Resume Help tip: Avoid Age Discrimination

If you're between 40 and 60 years old, the job market may hold a special treat for your resume - Age Discrimination.

Most people who are victims of age discrimination never even make it to an interview. This means your resume said something tat caused an employer to set it aside, and yo need some resume help fast!

Resume Mistake. Remember that you don't have to list your entire work history in every resume you send out!

Listing your entire 30-year work history on your resume might actually hurt you. The HR department I used to work for was concerned with overqualified employees. There was a fear that the employee would take our job to tide them over until their "real" dream job came knocking on their door.

Rather that listing your entire 30-year work history on your resume, you can simply label that part of your resume "Recent Work History" or "Relevant Work History" and then describe only the last 10 or 15 years of your experience.

If something relevant to the job you are applying for is in the distant past, there is an artful way you can list this experience as well. After your 10-15 year work history, add a small paragraph headed "Prior relevant experience" and simply refer to that ancient job without mentioning dates. You get your message across without opening yourself to age discrimination.

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Top Secret Resume Tips!

In my experience as a human resources manager with a Fortune 100 company, I can tell you that there are certain "buzz items" that get a resume noticed fast!

Here are 8 surefire ways to get your resume to the top of the human resources stack!

• Your resume is about you, not jobs. You would be surprised how many people list the job titles they have held but say nothing about what they did in the job. Tell me what you did, not what your title was!



• Use Action Words. Use words that emphasize action by substituting accomplishments and achievements for responsibilities and tasks.



• Leave Hobbies at the Door. Don't tell me about your hobbies. I honestly could care less. Leave hobbies for the interview ( I WILL ask there) unless they are directly related to your job.



• Don't talk about politics or religion, or list political or religious organizations. Today's workplace is divided politically 50/50. Why cut your interview chances in half right out of the boxes?



• Give it to me easy. I want your resume on clean, white heavy paper in a standard easy to read font. Unless you are applying for a scrapbooking job, please go easy on my eyes.



• If you're over 40, you don't need to take me back to the stone ages. Only list your most recent and relevant work. Anything more can open the door to age discrimination.



• Choose the right format. Use a chronological resume if you are applying for a job in your current field. Use a functional resume if you are trying to move into a new field.



• Were you self-employed? If you were self employed give yourself a reasonable title and list the top responsibilities and functions you performed. Trying to list them all would be to much, so choose wisely!