I am wondering how many woman looking for jobs have faced ageism. I am in my 50's, a full-stack marketer with all agency experience and have been looking for a job for over a year now. I get the interviews but they never opt to choose me. I feel the interviews go well but I really think my age is why I am not getting chosen.

I am wondering how to pose my age as an advantage through work experience and how to show how I can fit into a younger work culture. Any feedback is appreciated.

As we see AI encroachment on many careers, to me, you need that senior-level understanding to catch what is and what isn’t total BS. Younger employees don’t have that well-tuned gut instinct that only comes from having done it the “old, hard” way.

The way you dress communicates if you’re in or out of touch

It may be ageism, in the form of income level. Your years of experience mean that you’ve earned a higher salary. Many companies don’t want to pay for that experience.

Sorry you are experiencing this. The fact that you are getting interviews means they are looking for seasoned talent. I don’t think you should lead with your age as a reason to hire you. If you have the knowledge and skill set for the role, then it’s about selling yourself as someone who adds value to the team and company. Be sure to pepper in your experience or knowledge of emerging technologies.

It’s BS, but try removing your early roles from your resume and LinkedIn as well as your graduation years.

Does your hairstyle, makeup, or clothing need an update?

Wow. Maybe her wardrobe IS current. Maybe she has already shaved years off her resume. Maybe graduation year is already off. My god. Is she a total idiot because she is 50+? Some of this assumptions are wild. When you’re interviewing with someone that’s a lot younger they know right away that you know more than they do and get intimidated. They also assume you’re going to want a higher salary which is crazy to me when the salary is usually already posted. i’m going through it as well. It’s important to find some sort of a side hustle to keep the money coming in until you find a job you really want! Best of luck!!

Experiencing it right now.

You also need to stay very current on changing technology, business issues and culture. Make sure you are reading, taking courses and meeting up with lot's of people (of all ages) to get new perspectives.

I think you’re correct to frame it for where experience is an advantage. Ridiculous that this has to be called out and isn’t a given.

On a real honest and human level, isn’t it a universal truth that when we look back on our earlier years of work, we kind of cringe? It’s natural because we’ve grown, because we’re better over time. That seasoning doesn’t happen spontaneously or magically upon graduation.

I don’t understand why the working world persists with this discrimination against people with experience. That experience is also more expensive, and should be, because it’s valuable. And I think this is where we get the answer—everyone’s going cheap.

It all seems so shortsighted and not very smart to run businesses and entire industries in this way.

The same happens to me.

Yup, only found a job through my network.

The issue is that with AI, experience is less valued than ever because leadership thinks they can just get that from Ai. Not true but I think it is a common belief.

Clients need to demand senior talent

It is ageism and sexism