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Selling yourself

How to sell your work skills when you’re over 50

This is the most important skill - and one which you may not have used for a while.

You will probably be sending a CV and covering letter first: keep both short.

Opinion is divided on whether to put your age on your CV.

"There's a lot of evidence that people who have left it off have had a much more positive response based on their skills," says Keith Frost. "At least they might get to the interview stage."

But you have to be careful: if you leave your age off but leave in school dates, your secret will soon be out.

Jackie Sherman, author of How to Get a Job Over 50, says one idea would be to leave out the school years altogether.

"Move the education section to the end and only provide information on the more recent periods of work."

Others disagree. "It's ridiculous to leave your age off - the company will soon know by working out your qualification dates and work history.

It's best to be upfront and use your experience as a positive," says Barry Badham. He also advises job-seekers to keep it brief.

"People try to write a book for their CV, but it should never be more than two pages. Include a brief description of your roles and your key skills."

Others agree. "If you've not been in the labour market for a while you have to sharpen up your act and sell yourself, something most of us aren't terribly good at."

This is the advice of Dianah Worman, at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and she should know because the Institute represents the personnel managers who will be interviewing you.

"It's important to customise your approach, rather than sending out the same letter to hundreds of employers. Never, never go beyond one page in the letter.

“Don't go through a long career history - it's a bit tedious. Say what you have achieved and what you are proud of, rather than present a long list of jobs.

“Put yourself in the position of the reader: are you holding their interest? All that chronological stuff just reinforces perceptions that you have a lot of history."

Written by Rachel Carlyle

How To Find Work When You're Over 50 by Jackie Sherman (How To Books, £9.99)

This article was created: 19 July 2006.
This article was last edited: 7 November 2006.

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