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Job-Hunting Older Lawyers Should Lose the Comb-Over, Update the Wardrobe

Posted Sep 8, 2009 6:39 AM CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss

Older lawyers getting ready for job interviews may want to prepare by hitting the health club.

First impressions are important, legal search consultants Valerie Fontaine and Roberta Kass write in a column for the National Law Journal. They advise older lawyers who need to get in shape to improve their diet and fitness and to avoid dated styles.

“Update your style to be the best version of yourself,” they write. “Strive to look contemporary but age-appropriate and not ‘trying too hard to be hip.’ Stick to what you are comfortable with; just focus on a modern cut and flawless fit.”

Other advice: Don’t groan or sigh when you sit down or get up. Carry a portfolio instead of a briefcase. Leave the newspaper at home since the “techno-savvy” read their news on the Internet. Consider “touching up your hair color, or getting rid of the comb-over or obvious toupee.” Avoid outdated expressions, such as referring to a woman as a “gal,” and avoid statements that reminisce such as "in my day" or "when I started out." Watch the attitude; don’t appear cocky or arrogant.

“The interview is your opportunity to put any concerns to rest and let the prospective employer know that, as an older but wiser candidate, you have more to offer than the requisite expertise,” the article says. “Give examples of your teamwork, flexibility, innovation and creativity, capacity to learn new things and work in different and changing environments, ability to work long hours and knack for getting along with a variety of people. Use recent examples so as not to date yourself.”

Comments

1.

Anon
Sep 8, 2009 8:58 AM CST

Now the “legal search consultants” have moved from cluelessness to offensiveness.  The ABA Journal ought to stop providing these irrelevant publicity seekers with a platform.

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2.

Bob
Sep 8, 2009 10:09 AM CST

These are all good tips.  Plus use LinkedIn instead of a paper resume

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3.

Esq.
Sep 8, 2009 12:27 PM CST

I agree that the article was offensive.  Being in shape, having a good suit, and being well groomed is a MUST for anyone. 

Younger people wearing ill-fitting suits, super trendy haircuts and inappropriate shoes are no better off.  Many also have to realize that they’re a lot more tech savvy than their interviewers and tone it down accordingly.

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4.

B. McLeod
Sep 8, 2009 3:15 PM CST

Aw, they forgot, “Don’t reference your computer experience with UNIVAC,” “Wear a clean pair of Depends,” and “wrap all your joints in gauze to muffle the crepitus.”  I am glad we have the benefit of consultants and their valuable insights.  Also, God bless England.

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5.

James
Sep 8, 2009 3:43 PM CST

Well you see Wilbur… we’d really like to hire you, but what we need you to do is go home; write your age on a legal pad; subtract 20 years from it, and be that age by the start date.

Thanks Wilbur.  Also a little bit of color in your hair might make all the gals here at the office think you’re a little younger.

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6.

Legal Case
Sep 8, 2009 4:22 PM CST

We had a recruit come in a few weeks ago looking like she was going to a nightclub!  Very young, very hot!  Does that qualify her for a legal job???  She didn’t get the job—-not the right fit.

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7.

Liz
Sep 8, 2009 7:12 PM CST

These tips seem obvious and condescending. I really don’t think a bunch of lawyers are out there losing out on opportunities because of their poor hair styling choices. It seems just a bit more likely that, I dunno, the legal market has completely collapsed, but a number of people are focusing on fault finding with candidates to avoid admitting there’s a larger problem?

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8.

steve
Sep 9, 2009 9:40 AM CST

All BS - I got my first summer associate gig with bright orange crazy spiked hair.  Showed up to the intervew on my motorcycle.  All the partners care about is if you can do the job.

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9.

hal
Sep 9, 2009 12:16 PM CST

Lose the combover?  That’s a bit silly when you have a really nice one, especially because I spent a fortune to get “the Trump.”

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10.

Dan
Sep 11, 2009 6:10 AM CST

#6 - it would qualify her for a position with me.  No, no, not at my firm.  With me.

LOL

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11.

Ageism sucks
Sep 11, 2009 6:24 AM CST

You would think that a law firm would value someone’s years in practice more than a $900 tailored suit—the ones the 20’s somethings can afford to buy because they still live at home with mommy and daddy and don’t have a mortgage.  They are young and attractive, but couldn’t interpret a statute, unless it had pictures.

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12.

realistic
Sep 11, 2009 6:43 AM CST

Funny how normally ABA writers can’t do anything without crowing about women in the law.  Strangely one-sided now.  So here’s my 2 cents.  Ladies don’t forget to get the boob job, lipo and lose the turkey fat under the triceps.

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13.

Hmmph!
Sep 11, 2009 7:06 AM CST

Way to go—let’s perpetuate ageism!  Anyone who thinks my hair color disqualifies me from a job can kiss my shiny silver locks!

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14.

Ann
Sep 11, 2009 7:11 AM CST

It has not been my experience that older lawyers are the group in need of an attitude adjustment (“don’t appear cocky and arrogant”) or who need to be reminded to “work long hours.”  Great comment #12!

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15.

Texas Law
Sep 11, 2009 7:28 AM CST

At #12: The ladies will get the boob job, lipo and lose the turkey fat under the triceps when men get a brain, lipo and lose the turkey wattle under the chin.

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16.

young lawyer
Sep 11, 2009 7:52 AM CST

I generally find most of the ABA Journal “tips” on interviewing, networking, etc. to be somewhat ridiculous.  I’m 26, and I would never look at someone holding a newspaper and think, “Wow, I wonder why they aren’t reading that online. They must not be technologically savvy!”

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17.

aging WASP yuppie greyhead
Sep 11, 2009 9:08 AM CST

(Groan), back in my day, when I started out, hair color was not so important (happily I still have the hair, grey though it is) unless you were a gal, but it was important to show teamwork, flexiblity, innovation, creativity, and (most especially, the ability to work long hours). So, really little has changed as long as one stays techno-savvy. Got any suggestions for looking contemporary but age-appropriate? Canali and Zegna don’t seem to be the latest rage amongst the 20 somethings.

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18.

JME
Sep 11, 2009 10:29 AM CST

To avoid the potential combover, to say nothing of helmet hair when I remove the motorcycle helmet, my wife cuts my remaining gray hair to 3/8th inch.  I find it easy to talk hunting and fishing with other attorneys, and if they want to talk golf, I suggest we fling a golf ball out a distance, and we can use my .22lr rifle to see how many times we can hit it.  Guess I’d better not look for a job in the big city.

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19.

R
Sep 11, 2009 10:44 AM CST

The same advice goes for expert witnesses being hired by lawyers. We came THIS close to not hiring one expert who referred to “gals” and who otherwise had somewhat neanderthal expressions. (His combover wasn’t an issue, though…)

I totally agree with poster #18. Hey you combover and bald spot guys out there: I finally gave in several years ago and have a close-cropped head of hair, and my wife LOVES it. Try it. Plus, it’s cheap and easy to maintain. JME, you’d have no trouble finding a job in the big city with your close-cropped look: it’s very metro.

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20.

Hippster
Sep 11, 2009 10:51 AM CST

Shop at: 1) The Gap; 2) A & F; 3) Any store which carries more clothes with Gothic designs than a store that doesen’t.

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21.

greybeardy
Sep 11, 2009 10:59 AM CST

Given the choice, I’d take a sharp mind over a sharp suit any day.

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22.

ronp
Sep 11, 2009 11:08 AM CST

My ABA dues pay for this drivel?!? Really?!?!
Maybe I’m being overly generous, but I presumed that anyone that had moderate success in a law career was astute enough to have developed client relation skills, dressing appropriately and eschewing offensive, genderist language. Silly me.

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23.

JME
Sep 11, 2009 11:13 AM CST

Metro - HAH.  how about my beaver fur cowboy hat, my leather cowboy boots, and the pistol I wear on my hip.  Will that go over in the big city, too?  Works in my office and around this area, but somehow I suspect if I walked into a Biglaw office for an interview, dressed as I do (yeah, I would wear the black suit, but the hat and boots go well with it, and the gun fits nicely under the jacket), somebody’d probably have a fit.

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24.

Michele
Sep 11, 2009 1:05 PM CST

What to wear to an interview?  How the ___ do I get an interview.  Local placement agencies have told me, off the record, it’s unlikely due to my years of experience.

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25.

David Lockeeti
Sep 11, 2009 1:14 PM CST

What about bringing in your 89 year old mother to the interview and telling everyone that she can vouch for your real mental age - which is about 40 years younger than actual age. And she has a combover and boob job?

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26.

John
Sep 11, 2009 2:19 PM CST

You all can get as irritated and offended as you please, but don’t underestimate the advice offered. Unfortunately, American society is very often more concerned with form over substance. This plays right into the capitalist structure and perpetuates the society that we live in. If you think that your appearance won’t help or hinder your application, you are wrong. Unless you are so good that you can establish a brand by walking around looking like an outcast, you will likely lose to a more appropriate specimen.

If you are that good, you aren’t reading this article.

While it is easy to classify this as ageism, the hiring committees have been viewing the same ads, listening to the same commentators, and watching the same image-centric media that you have, and the “consultants” have impressed on them the importance of “making a good impression”. If this is true, then they have an interest in making sure that their firm image is protected. I’m not sure if it is true or not.

What is true is that none of these tips have anything to do with the person’s competence in practice of law though. If I am hiring (and I am) I try to look for the indicators of actual competence. It is possibly even advantageous to hire the “forgetful face” and let the opponent become overconfident. Let them look down on the person for their appearance and while they are otherwise preoccupied, you can beat them in court with actual law.
If you want a real tip, the first typo or grammatical error on a resume or cover letter sends you straight to my “maybe” pile, the second one gets you into the round filing cabinet at the side of my desk.

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27.

Ratetoohigh
Sep 11, 2009 3:41 PM CST

Not one mention of the underlying problem, i.e. age discrimination.

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28.

Kelly Anders
Sep 11, 2009 3:45 PM CST

I devote an entire chapter to attorney attire in my book, The Organized Lawyer (Carolina Academic Press, 2009). Please visit www.theorganizedlawyer.com.

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29.

JN
Sep 11, 2009 3:49 PM CST

Following on #16’s comment, I think the statement “Leave the newspaper at home since the “techno-savvy” read their news on the Internet,” was the worst part of the advice in the article.  (Maybe none of the advice was great or insightful, but most of it was merely inane or obvious.)  As long as the WSJ can continue to publish, I will continue to subscribe AND read!  Just the thought that someone might be down-rated for using otherwise idle time to read about what’s happening in the world is mind-boggling.  (Now if it was People magazine, I would probably cancel the interview before it started.)

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30.

Kalifornia Arnold
Sep 12, 2009 2:43 AM CST

#26-Here’s a tip for you—the first sign of ageism (and that’s what it is when you consider grey hair or other signs of experience) ends an interview. I had one “savvy interviewer” ask me straight out: “How old are you?” —Sign of a capitalist system? No, the sign of someone who values form over substance

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31.

B. McLeod
Sep 12, 2009 4:52 PM CST

I have to admit, it has been a long time since I interviewed with anyone.  However, if I was interviewing, and the interviewer asked me that, I think I would politely suggest that they join me for their choice of: 1) twelve rounds in a boxing ring; or, 2) a twenty-mile hike with full field gear.

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32.

my56thchoice
Sep 13, 2009 1:05 AM CST

Congratulations to #8 but he was very lucky.  “Form over substance” is generally all too alive and well, however, and it goes far beyond age discrimination.

#26 correctly states that form should not be considered more important than substance but my guess is that he is probably an arch offender when it comes to putting form over substance.  The truth is that while nobody actually claims that form should matter more than substance, almost everyone seems to act as if they think it should matter more than substance.  This is true regardless of country, culture or political ideology.  Humans are pack animals and easily led into prejudices.  It is quite rare to find anyone who rejects even small parts of their own culture (or even worse, their sub-culture).  People seem to regard their culture as something to be embraced whole rather as a trap for the unwary, which contains both good and bad features but which is taken far too seriously.

True, letting a resume go out with proofreading errors is probably fatal to any job application.  On the other hand, if I had a dime for every motion I ever opposed with typos in it I would have a hundred dollars.  Believe it or not, some of the same poeple who send out motion papers with typos in them are actually excellent advocates in court.  Also some people sign their names to motion papers that look fine at first glance and contain no typos, but in court they can’t argue their way out of a paper bag.

We must face the fact that in general lawyers are, with very few exceptions, as narrow minded and intolerant as any group of people and this is getting worse rather than better.

Probably the writer of the article in question here is one of the worst offenders of all when it comes to form over substance.  Getting all your news on the web instead of ever looking at a newspaper is probably the ultimate expression of chosing form over substance.  News coverage on the web tends to be rather shallow, politically slanted and superficial (although the print media may be no better).

My advice is that if one has the good fortune to work for people with any genuine decency (we’ve all seen false “decency”) it might not be a bad idea to consider staying rather than heeding advice that higher paying work is available elsewhere as it sometimes seems to be even in this economy. 

Ignore this last piece of advice and you may find your new job replaced by an army of per diem attorneys and unpaid lawschool interns.  This is one of the latest crazes in “form over substance” land.  Sometimes the big spender turns out to be a “cheapskate” after all. 

There are certainly some fine per diem attorneys and lawschool interns.  Generally, however, a salaried attorney who knows his file inside and out is probably better in the long run than a low cost substitute who must be brought up to speed on the file because nobody has looked at it in ages.

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33.

NewlyMintedSucker
Sep 13, 2009 2:22 AM CST

I think I just puked in my mouth;
Pray tell, why is this even on the ABA journal website?

I think its pretty offensive and surprised somebody even took the time to write this nonsense.

Keep that grey hair natural if you want to!!!

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34.

HBC
Sep 13, 2009 6:30 AM CST

How do “legal search consultants” dress when they tell their parents what they do for a living.  What drivel.

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35.

LawNow
Sep 14, 2009 7:32 AM CST

Even if you are in your 50s or 60s and looking for a job, act young by carrying around a expensive smart phone, throw around terms like Facebook and Twitter and mention how much you are into Kanye West and 50 cent’s style of music!  Also, use some current terms during the interview like “no problem” instead of thank you and “sick” to mean something really good!  That will impress the interviewer and land you the job!!!

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36.

Anon
Sep 14, 2009 10:55 AM CST

Definitely, #35.  Consult the Urban Dictionary before your interview, and incorporate as much of it into every sentence as possible.  How to sound au courant as well as professional!

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37.

Esq.
Sep 14, 2009 3:29 PM CST

@ #35:  Better yet, refer to an interviewer as ‘son’ or ‘ma’, say that you’ve enjoyed ‘conversating’ and that they can ‘hit you up on your cell.’

But honestly, in NYC the worst fashion transgressions I’ve ever seen were young lawyers.  More often than not, it’s young women wearing suits that are too short and too tight.  A second close is showing cleavage or wearing either platforms or stilettos (a/k/a “stripper heels”).  For men, it is wearing shirts that are too large, rumpled suits that look like they were slept in, or too much hair product and/or cologne.

I honestly believe that the over-50 crowd has the advantage in terms of “looking professional.”  After all, they’ve usually had lots of practice, and have more presence than the young folks who run the risk of being mistaken for an intern.

As for the flashy techno-gadgets, leave them at home!  Seriously.  You don’t want to have something ring unexpectedly during an interview.  Nor do you want to accidentally drop, misplace, or have to reboot it in the middle of the interview.  And other than a pda calendar, I can’t imagine an instance where it would be appropriate to flash an I-Phone, Blackberry, Cell-phone, Laptop, Netbook, etc. during an interview.  The interviewer will likely view it as an obnoxious attempt to look important.

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