Finding work: a guide for the over-40s

Interviewers are often prejudiced against older job-seekers. Here we [Guardian, work and careers] guide the over-40s on how to respond and land that job.

Chris Ball, chief executive at The Age and Employment Network, says, “You really do have to be ready for anything in job interviews … you can always encounter ageism.”

To prepare for your next interview, examine the age stereotypes and objections commonly held by employers. In our book, Finding Work After 40 [Amazon.co.uk paperback £8.40], we call them “the seven elephants in the room” because they’re present at every interview, being ignored, but influencing the decision makers.

The seven elephants, for which there is a brief explanation in the Guardian article and, obviously, more in-depth advice in the book, are:

1. Older people won’t work for a younger manager, or with a younger team
2. Older people are often overqualified
3. Older people lack energy
4. Older workers have health problems
5. An older worker has money, so they don’t need the job
6. Older people are not mentally agile
7. Older workers can't deal with change

Now you’re aware of the elephants that might stand in your way, and you can discuss them if necessary. Then, as Chris Ball suggests, “Relax, smile, look your interviewers in the eye, be yourself and don’t think about age”.

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