Bruce Willis: Over 60 and still defeating villains. Photo: Webimage.
A fed-up 50-something Finance Director wrote to me recently, saying that she keeps getting turned down for new roles ‘because of her age’.
I asked her what evidence she had that her age is the reason for the rejection and if the problem possibly lay elsewhere….with her. Her interview technique, or attitude, or aspirations. Here’s my reply to her:
Unless you are applying for a job at Spearmint Rhino or as Bear Gryll’s understudy, it’s highly unlikely that an organisation can justify rejecting you because of your date of birth.
I know some sectors are notorious for having a shelf life for the over 50s, maybe even the over 40s; the tech industry is a known culprit.
However, most employers aren’t ageist, they are agenostic. They realise that young people might be cheaper but they are not smarter or more effective. They like older employees who speak the same language as their wealthier baby-boomer customers, and bring networks, gravitas and prestige to their organisation.
So I wonder if the real reason for your rejections is that you are giving off an old, slightly bitter, been round the block and am fed up with it, vibe? After all you are getting the interviews and it’s not difficult to guess an age from a CV, even without the date of birth. In principle, they wanted to hire you, regardless of your age. In practice, you appeared jaded and cynical. I’m afraid that they liked you on paper but in person you just didn’t fit in. Tell me honestly, did you really want the jobs – sometimes we can subconsciously sabotage interviews because deep down we don’t really want to work there.
Assuming you do want the job next time, what can you do to position yourself as the one they want?
- Practice your interview technique so that you appear more enthusiastic, open-minded and up to date. Don’t be critical of the latest processes or systems, be enthusiastic about increased efficiencies.
- Read your trade press and make sure you know what’s happening right now and what’s around the corner.
- Smarten up your appearance if you need to, perhaps invest in a personal shopper so you feel more confident (don’t try and look too uncomfortably cool though, just yourself on a good day).
- Bring your LinkedIn profile up to date and get a contemporary layout for your CV. Be warm and wholehearted in your dealings with recruiters and employers: don’t hold back as a defence mechanism.
- Work your brand and impact and be very clear on the value that you can contribute to the organisation. Make yourself invaluable to them. Ask great questions to show you can hit the ground running and make a difference straight away. Remember, it’s not about you, it’s about what you can do for them.
Do you agree?
What are your experiences of ageism – as a candidate or employer? Is it a real problem in organisations or a whiff of subconscious bias that could be overcome, with chutzpah from the candidate and more effort into brand, impact and network?