Diane D and others, you aren't as "old" as I am. I will be 61 in about 3 weeks. I can hardly believe it. No one has asked about age, and I avoid any comment that will clue them in. I am in pretty good shape (could lose some weight like most people, but am not fat), and when asked about hobbies, I include, truthfully, biking, swimming (laps), walking/running (mention 5K run in the spring), and so on.

In regard to clues to age, there are two or three things to keep in mind. FIRST, remove your date of birth (DOB), if it is there, AND your year of college graduation, if you have a degree. Of course they can find you on a college website and have the year within minutes, but at least it's not on the resume where they can see it and immediately toss you into the "Reject" pile. If they need something like DOB later, they can ask for it, preferably after having decided to hire you. This is one reason I don't like online applications, because they don't usually allow you to skip questions, and DOB or of graduation is often one of the first ones you meet.

SECOND, cut your resume. I have a friend about my age who says he only has the most recent 15 years of experience on his. I think that's too much to cut, because he's obviously well past his mid- to late 30s. Again, a company could ask. The friend seems to think that the past 15 years are the most relevant. I have about 30 years on mine (details to follow), but that still makes me look 9-10 years younger than I am. What I would NOT do is cut parts of the MIDDLE of the resume, because then you have the gaps that interviewers love to zero in on and question you mercilessly about. Real gaps, from unemployment or whatever other reason, such as the volunteering mentioned above, are hard enough to deal with.

THIRD - and I would never be dishonest - IF you can get away with years and not months and years on the resume, go with years. I had always put both until the most recent version, when a friend said that with as much experience as I've had, an employer shouldn't care about years (though I've found lately this isn't always the case). But putting only years might save you a year or two. Isn't it ridiculous that we have to do this?

FOURTH - Remove any reference to salary. You could possibly lock yourself into a lower-paying job that they would have offered if you'd shown you earned X instead of Y. Or you could price yourself out of a job. My most recent one paid significantly more than the others, but partly because it was a different kind of work. If I had that on the resume, no one would hire me, certainly not for what I'm applying for now. In fact, when you send a cover letter, at least in the D.C. area, most of the time you have to send "salary requirements" or a "salary history." Be scrupulously honest, because if you aren't, they won't touch you with a 10-foot pole. With the "salary requirements," state a range rather than a definite figure, giving both of you room to negotiate. And mention any factors relevant to the salary which might give them room to maneuver or explain the figure. I mention that I have my own health insurance. It hasn't helped so far, but in theory, if they didn't have to pay for mine, it would save them some money, some of which they could use to pay me toward the higher end of the range I give them.

FOURTH, you might be able to rearrange the text so it takes up a bit less space - but be sure it is easy to read.

Ive heard that most resumes now are scanned by machines before a human ever sees them, and picks them on the basis of key words. So be sure to INCLUDE KEY WORDS such as your job title in the resume. If you are looking for work you've never had by that title, maybe you can put "Seeking a position as X" at the top.

Phichef, if the job is union, I say TAKE IT if is offered. I interviewed last month with a job working for a union, with conditions that SIMPLY DON'T EXIST ANY MORE in most other jobs. Higher pay. Way more benefits. A real retirement plan in addition to a 401(k). All the holidays. A full week between Christmas and Easter. Plenty of sick days. Fully paid health insurance, as well as other insurances. Tuition assistance, as I recall. Shorter hours. And so forth. And a convenient commute. It makes me sick that (who knows why) someone else got this job and I didn't. I think you will do well in such a spot, and almost certainly have greater job security than in the world at large.

In regard to my resume covering 30 years, I figure I can't shorted it too much more, both because I don't look, say, young enough to put just 20 years on it, AND because I want them to see the experience I have at jobs I held in the past, even if it was a good while ago. For example, I did major editorial and translation work, which ended in 1988. If I take that off, the resume looks more ordinary, and a major qualification in my background is lost. I keep the first job, which was teaching French, because it not only explains my degree in French, it is a qualification for applying for jobs involving French or teaching (admittedly neither plentiful these days), which are good to have.

If you can in any way DISTINGUISH YOUR RESUME FROM OTHERS', try to do that. These days, so many people are competing for so few positions that it is hard to do, but give it some thought.

I didn't get the job I interviewed for Friday, but that's OK. Things are happening so fast, I was getting worried I'd have TOO much to do (but ask me again in a month how I'm doing LOL)

The Rep #2 that I talked to last week stopped in today. He is SOOOOO excited to have me work for him! So it does sound like my time with him this Friday will be paid.

And the organizer of a marathon association is having me help her as soon as I'm done here in the bike shop. There is a ton of work to be done until marathon day, and who knows, maybe she'll decide she can afford to keep me for a few hours a week to help out. Plus she is having me quote on magnetics for the pace vehicles.

I've also gotten 2 separate shirt orders this week that I have to design and fill.

Plus still working out details with my old boss. I'm working on selling his fixtures and inventory, plus will be helping him with the books and other things this winter.

OK here is a funny story. The original shop I work for (the one we merged with) puts on a big ride coming up this weekend. We did one in the spring too, we shut the stores and all pre-rode the course together. Well, they've been working out the details on the pre-ride for weeks and NOT ONE OF US from the "new" store was invited. Then I get "laid off" haha fired. I had originally said I would work 5 days this week and next to cover someone on vacation, but that was when I had a job in October! I discovered they were doing their pre-ride this Friday and said, "self, you need to think about YOU!" Not my problem if there is no coverage anymore. It's way too hard to find a job and do interviews when working 9-10 hrs a day! The new boss calls me Monday to see if I will work on Friday (telling me of course that he wants to give me as many hours as possible to help me out - does he think I was born yesterday?!) because HE can't work as he will be riding! He actually wanted me to cover him so he could do a ride they did not invite any of us on. I said I was very booked up all Fri - Sun (he wanted me to work Sun too as they are short handed for volunteers for the ride). Old boss backed me up on that one. And I AM busy, two shirt orders, a magnetic order and I am working with the rep till mid-afternoon!

I know exactly how I could have kept my job. I would have had to work different hours and days and work in the other location further away, for the same amount of money. Since April. I'd still be there. I'd be kissing butt and pretending like this was the best thing since sliced bread. And it wasn't. I couldn't lower myself to do that and I have no regrets. I will still miss my job and my old boss (but should still be working with him some) but I think I can recreate a life I am happy with in my new jobs.

And the best part is, I'll still be in the industry, making more money and working less hours (at the moment) and more of them from home than before. Not sure how I lost too much on that one. ;-) Gee, maybe I should send new boss a thank you note for firing me? LOL

Simplicity, I so agree with you with regard to the 30 yrs on the resume. I was self employed for 15 of the last 17 years in the real estate industry. It was the relevant supervision of huge staffs prior to that, that caught their eye, I am sure.

I need to be patient about things as I will not hear anything until the end of next week, but I did do something that I know no one else who interviewed did. I dropped off thank you notes to both managers again stressing my skills and willingness to take any job to get into the company.

We'll see

The marathon group had their staff meeting today, and four of them came up with stuff to unload onto me! Yea! It's all work I can do from home too, so it can be fit into my schedule.

Tomorrow is my "first day" with our rep too.

The only downfall is that I am getting paid as a contractor, so I am not sure how often it will be. I'll be nervous till I get October's mortgage in the bank.

I had written a thank-you note after the interview at the place I had hoped to work in (I always do that; I doubt many do). It didn't make a difference.

I thought of something else. Be prepared to answer the question "Why should we hire you?" This is tough, because, first of all, we know they have other applicants, who might be more qualified than we are. And if you are doing support-staff work, it is difficult to point to "accomplishments" the way one can with some jobs. I plan, if I'm asked, to note that I made efforts to save companies money, and give a few examples. Try to find anything you've done that you can "trumpet" a bit. Personally, I think many of these questions are ridiculous.

I read also that vast numbers of companies are not ADDING staff. They are only replacing personnel who have left. This makes things much worse, although clearly demonstrates that the "recovery," if any, is "jobless."

No matter how much we need a job, we must NEVER give as a reason that it will benefit us. Focus on HOW YOU CAN HELP THE COMPANY. If they have great pay, etc., fine, but that shouldn't be mentioned, or you will seem, logically, rather self-seeking. I like to mention that I am adaptable and am willing to do a great variety of things (and my resume does show this).

What is depressing is that so many ads, when they give the salaries, aren't paying very much, and a lot of them make it clear they expect overtime. That is one thing I am striving mightily to avoid, except occasionally. If you state flat out that you don't want any OT at all, you will not be hired. If you talk about helping in a pinch, etc., that is better. If you don't want a lot, don't say anything to lead them to believe you do. If OT is a given on the job, as it is in most law firms, probably it's best not to apply.

It really is a jungle out there. It may be 20 years off, but I will be glad when I really can retire, because, compared to the old days, work isn't fun any more.

Again, good luck to all!

Simplicity, in looking at craigslist and some of the local papers online, many companies in my area are paying minimum wage or maybe a dollar more for bookkeeping jobs. Some are paying much much more, but it really surprised me to see how many more intensive jobs are not. I suppose if you are in high school or college it's not a big deal. But for someone with years in the workforce - wow. When you can work at a grocery store for more than that!

Diane D, I am appalled at the state of both pay and responsibilities now. Some of the added work makes sense, because of better tools. When I was a "secretary," letters were typed on a typewriter, and there was a limit to how many you could do in a day. With today's computers, we can produce hundreds. I have found that as technology changes, more is expected. This is reasonable up to a point, but then it becomes ridiculous. I read in a recent ad that the administrative assistant was supposed to provide support to TWELVE people! So that works out to less than 3 1/2 hours a week on average per person. When I worked for "just" 3 or 4 people in a previous job, I was trying as tactfully as I could to juggle the work for all the bosses.

Ads now list so many duties, even if you are Superwoman, you would run out of time to do them all, and some of them almost contradict each other.

It's ironic that at the same time that more and more jobs require a college degree, much of what you will be doing doesn't involve the knowledge that you presumably got in college. What is in ever-greater demand is computer programs, to the point where you just can't keep up. Every time I take a course in one, I read about another that I don't know. Many ads want you to know about ten of them. If you aren't computer-literate, that vastly reduces your opportunities almost everywhere.

In good times, people wouldn't put up with the low salaries you mention, such as minimum-wage-level or slightly more for bookkeeping work. When there aren't enough jobs at any kind, folks are over a barrel, and employers know it. One of the things that bothers me most about jobhunting now is the lack of respect for workers, the atmosphere of being "used" rather than "employed."

Yes, salaries are low. I expect to get less in whatever job I next have than I've earned in the past; I really can't ask for that much (even a couple of thousand or so more), or I will price myself out of the market. When times are bad, most people will work for less. The ones with spouses will muddle through; as a widow with a child not yet capable of living independently, I am likely to be fighting debt for a long time. Of course I will take the first offer I get, but I'm not optimistic about the kind of work, the benefits, the commute, or much of anything. The one think I MUST have is some type of retirement vehicle, such as a 401(k), preferably with at least a token employer match, because I'd rather not work beyond, say, age 80 - and it could take me that long to accumulate enough nest egg, if that is even possible, to be able to retire. Society may have to rethink the whole idea of retirement, but if the younger people want older ones to leave so they can have the jobs, some means of support must be available to people no longer working.

The media say the recession is over. I don't believe it. In the D.C. area where I live, the unemployment rate in Washington is 11.1%. I've read it's over 15% in Michigan. I pray for those people and am grateful that at least I have a roof over my head.

Simplicity, It's over 12% here in CA. My mother has been out of work for about 9 months - she's 62 - and she's almost given up on looking. She's got her SS which barely keeps her (along with my step-father's) with a roof over their head and food and utilities. And that's with a senior, low-income subsized apt.

Simplicity, I've been job hunting in cycles since 1990, the first time I was laid off. The recession was really bad here then, housing values plummeted, banks were dropping like flies. It's funny, I don't see it being quite as bad as 1990 now, but it's close.

In any case, I was searching hard 1990-1993, 1996, 2000-2001 and a little between 2001-2004.

Each time there was a change in the economy (I was looking primarily in the tech industry), you'd see the flip flop of requirements from college (ie a Bachelors or higher) to years in the work force. By 2000 I had 15 years experience in the field so I submitted resumes to those jobs that required a BA anyway. Even the headhunters told me it was a good idea, as a BA from the mid-80's really can't compete with 15 years of current experience. And frankly, any employer that is going to toss my resume because I have now over 20 years experience rather than an old college degree, is probably not an environment I want to be in anyway!

CT is at 8.1% as of August

I am not asking what I am probably "worth" but what I think is fair for the times. Things are going to be tight but it's nothing I haven't dealt with before. And with no spendy man in my life, I may actually end up ok financially.

It does sound like the guy I am working for now (starting yesterday) will give decent increases based on how well things work out for us.

And my current boss, who is leaving the shop with me, always paid me as much as he could. He'd give me a raise or two a year. He knew I should get more, but he wasn't even taking a salary. I turned the last two down because the economy tanked so badly last fall and we barely sold enough to pay the rent, utilities and vendor bills.

I hope things go well for everyone! I have been more bold about asking for work and business and it's really paid off. Working in a small retail shop, I realized that not only do I know a lot of people via customers, but other local small business owners plus our reps. Networking through them led me to two part time jobs - and work I can do at home for the most part. Can't beat that