How Not To Look Your Age at a Job Interview  

Searching for a new job is nerve-wracking at any age, but for women who are starting to feel their age creep up on them like a stealth creature of the night, it can be downright terrifying. No woman wants to hear it, but age-based discimination does occur, despite laws saying otherwise.

If your resume describes a brilliant woman with education and experience in all the right areas, your look should not announce, “Hasn’t seen a new hairstyle since Friends went off the air.” If your look is stuck in a rut, maybe your career is too.

Updating your look pre-interview doesn’t mean pretending to be someone you are not. Updating involves polishing your professional appearance to make your image match your resume.

Updated Attire
Think contemporary when selecting an outfit for your interview. Your interviewer might be 25 years your junior; don’t wear the suit you bought the year he or she was born. In fact, a suit is no longer a strict interview requirement. Pair a tailored jacket or elegant cardigan with a skirt that falls just below the knee. Pantsuits are perfectly on point, too. Navy, while a traditional go-to shade, is not the only option anymore. Try gray, rich taupes or a signature shade that looks amazing on you. Forgo the nude pantyhose and, in most cases, sport bare legs enhanced with a little sunless tanner. Finish with black pumps with a low heel.

Whiter Teeth
Are your pearly whites looking more pearly cream or beige? Aging dentin in teeth and the loss of tooth enamel can make teeth appear darker. Add to that the staining of normal foods and the drink of the gods, coffee, and your teeth can make you appear older than you are. Don’t let your teeth give your age away by brightening your smile before your interview. If you are due for a cleaning, schedule one. You may choose from professional whitening systems from your dentist, or select one of the at-home options such as whitening kits, rinses, and whitening toothpastes.

Youthful Skin
The drier skin that often comes with aging makes tiny lines and wrinkles more noticeable. One quick fix is a hydrating facial and some microdermabrasion with your favorite esthetician to soften the appearance of lines by exfoliating to remove dead skin cells while hydrating to improve skin’s look and firmness.

If there is no time or money for a salon visit, the local department store and drugstore are laden with an almost endless supply of products to gently exfoliate and uncover at least some of the glow you had at 25.

Makeup
As a woman ages and those silver streaks of wisdom appear at the hairline, her skin’s tone, thickness and texture change as well. Many younger women can get away with wearing little or no foundation. Slightly older women want to give the appearance of young, vibrant and minimally enhanced skin.

You do not need to resort to Botox to look fresh and young.  Instead, choose a foundation that does three things: closely matches your skintone, contains ingredients such as collagen enhancers to “plump” skin and make it appear firmer, and corrects tone and color to give a flawless appearance. Avoid anything heavy that will settle into lines and wrinkles. Skip the powder. You no longer want to cover up the damp shine of youth; you want to recreate it.

Next, add a pop of color. The makeup brand and colors you wore in your twenties and thirties are now outdated. Even the smoky eye trend from a couple years ago has evolved to incorporate less dramatic plum and grey hues.

In most cases, as women age, less is more. Great mascara, soft eyeliner on upper lashes only and neutral, non-metallic eye shadow will wake up even the most tired eyes. Enhance cheekbones with blush. Try a peach tone on fairer skin and coral shade for medium to darker complexions. Aim to create a healthy glow.

Lip color changes your face and completes your new look. Stay away from metallics, glitter, and the over-made-up drama of dark lip liner. If your teeth still appear a bit yellowed even after using whitening treatments, avoid lipstick shades with yellow-orange undertones. Instead, opt for a lipstick with neutral to blueish undertones that will help teeth look whiter.

A New ‘Do
Pretending to be something that you’re not is a somewhat “gray” area when it comes to your hair for an interview. To dye or not to dye? While many women steadfastly refuse to color their gray just to land a job, others will find youth in a bottle. If you do choose to color your hair to appear younger, find a skilled colorist that will create the right balance of high lights and low lights reminiscent of the natural hair color you enjoyed in your younger days.

When styling your hair for an interview, make sure you choose a style with which you are comfortable. Fidgeting with your hair will distract you and the interviewer.  You want to look like you made some effort to style your hair without looking high maintenance. Tame curls and frizz, add a dab of glosser to boost shine, then style into something that is age-neutral. With longer hair, opt for a low ponytail, a french twist or pin back part of hair and leave the rest down. Avoid super-trendy looks, especially if they are last year’s trend.

Accessories
A well placed pop of color such as a scarf or a bold necklace will pull your look together and give the interviewer a little insight into your personality. Be careful not to let your accessories date you. Look for classic pieces or select one piece that is perfectly on trend like a large faced watch or a great scarf.

Before you head off to a job interview–better still before you commence your job search–make sure that your resume describes the same woman that just walked through the door. An old-fashioned resume or cover letter will give away your age just as surely as an outdated suit. Create a total package that includes up to date social media presence, a resume that is current in both style and content, and a cover letter that quickly grabs their attention. If you aren’t certain what style of resume to use, hire a professional resume writer or find professionally written resume samples online to use as your guide.