The problem is that many 50-plus job searchers spent most of their careers in an unrealistic twilight zone working for one company. After nearly a decade of rampant downsizing, it's hard to fathom such a world. One day the walls came tumbling down and corporate America's gatekeepers delivered bad news. The company was in Chapter II or it had merged or consolidated.
Departments were cut or eliminated and middle-management ranks were slashed. For your devoted efforts and loyalty, you got a cryptic memo you didn't really understand, along with a handshake, pat on the back, severance package, pension, and timetable for clearing off your desk and getting the hell out. In short, your services were no longer needed. You made a beeline to your favorite watering hole and thought to yourself, "How's that for gratitude?"
It marked the end of a lifestyle and the beginning of a new chapter in your life. Like it or not, you were left having to wheel-and-deal in a high-energy job market that insisted upon perfection-whatever that meant. Employers' new hiring motto was, "Get the job done right with as few people as possible, and make no long-term promises." Repressed button-down human resources types call it "maximizing human resources." In plain English, hire people willing to work their butts off.
The next time you hear about "cradle-to-retirement job security," you'll be watching a nostalgic documentary on the 1950s.
NOBODY IS WAITING FOR YOU
Get humble fast and see the new world as it is. The cold truth is,no one is waiting for you. And I'm not blaming the age issue either. It s a buyer's market, a point I'll drive home as often as I can.
Employers' new hiring attitude is, "Impress me, I dare you!" Why shouldn't they feel that way? Heck, if you were running a company and staying up nights figuring out how to remain profitable and fend off the competition nibbling at your market, you'd want the best talent you could find too. Hiring the wrong person is not only a waste of money; it could slow you down. That spells potential death in the entrepreneurial race for market dominance.
Leave nothing to the imagination. Impress employers by doing a compelling show-stopping tap dance that drives home your talents with the fervor of a street corner evangelist. You must be a super-salesperson who doesn't know the meaning of the word no. You must have the ego of a politician combined with the humility of a monk. Qualifications are great, but it's your ability to sell them to an employer that's going to get you a job.
GIVE ME PEOPLE WHO CAN HIT THE GROUND RUNNING
Understand the realities of the career world and you'll be ready to pitch yourself accordingly. The goal is convincing employers you're not a vestige of a bygone work era, but a high-energy chameleon who quickly adapts to any environment. Picture yourself walking out a revolving door and walking back in with a new attitude and take on life. Here's what companies are looking for.
- Recyclable Workers
- Clutch Players
It's as simple as hiring people for a clearly defined task (a marketing research project or an advertising campaign, for example) and then showing them the door when they're finished. Cyclical and seasonal companies do this all the time. Clothing and toy manufacturers and department stores require more bodies around the busy Christmas season to make, package, ship, and sell their goods. If they are lucky, at the end of the season, these people will be reassigned to other areas where their skills can be tapped.
Don't be put off by the temporary nature of the work. There are no guarantees and you could be back on the street in 3 months. But it's also an opportunity to learn and make contacts. Even if it doesn't materialize into a long-term job, you're ahead of the game because you have more skills to market.
- Job Hoppers
PACKAGE YOUR EXPERIENCE
Don't apologize because you've had five jobs over the last 15 years. See it as a strong selling point. Tie the experiences together to make a compelling case for your consideration. The point is to make each job into an opportunity to learn and grow. Each one took you farther along the vast career highway. Security isn't the thing; its improvement and self-fulfillment. In other words, you're a better person for each job. Even career changers can take this tack by finding a common skill to sell from two totally different industries.
A social worker turned stockbroker did this successfully when he convinced a well-known nationwide brokerage house to hire him. Yes, social work and selling stocks are oceans apart, yet they both require a critical skill-understanding and communicating with people. When he made this point during his interview and went on to say he was convinced he'd make an excellent broker because of his social work experience, the interviewer took a deep breath, paused 30 seconds, and agreed with him. A week later, he was hired. There are hundreds of inspiring stories just like his. If you're like me, a veteran job hopper and proud of it, you've been liberated.
A recommended exercise is making a list of all the jobs you've had and then writing out the good and bad points of each one. Uppermost, jot down what you learned from each. The painless exercise will help you sell yourself better when you are asked about prior jobs.
