I've been on the job hunt for several months now, primarily focusing on entry-level positions. However, I've faced a frustrating pattern where interviews I've scheduled with smaller companies get canceled at the last minute, often with vague reasons. This has happened three times, leaving me puzzled and a bit disheartened. A friend suggested I google myself to see what information is publicly available, and I was shocked to discover that my age and birth month were prominently displayed. I'm over 40, and it struck me that this could be influencing my job prospects, especially since I was applying for entry-level roles. Despite my efforts to remove any obvious indicators of my age from my resume, I realized that this online information could still be a barrier. To test my theory, I created a new resume using my middle name as my last name while keeping everything else the same. Surprisingly, I started receiving responses and even booked an interview that actually went through! Now, I'm in the process of trying to remove my personal information from Google and other sites, as I believe it shouldn't be this difficult to find a job based on age discrimination. I want to share this experience to encourage others in a similar situation to check what information is available about them online. It's a tough job market, and I want to ensure that age isn't a factor working against us.