Yes, You Can Fight Ageism at Work

Dee@MissFitChicago.com is an extraordinary resume writer and tactical job coach who lives in Chicago. She likes to get ice cream while driving her hotrod.

Yes, ageism is a thing, with 32% of HR professionals admitting that age influences hiring decisions.  

Acceptance?

Ageism is just another sort of stereotype, and with most, if not all, stereotypes, that bias is grounded in reason.

Are you contributing to it? Do you joke at yourself, saying you're having a "senior moment"? Are all of your friends of a particular age group? Have you stopped challenging yourself to learn new things?

My dad was the best dad ever. He was a brilliant engineer who also loved working on old cars. He developed a staggering muscle memory from building engines and optimizing performance for drag racing. He had no interest in learning modern-day cars, computer chip programming, or anything related to EVs. He left me his 1927 Modle T roadster, a stark reminder of how our decisions can keep us stuck.  

Ageism hits the workplace hard. I hear from people stuck in boring jobs but are too fearful of quitting, afraid they won't get hired again. 

Modern Recruitment

Some of us inadvertently perpetuate the "age" bias. As a resume writer, I see it all the time. Key signs of a candidate who hasn't kept current are:

• An email address that ends in @aol.com.

• Listing the entire street address on the resume.

• Listing a second phone number, clearly a landline.

• One of the most subtle signs is a resume with two spaces at the end of each sentence (a clear sign of learning to type on an IBM typewriter). 

•  Dreary LinkedIn profiles with only a handful of connections and outdated photos

All of this is fixable. 

It's easy to point fingers at others; starting with ourselves is the best course of action.

• Have your resume evaluated by an expert

  • (free, if you’d like to email me at Dee@MissFitChicago.com)

• Keep your skills fresh.

  • Platforms like Udemy are an outstanding way to keep skills sharp. Udemyt has 57,000,000 users and offers 213,000 courses. The top courses are Python, Data Analytics, Excel, Web Development, PMP, Blender, and PowerBI. The classes are inexpensive, and you can take them in your pajamas.

• Fight the bias. Nudge people to question themselves. 

  • "You're going to think I don't understand the technology." 

  • "You think I won't be able to keep up with the speed of a SaaS company?".

  • "You might feel awkward managing someone my age." 

I love provocative statements that jar people out of their comfort zones. That strategy encourages people to examine their biases and be open-minded, enabling personal and professional growth.

You've Got This!

Warmly, Dee@Missfitchicago.com

www.missfitchicago.com