How To Overcome Age Bias In Your New Reality Job Search

The future of work is still about humans and connection.

It is about people of all ages, experience and levels. Many employers are starting to look beyond aiding a workforce to work remote. They are working towards building a more skilled, agile and resilient future. Many employers will have several generations working for them.

Leveraging combined skill sets, strengths, experience, and knowledge in this context will be critical. It is a core foundation for adapting and remaining resilient for the future.

Employers are open to having new conversations about different ways of working. I reckon the resilience shown by more senior employees in the COVID crisis will be up for discussion.

Our older workforce can leverage the opportunity to help organisations rewire their DNA. 

Direction

Networks

Adaptability

This can only affect their impact and cultures on a favourable basis. Many older employees have a deep emotional connection to their actions and purpose they apply in their career. 

They are loyal, resilient and empathetic to younger generations career challenges. They understand the conflict and chaos many are going through now in this pandemic. 

They know how to listen. Listening to your people and understanding and responding to their needs is vital. I am forty-four years young, and I have recently had an influx from many younger generations asking me to mentor them in their careers.

I facilitate outplacement work with many generational profiles. The varied perspective I gain as a result of such a broad, diverse and multi-generational outlook has been momentous for my life and work. I am very grateful for this learning to leverage my skills as a career coach.

So how can older employees and job searchers show we deserve our seat at the table? 

How can we prove we deserve a second chance if we want to change career or face redundancy now?

How do we show our adaptability and resilience to enable a whole new level of work and opportunity for ourselves and potential employers?

1. Understand the Realities Behind Age Bias:

Age bias in hiring is unfortunate and wrong, but the harsh reality is that it exists. The first step is to understand why age discrimination occurs in some organisations. If you know and understand the reasons for it, you can navigate it from all perspectives to your benefit. 

During your search, relevant and factual information is vital. It is advisable to investigate why some organisations may choose a younger worker. 

Many times it is not age that an employer has a concern about, but other issues that you need to address.

Cost:

Mature professionals have often built up a higher salary level compared to younger professionals. 

Companies are often decreasing management roles, and lowering salary budgets, creating much more competition for fewer senior-level jobs.

To address this, you'll need to research your market to understand the demand for your skills and the current salary ranges for your role.

Flexibility:

Many companies expect employees to work harder and longer, travel, be open to relocation, adapt to significant change and learn new technology fast. 

They may assume that these challenges may not inspire someone with a strong and stable background. If this does inspire you, then make sure you consistently state this and highlight related accomplishments on your resume/CV.

Dated Skills:

Today's organisations move and change faster than ever - how will you keep pace with them? Studying new market trends and terminology, attending webinars, and updating your resume/CV with new skills and education can make a significant impact.

2. Create an Ageless Personal Brand of Your Personal Best

When creating a resume/CV and social media profiles, leave your age out of the equation.

Let Go of the Antiquated Resume/CV Formats:

Your Resume/CV is marketing collateral. You do not a complete biography. Focus on the last 10 to 15 years of your experience, and of relevance to the roles. Also, remove dates on education from more than ten years ago.

Reinvigorate Your Professional Look:

Consider updating the way you represent yourself. I'm not suggesting you try to be something you are not. But instead, realign with something that you are and want to be on a personal and professional level. It radiates quiet natural confidence. 

Consider updating your headshot and, have fun with a makeover. A change is good as a rest when reinventing yourself.

Elevate Your Energy:

Companies want confident, passionate, purposeful, hungry, enthusiastic, and value-driven professionals—ones who are eager and inspired to innovate improvements and tackle challenges head-on. 

Keep yourself healthy by eating well, exercising, and taking care of your mental health throughout your job search. Pay attention to what lifts and lowers your mood and energy.

How are you performing on a physical, mental, emotional and spiritual level daily? 

How are your creativity, emotional resilience and general outlook on things?

What are habits killing or suppressing all the above?

How do they cause you to regress?

Another glass of wine might sound like a good idea. Maybe it is when the occasion and timing are right to sit back and chill. 

But if it moves to a third or fourth regularly in the middle of a job search, it can become a big deal. When you are dealing with complex decision making about where to next, it can leave you discombobulated and agitated.

Cultivate forward focus and energy by shifting habits to your benefit. Be conscious and consistent with your well-being choices. If you feel yourself begin to drain and pull away from your direction, return to the primary health fundamentals of sleep, exercise and nutrition. It will enable you to return to a clean system from which to operate. 

3. Research & Tailor Your Search

No matter what your age, it's important to fine-tune and align your search for the greatest success.

Focus on Relevant Jobs:

If a job requires 5+ years of experience and you have 25+, it is more than likely they will specify you as overqualified.

Networking on a conscious level and with relevance to opportunities you seek as well as applying to positions that match your experience on a realistic level is so important. If you are open to taking a less senior role, make sure you are clear about this. You will need to be able to explain the reasons behind it upfront.

Explore the Culture Fit:

When choosing your targets, look for companies that hire and value mature and experienced workers. You can review the demographics of a company's staff by reviewing employee professional social media profiles (e.g. LinkedIn). Study the backgrounds, demographics, and qualifications for those in your desired role.

Leverage Your Network:

A considerable advantage you may have over younger workers is a highly developed network. Remember if you are an experienced professional you are likely to have these benefits younger reinventers may not have. Take stock of all the advantages you have. 

If you decide to transition into another industry, don't forget your friends and family. They may well have connections in other sectors they can introduce to you.

Ask questions to find out who they might be willing to introduce to you. 

Next Steps

Research your current market: demand, salary ranges, jobs, and target companies in detail.

Update your skills and the terminology in your resume/CV to meet current market needs.

Re-brand your marketing campaign: resume/CV, professional social media profiles, and online/offline image.

Focus your job search on the right companies and individuals.

For more tips and advice see my LinkedIn or book a one-off discounted session here

6 Conscious Practical Steps to Take After You Are Laid Off

One of the things that dawned on me as I began writing this piece was that nobody said to me when I lost my job that it was shit.

Now, I'm not one to run away from emotions so I wanted to say today yeah, it is shit and I can relate and be empathetic.

Here is some practical advice with layers of empathetic energy from my head and heart.

I hope it helps.

1. Allow yourself to process the grief then breathe.

It's shit, I get it and I have been there. Be comfortable sitting with the ego-bruising it brings but also be self-compassionate.

Go easy on yourself as you begin to find your future focus. Without healing, there can be no harmony with your future professional self.

2. Create the space to curate a list of your strengths and weaknesses.

I guarantee there will be more strength.

3. Tell people you lost your job and are looking for a new one.

Once you have healed open up and allow opportunities to show up. That is not to say you won't have to do the work, you do but if you don't put it out there it can never come back to you.

You don't have to feel shame. I guarantee you so many will relate and help you to create new focus and direction.

4. Consciously curate your entire network

Not only on LinkedIn but everyone who you have had a good experience with and learned from in your whole career. When you have the confidence and courage to reach out take a chance and do so.

When you reach out, people want to help especially in times like we are experiencing today.

5. "SEO" your LinkedIn

Use words that will help your profile be stand out recruiters. Put industry-relevant keywords in your Headline, About and Experience section. Find the right keywords by examining job descriptions, look at other people's LinkedIn profiles, and use a Google keyword tool.

And finally...

6. Embrace it

I know it may seem overwhelming but there is great excitement reinventing yourself. You can read my blog on my own reinvention here. Many people find they have been living a professional void for a long time. They have filled it with habits that have not served their benefit.

Now is a great time to fill that void with things you value and realign with resilience and direction.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish you the best of success with your search and future career.

Feel free to check out my blog in more detail or my LinkedIn for daily tips and advice.

How Do I Deal With Questions of Identity When Losing My Job?

5 ways to overcome a crisis of identity when facing a forced career change.

Our work doesn’t just feel like something we do; it feels like something we are. This can be healthy or unhealthy depending on your relationship with your career.

But when you reach a pivot point and a change is needed either voluntarily or with the loss of a role, it signals a change in you. And when that change is uncomfortable, you feel uncomfortable. Yes, you may even feel in crisis. 

When you lose your job or want to leave an old career for a new one, the question is not only:

“How will I do something new?”

You also struggle with..

“How will I be someone new?”

“Who am I if I don’t do my old work?”

“What does it say about me if I walk away?”

“Who am I to try something new?”

“What does it say about me if I try and I fail?”

These are all questions of identity. 

It is important to know that redundancies, career transitions and pivots are normal and to be expected. Careers today are fluid, so the best thing to do is to know how to go with the flow when you feel in crisis or overwhelm.

Here are some tips below to help overcome an identity crisis when facing a job loss or having to make a career pivot.

1 | Plan something to look forward to. 

It’s tempting to retreat when you feel like confused and overwhelmed. But it’s important that you have somewhere to be and people to interact with. 

Especially if you’re in a situation where you suddenly have lots of free time. I know this from experience following my redundancy and even being a business owner now. It sure can get lonely. Schedule some social events into your calendar.

There is no need for anything big, stick to the small, low-key event if that feels better. No better time than the present to do this online now in the current global pandemic and if you have some spare time available.

2 | Give yourself permission to be transitioning or between jobs without fear of shame.

You won’t be here forever, so for a while, it’s okay to be uncertain. It is okay to not know everything. You get to be a full-blown mess if you need to. You will sort things out and recover. Forget what anyone else thinks. It is your decision and choice to find the right path for you. 

3 | Think about who you are. 

Write it down. This can be list form, stories, notes about your past, or what you’re doing now. Reconnect to who you are. You ARE more than your career. Remember who you are, just you, without work to define you.  

4 | Do things that make you feel like somebody.

What makes you feel like you have an impact?

When you’re in a career identity crisis, it’s easy to feel sorry for yourself. I have been there and done that. I still do on occasions when I wonder if I can crack this business owner thing! It is okay, you’re human. But to counteract that, you need to do things that make you feel capable, confident and courageous.

It might be creating art, helping a friend, redecorating your home, or spending time with a parent. My dad is a wealth of wisdom and gives me plenty of insights to remind me I can do this! 

5 | Directly address your career fears.

When something is off in our careers, we feel that we have no control over it. So, instead of addressing our careers head on, we distract ourselves with other areas of our life. We dive into other projects that may improve the quality of our life on a temporary basis.

But they don’t solve the core problem: your career. Take direct action to resolve the conflict in your career, and you’ll feel powerful, proud, and more like you. 

Have you been through a career identity crisis?

What steps did you take to overcome it?

Originally published on LinkedIn

— Republished on May 5, 2020, via Thrive Global