Flashback 10 years…I traded in my laptop bag for a diaper bag. Presently, I am putting myself on the market–the job market, that is. It is daunting, to say the least. I fear the dreaded, “So what did you do to keep your skills current?” question. Is there value in mentioning my volunteer activities? Sources say yes, but I wonder, “Is that enough?” Or, will it be viewed as fluff? I ask myself constantly, “Am I enough?” I KNOW that I am very good at certain things. I am resourceful, creative, and a great problem-solver. It’s what made me a good programmer and project manager in my past life. However, my tangible skills, the kind that show up on a resume feel outdated and dusty. Hence, my confidence crisis.

Despite the fact that my MBA has sat on a shelf unused for a large part of the past decade, I never regretted pursuing an MBA or the choice I made to stay home to raise our four children full-time. If given the chance to start over, I would make the same choices all over again.

Do you really want to be (pre)judged by your email address?

If you still have a Hotmail, Yahoo, or AOL email account listed on your resume, change it now.  It dates you instantly.  Set up a Gmail account and forward messages to your existing account if you just can’t bear to part with it (like me ;))

Full disclosure: I only signed up for Gmail about a month ago for reasons completely unrelated to my recent job search.  I recently started working as a background actor (or “extra”) for film and commercials (look for me in future Amazon and Google ads!) and for one of my jobs they were seeking 20- to 30-somethings.  I submitted anyway, got the job, and when I showed up, it was clear that I was old enough to be a parent to some of the actors.  I went into stealth mode, ducked my head and kept to myself, trying not to be “found out”, afraid that I would be pulled from the project.  The project wrapped and I felt relieved that no one was the wiser, until I remembered that an email list went out at the start of the project and I realized that it would be apparent to anyone looking at the list that was not a millennial.  Good news for me, but it made me examine my public identity.  I’m not ashamed to be over 40, but there is no need to advertise it, especially when seeking employment after a significant break.

I used to chuckle at people who still used their AOL addresses and it didn’t register that I was only one step away!  Please tell me I am not the only one who has been blind to the changing times and/or reluctant to embrace change.