Blog: The nerves of a job interview over 60… And to think employers aren’t ageist!

Towards the end of last year my position was made redundant. I was shattered and very disappointed in the organisation I had been working for. However, the reality was that organisational restructuring had taken away a job that I truly loved and enjoyed walking into each day.

Despite all the “everything happens for a reason” and “one door closes and another one opens” reassurances from well-meaning friends and family members, I was devastated and might add that my confidence took a bit of a battering too.

However, I do believe the philosophy that things happen for a reason and had always wanted to try my hand at writing, so decided that this was my opportunity to dive into the world of words! So, with a lot of encouragement from a good friend who is a journalist, I started putting my thoughts onto paper (well, actually onto my iPad screen!).

I have really enjoyed this process and having several stories published on this website has helped win back some of my confidence. I fully intend to keep following my writing because you never know where that may lead in the future!

At the time of my redundancy I decided to have a break until the New Year before job hunting. Well, the New Year is here and I have been to one interview and have another one tomorrow. I have to tell you that I had butterflies in my stomach from the moment I woke up on the morning of my first interview! It was a different kind of nervousness that was making me anxious this time around. I wasn’t concerned about my qualifications, my knowledge of the organisation or how I was going to answer those tricky interview questions. For the first time in my life, my age was causing me to stress.

Now I’ve never considered myself to be old and have worked with younger people very comfortably. Yet here I was trying to work out what to wear to my interview so as to look “not old”! The safe and conservative pearl earrings were ditched for more modern hoops, my favourite shoes suddenly looked old hat and were replaced with a more “with it” pair and more care was taken with hair and make-up.

When asked at the interview what pastimes I enjoyed I happily listed off my leisure pursuits, lastly saying I enjoyed scrapbooking. No sooner had I said scrapbooking than I regretted it! I know young people also enjoy scrapbooking but the demographics lean heavily towards the more mature scrap-booker! Isn’t this all ridiculous?! I can’t believe I let myself get so worked up about my age!

At a time when employers assure us that there is no such thing as “ageism”, I have heard so many stories and read so many comments indicating the absolute opposite. That’s what was troubling me as I faced my first interview. But enough is enough and tomorrow is another day! I’ll be approaching things differently at my interview tomorrow! I will probably wear the same outfit because I did feel good in it. But I will walk into this next interview with the mindset that I am very employable and that my work/life experience would be a valuable addition to any organisation. My age should be seen as a plus, not an embarrassment.

Let’s face it, if we don’t believe in ourselves, how can we expect would-be employers to value us? Who knows whether I’ll be offered either of these jobs but if not, at least I have made it to the interview stage. I may not be the youngest employee but I am far from done with the workforce! If you’re like me and trying to get back into the workforce as a mature aged person, I wish you all the best.

I saw this on Facebook today and it’s certainly food for thought: “Worrying is like praying for what you don’t want!” It’s hard not to worry but I reckon there could well be something in this!

Are you an over 60 trying to get back into the workforce? Share your experiences in the comments below!