High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Tips to Overcome Age Discrimination

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• 6 Tips to Overcome Age Discrimination at Work: "If you’re embarrassed by your age, others will sense that. People are attracted to candidates with confidence."

• 10 Tips to Go For Your Side Hustle Dream: "Success is all about falling down and getting back up. Here’s a writing prompt that can build your confidence: How have you overcome a near miss in your past to produce future gains?"

• Doing Creative Work When You Can't Stop Looking at Your Phone: "They key, I discovered, is to accept and even embrace the desire to check notifications, read various media, or even watch videos — but to teach myself patience in doing so."

• 5 Apps to Help You Master the Art of Small Talk: "So why not embrace small talk and, dare I say, get good at it? Here are some tools to help you become a more engaging conversationalist."
• How to Have a Positive Mindset at Work:"gratitude is linked to happiness and helps people think and feel more positively. When you’re actively going over the aspects of your life or your day that make you feel thankful, it changes your perspective from negative to positive."

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: Don't Let Age Hold You Back

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

Sometimes we make our age into an excuse for failure. In the video below Mark Divine encourages and challenges viewers to not let age hold them back from great accomplishments.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Work-Life Balance, Interviewing, and Starting a Business

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

1. 5 Tips for Managing a Healthy Work-Life Balance
"What can you do for yourself to manage a good work-life balance and not go crazy?"

2. 3 Tips for Job-Seeking Boomers Hoping to Combat Age Discrimination 
"As Boomers, you've developed a larger network over the years than any other generation. Use this to your advantage."

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos 

3. Stand Out in Your Interview
"You can never invest enough in terms of preparation. You should find out as much as possible about the company."

4. How to Stay on the Hunt After Landing a Good Job
"Keep up with the trends and build your network at the same time by joining a professional association. Your new employer may even offer to pay for your membership, if they see the return on their investment."

5. 5 Tips for Starting Your Own Business 
"Whether your motivation is that you're miserable at work or if it's because you anticipate a layoff, you may be better off marketing yourself as a consultant or starting a business instead of looking for another traditional job."

Career Advice from the Olympics

While you're staying up late watching all the Olympic action it's useful to also think about what lessons might be learned from the Olympians.

Caroline Dowd-Higgins, a career coach, professor, radio host, and author of This is Not the Career I Ordered, shares 10 Olympic lessons that can be applied to your career:

© Glenjones | Stock Free Images &Dreamstime Stock Photos

1. Distinguish Yourself: "Olympic runners are not equally strong as sprinters and long distance runners. They excel in a particular role that showcases their talent best. Find your niche and focus on the special strengths that set you apart from the competition."

2. Don't Let Ageism Get in Your Way

3. Resilience is Essential and Persistence Pays

4. Team Work Rules

5. Game Face On

You can read more details, including 5 additional lessons here.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!


1. 4 Tips for Older Job Seekers Facing Discrimination
"As an older worker, you can't eliminate age discrimination. But you can learn what lies behind it and take steps to differentiate yourself from stereotypes."


2. Why Schools Should Help Students Find Their Passion 
"(I)f you can't find passion and purpose in your work, you're disconnected from who you really are and you'll never truly excel at what you do."

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

3. Ten Reasons Winners Keep Winning, Aside from Skill
"(W)inners gain ten important advantages as a result of victory ... smart leaders can cultivate and build on these advantages to make the next success possible."

4. How to Stop Procrastinating at Work
"Try doing your least preferred activities at the start of each day and at the beginning of each week."


5. Having a Family Can Be Good For Your Career  
"(B)y sacrificing our families -- and by extension, ourselves -- on the altar of our careers, we are in danger of cutting ourselves off from our own wisdom and perspective."

The Fear Behind Common Job Search Discrimination

Whether we like to admit or not, discrimination is a factor that we will all face at some point in our lives. Discrimination is born from ignorance or fear. When you face discrimination in your job search, you must make it your mission to educate your discriminator (your potential employer) and help them overcome their fears. Let's look at three of the most common causes of discrimination and examine how we can overcome them.

Age Discrimination
Age discrimination is based on the fear that the potential employee is lacking in several key areas. The employer may feel that you lack the energy to do the job. They may fear that you are not flexible and open to changes in the industry or technology. They also may fear that they can't afford you.

Most of these fears can be dealt with in an interview. Therefore, the first step to overcoming these fears is to ensure that an employer has no idea of your age from your resume. Don't go back farther than 10 years - 15 years maximum - on your resume. Don't list dates of education, especially if those dates are before the last 10 years. Second, make sure you keep updated on changing industry standards and trends a well as emerging technology. Last, be sure to express energy, enthusiasm, and vitality in the interview.


Overqualified
In a job market where many people are "underemployed" this is a common problem. The overqualified stigma is based on the fear that you will just leave when something better comes along and the fear that they can not afford your salary.

To overcome this fear, be sure to clarify that you are looking to work for their specific company, cite some reasons why you chose their company based on your research, and finally express your interest in tenure and your focus toward long-term employment. In terms of salary, make every effort not to discuss how much you want to make until they make you a job offer.


Sexual Discrimination
Believe it or not, discrimination based on whether you are male or female is still prevalent in the job market. Often employers will discriminate against a woman because she has family and children at home that will take her focus away from work. Often this form of discrimination is based on ignorance of your capabilities.

No matter whether you are male or female, I recommend leaving your personal life (marital status, kids/no kids, ages of kids) out of the interview. Instead focus on what value you can bring to the company. Showing hands-on experience performing the tasks for which you are applying should help to overcome much of these fears.

How to Overcome the 4 Main Factors of Age Discrimination

It is neither legal nor fair. However, age discrimination is unfortunately prevalent in the workforce. According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 2010, there was a 17% increase in the number of age discrimination complaints filed since 2007.

Age discrimination, as with most discrimination, is based in fear. Understand the fear and you can make great strides toward a successful interview. Here are the 4 most common fear factors and some ideas as to how you can overcome these objections.

Lack of Energy

One of the main concerns is that the older worker may not have the same level of energy and enthusiasm for the job as a younger candidate. Once you are in the interview, offer a firm handshake, smile with confidence, radiate positive energy, and clearly demonstrate your passion and enthusiasm for your profession.

Health Concerns

You must be realistic about your ability to do the job. I once met with an 80 year-old explosives engineer whose hands shook. Although he wanted to stay in the industry, he no longer had the physical capability. Last week, I met a 75 year-old nurse who walked with a cane. She no longer had the stamina to do clinical nursing, so instead she switched to telephonic nursing where she could do her job sitting down. If you have a clear understanding of your limitations and apply to jobs for which you are physically capable, you should have no problem convincing the interviewer of your capability.

Outdated Knowledge

Have you kept your industry knowledge and technology skills current? You can’t possibly expect to receive an administrative support job when you don’t know how to use Microsoft Office. Keep yourself competitive by keeping your skills current. Focus on your recent classes, certifications, and online courses to show your knowledge of current technology. As an aside, you also want to ensure your appearance – including your apparel, hair, and makeup – is not outdated. You don’t need to go trendy, but aim for modern professional with your clothing and grooming.

Overqualified

Be wary of the fact that people are very protective of their jobs these days. Find the right balance between showing your value without intimidating your younger and less-qualified interviewer into fearing you will take their job. Clearly state the type of support role you would like to take in the company and quantify the value you can offer to your future boss.