Standing Out in a Crowd

You want to be noticed by employers for the right reasons

Every job seeker wants to be noticed. This is especially true for older workers who fear that age has turned them into unseen, undistinguishable “wallpaper.”

You want HR people to notice you. You want hiring managers to notice you. You want recruiters to notice you. You want anybody and everybody on LinkedIn to notice you. Being noticed, standing out and being memorable — a job seeker can’t get too much of these things. Most of the time.

Being conspicuous

The truth is that, yes, you want to stand out, but you want to make certain that you’re standing out for the right reasons. There are things hiding in your resume or your job applications that might make you memorable, but for the wrong reasons.

You may have heard of something called “gmail.” It’s a safe bet that half (if not more) of all out-of-work job applicants have a gmail e-mail address. They are de rigueur among today’s job applicants.

Having a gmail address will not get you noticed. So why care? Your gmail address will blend right in with all the other applicants. But if you don’t have one and you insist on continuing to use your old email address, you will stick out, but not in a good way. LinkedIn claims that older domains such as AOL, Hotmail, and sometimes Yahoo can be unfairly associated with being “old school” or less tech-savvy. And, according to executivebrand.com, gmail and Outlook email addresses “tend to look current and professional to recruiters.”

The same is true for listing your phone number with the area code in parenthesis. Using dashes or periods to separate the area code from the exchange, from the number will allow the person reviewing your resume to not notice. Another instance when not noticing is a good thing.

If you include your LinkedIn address, no one will sit up and take notice. But in the absence of one, you will stick out – but not in a good way. Likewise, if you’ve had a number of jobs in your career but you still are listing that job you landed during the Reagan administration, you will be conspicuous.

You want to be noticed; you need to be noticed; but for the right things.

More tips.