Don't ... try harder.
You read that
right. Don't.
If you've been on the
job hunt for a while, with little or no success, you may have heard this
platitude: Just try harder! But according to Bob Sullivan, co-author of "The Plateau Effect: Getting From Stuck to Success," it's
actually the worst thing that you can do in this situation.
"When you find
yourself putting more and more effort into something that’s getting less and
less results, it's not a sign that you should keep trying — it’s just the
opposite," says Sullivan. Of course, this isn't to say that you should
stop putting in effort altogether. Rather, you should try something different,
whether it's re-vamping your LinkedIn profile, networking more consistently
or working with a career coach to more effectively bust through a job-hunt
rut.
Do ... make your
resume ageless.
Lisa Johnson Mandell
was in her late 40s when she suddenly found herself without a job. Although she
made sure to show off her 20-plus years of experience as an entertainment
reporter on her résumé, after countless job applications went unanswered, her
husband gave her the hard truth. "He said, 'Lisa, don't hate me, but you
really look kind of old on paper,' " she recalls.
So Mandell removed
key age indicators from her resume, such as the year she graduated from college
and the lengths of time that she was employed. "As soon as I sent out this
new résumé that wouldn't tell anybody how old I was, I started getting
responses—I'm not kidding you—within 20 minutes," she says. "And, in
two weeks, I had three full-time job offers."
The result wasn't
just a new gig, either—she also wrote a book, "Career Comeback:
Repackage Yourself to Get the Job You Want," in which she
shares strategies for giving a resume a more youthful spin. "Somebody in
their 20s looks at 20-plus years of experience and puts you in the same age
group as a mother or grandmother," she says. Of course, in an ideal world,
experience should trump age, but Mandell adds that "if you're really
intent on getting a job, you have to make concessions."
Do ... brush up on
your interviewing skills.
If you haven't
interviewed in a long time, you could probably use some practice. Instead of
role-playing with a too-comfortable friend, try going on a few interviews for
jobs that you aren't as jazzed about "because what you don't want is to go
on an interview for the job that you most want and screw up," explains
Art Koff, founder of RetiredBrains.com, which connects older workers with
employers. "Every interview is a learning process."
You may also want to
record yourself speaking. It's a tip that David Welbourn received while making
a career switch at the age of 59 from a fundraising post at a hospital to a
director role at a nonprofit. His advice: "Listen to your own voice, and
ask yourself: Do I have enough emotion? Do I sound like I care?"
Don't ... write off
temporary or part-time work.
"Employers are
particularly receptive to hiring the over-50 set on a part-time, temporary or
project basis," says Koff. "The employers get experienced, reliable
employees, and in most cases, they don't have to pay benefits for these
positions, making these workers cost-effective."
Koff even advises
reaching out to a company that you admire and offering to work on a part-time,
trial basis. "It gives you a little bit of a leg up because the
employer can then say, 'We can hire this guy, and if it doesn't work out, we'll
let him go,' " he says.
In fact, that's
exactly how Evelyn Wolovnick found her way back into the workforce after being
laid off from her job at an insurance company at the age of 59. After writing a
few letters to companies suggesting that they hire her on a temporary basis,
she landed a part-time consulting gig with a business in
Chicago. Wolovnick signed the six-month contract six years ago—and she's
still happily employed.
Do ... start a blog.
Blogging about your
field will help alleviate younger hiring managers' concerns about your
tech-savviness, advises Mandell. "It shows that you're web savvy and that
you're up-to-the-minute in your field," she says. "If you're blogging
about the latest advancements going on in your field, potential employers will
say, 'Wow, this person is really current.' "
Do ... give yourself
a makeover.
Mandell often advises
older job seekers to make an effort to look younger, like dying gray hair
or shaving your head to disguise balding. "It sounds kind of vacuous,
but it really can make a difference," she says.
Welbourn received
similar advice during his job hunt. "Somebody mentioned to me that I
should get my teeth whitened, and dress a little less formally," he
recalls. "It doesn't show a lack of understanding of the corporate
culture—it shows confidence in being able to be a little informal with people
in an informal setting."
Don't ... ignore
alternative ways to make money.
There are a number of things that you can do on the side to earn
money while you look for more permanent employment, such as freelancing in your
field or even participating in market research surveys. “If you're working a
30-hour side gig, we're talking about making anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000 on
a monthly basis," Koff says.
There's also an added
bonus to this approach: If you're forced to step away from a full-time job, you
may stumble onto something different—and even more lucrative. Koff recalls the
story of one man who, after being laid off in his 50s, said to his wife,
"After all these years, I'm going to finally clean out my garage." He
did such a great job that he now operates a garage-cleaning company that staffs
five employees!
Do ... view your age
as an asset.
While working
with New Directions,
a company that provides career transition training, Welbourn learned how he
could differentiate himself from younger competition. "I got wonderful
coaching about how to make the case for myself not as an older person," he
says, "but as an experienced individual who was less likely to be fooled
by situations, and someone with a good track record of success."
In fact, it's
something that he takes into consideration when doing his own hiring.
"This may sound ageist, but as a leader, I would rather hire somebody who
really has good experience," he says. "Someone who can weather the
ups and downs."
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