#JobSearch #Friday – 3 Important First Steps If You Are Over 50 and Out of Work

Would you like to hear that being Over 50 is an advantage over younger candidates?  Would you believe me if I told you Over 50 candidates have an easier job finding a job because of those advantages? Would you believe me if I told you that sometimes Over 50 Candidates are discriminated against – and there is a logical reason why?

I am well over 50 years old and have been a professional recruiter for 39 years (did not start when I was 11 years old!).  I have successfully recruited candidates for my clients well into their 60s.  Additionally, my business for the past 25 years has included coaching clients who are out of work at all ages (none 83 years old…yet).  Therefore, I am an expert.

Why is Over 50 an Advantage?

You have experience that someone younger than you does not have.  For instance, look at my experience.  Since humans are so creative, I no longer say I have seen every dumb thing a candidate OR a hiring manager can do.  I have seen managers ask questions that amaze me.  They must have been up too late (and maybe had some mood enhancer) to think this is a good question – “How do you feel about working 120 hour weeks?”  This question was actually asked by a manager to a candidate I introduced to him.  She decided she was no longer interested in his position…Wonder why?

You have seen and experienced what works and what does not work.  Your experience is beneficial, especially building consensus and working as a member of a team.  You have forgotten more information than some younger candidates have discovered. 

You have a built-in network from your years of experience – co-workers, former managers, internal clients, external clients, former executives, and potentially sales professionals (vendors), your LinkedIn connections.  Add in your family including cousins, friends, neighbors, and former neighbors, parents of your children, etc., and you have a much stronger grassroots base than your younger counterparts.

What is Your First Step?

If you were laid off from your company, particularly if you worked there for a long time, or if you decide to leave a company that initially showed great promise, you will experience the stages of grief – Fear, Denial, Anger, Depression and hopefully quickly, Acceptance.  Unfortunately, these emotions are not linear.  They are dependent on the current situation.  Therefore, you may feel you are near acceptance.  Then you feel like you absolutely Killed an Interview and expect an offer.  Three days later, if ever, you hear from the company that you did so well but they picked your competition to extend an offer.  You will then slide back through the stages of grief.  Fear raises its ugly head again.

Therefore, you need to create positive energy.  The best method is to take two sheets of legal paper.  On the top of one sheet write Professional and on top of the second sheet, write Personal.

Fill each line on both sheets with an attribute, experience, or skill that you do well.  It may be something as simple as “I keep a well-ordered desk drawer.”  Keep in mind that all of your brain may not immediately engage in this exercise (shh, brains can be like that…).  Two or three days later, it may decide to add more items – remember to add them to your list!

The Important Second Step

Now that you have these lists, this exercise will benefit you by reinforcing your self-worth.  This step begins to prepare you for your resume update because you are dredging all of these attributes, experience, and skills to the top of your consciousness.

Now the Second Step benefits you more.  Wash through everything on your lists and place an asterisk next to everything you do well that you ENJOY Doing.

We all have experience or skills where we exceeded expectations – and Really do not want to repeat that experience.  For me – I have been very effective with Employee Relations issues, especially for my startup clients who lack a Human Resource Department.  However, until this blog, you will never find those two words together on my website.  Let me Attract Top Talent and leave that task to someone else.

Now create a story that demonstrates the attribute, experience, or skill that you do well and enjoy doing.  In my books, I suggest that you develop stories by using the 4 Ws –

  1. What was the Challenge?
  2. What was your Analysis and Action?
  3. What was the Result?
  4. What did you Learn?

This part of the exercise benefits you by creating a focus on what you really want to do and begins to dredge up stories for your interviews.

And The Third Step…

According to the Career Transition industry that coaches laid-off workers to find new jobs, for the past 45 years between 74% to 76% of all jobs were filled through Networking, not answering ads nor responding to online job postings.

Therefore, it is important to create a list of 500 people that you know.  We listed the sources of your network in your advantage of being over 50 vs. younger competition.

Create a spreadsheet so you may track your calls (not emails nor texts).  The first column should be Name, then Phone, Company, Source (Name of the person who will introduce you or gave you the name and contact information).

This is the beginning of your preparation to find a job. 

Use your experience to your advantage and find that job sooner than later!

This is my most recent (and 108th Television Interview) on this topic – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8Da9vZdN7M&t=7s

I am here to help you further each week.

For more details and for a Salary Negotiation script to accelerate your #Jobsearch, please immediately click on this link to my recent book, Employee 5.0: Secrets Of A Successful Job Search In The New World Orderhttp://amzn.to/2D9w39f  My book contains the 12 Steps to find a new position in a nice, orderly fashion.  It also has the stories of people who did well – and some who did not. You may learn from both sides.

See you on Fridays!

Coming Soon, my third book on Finding A JobExpect Success!  The Art Of The Over 50 Job Search!

Bill Humbert is available for Speaking, Talent Attraction Consulting, Career Transition Consulting, and Training contracts.

www.RecruiterGuy.com   RecruiterGuy@msn.com  435-714-4425

https://www.espeakers.com/marketplace/speaker/profile/23767/Bill-Humbert

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