model, or a bartendar, what matters most is the “essence” of you that comes through in the phone conversation/interview.
Sell yourself on the phone and you’ll snag that in-person interview. Check out this article for tips on selling (they apply to selling yourself too!)
Remember, some things in we life we have absolutely no control over (like our age, our nationality, and what other people think, say, or do!) You can’t change your age, but you can certainly change your attitude! Embrace where you are right now in your life!
For free career counseling advice, contact us 24/7 with any questions or concerns you may have about your resume, your interview, your job search, or your life goals! writers with spark @ aol . com
Tags: age discrimination, no interviews, too old for a job, what not to say during an interview
