Job Search Tips for the 40+ Job Seeker

If you are over 40 and reading this article, I wrote it just for you! If you are under 40, you will still get some good tips for planning purposes, since your time may be right around the corner!

I recently wrote an article ( here) about being on the other side of the recruiting table this past year. When I recruit, one of the things I enjoy is talking with potential candidates about their career goals. I think of it as more of a conversation rather than an interview. Unfortunately, some recruiters are still asking, "Tell me about a time when..." Here is how to prepare.

For ten years, I have volunteered my time at career transition groups, college career fairs, job fairs, and career panels. Some are geared for transitioning military, retiring government personnel, and the Over 50 crowd. I am also actively involved in numerous recruiting groups across multiple industries and countries. The things I learn from recruiters are things that I then share with job seekers, as in, how to be found by recruiters, and how not to tick them off when they do find you! I do a “Reverse Engineering Your Job Search” workshop on a quarterly basis.

Here is a summary of the top things I think you should consider, after having crowdsourced the questions/answers from multiple recruiters:

1.   Decide what you want to be when you grow up.

I know, this sounds condescending and rude, but hear me out! When you get closer to 50 years and older, you may have done different roles in different industries. When recruiters look at your profile or your resume, they have difficulty trying to decide what it is that you want to do. They only have ONE thing they want you to do, and that is to be the best fit for the role they are recruiting for! So, you need to HIGHLIGHT the details in your unrelated positions that are commensurate with the job you are applying for. I have seen resumes and LI profiles that go back to the 1960s, and include lawn mowing and babysitting. These experiences do not belong in either of those places. If you are applying for a position as an accountant, leverage just those skillsets that you used in your previous jobs.

I wrote this article on resumes after polling over 30 Recruiters and Directors of Recruiting to find out what/how they wanted your details. A GREAT article about resume mistakes recruiters hate: Here

2.   Network for your next role.

If you have worked for multiple years, chances are that you have met a number of people with whom or for whom you have worked. Talk to them! Have a 60 second elevator pitch perfected for what you are looking to do next. Ask them if they have a tip or two, or a company they could recommend looking into. DO NOT ASK THEM TO HELP YOU GET A JOB AT THEIR COMPANY! I cannot emphasize this enough. The point is not to try to “use” your contact to get you in; the objective is to ask for their input on your search. This is non-threatening, and is in keeping with professional protocol. You can gather great tips and intel, and don’t forget to say thank you! They also now know what you are looking for, so if something DOES come up, they will remember you.

3.   Update your look. No, really!

If you are still wearing your hair the way you have worn it for the last twenty years, it is time for a new ‘do! One man at a career transition MeetUp where I volunteer shared how, for six months, he continually aced the phone interviews, but after his F2F interviews, he never got an offer. He had a full head of white hair. So, he dyed it blond, and got an offer on his very next interview! I am not a huge fan of doing this, but unfortunately, we are competing in a very different workforce, and it ain’t pretty for us right now. If your outfits from the ‘80s still fit you (yay for you!) that is awesome. But, they need to be donated or at least retired until they are in vogue again. Can’t afford a new wardrobe? Guess where I get most of my attire? Thrift stores (in wealthier locations for trendy fashions, some with price tags still attached!), Ross, TJ Maxx, Clearance Rack at Kohl’s, WalMart, Target, and Costco. (If you put the right combo of pieces together, no one will know, much less care!) Can’t even afford the thrift store prices? One MeetUp I volunteer in locally also has racks of professional wear for men and women, for free. Check out your local resources!

4.   Put the Cheetos down, and step away from your desk.

One thing I have learned from many is that it is really easy to get discouraged and depressed, especially as your job search goes from days into weeks, and weeks into months. I know that the really bad food is so much cheaper, but it is better to skip a meal than it is to just keep eating the cheap, bad stuff. So, budget for healthier options to graze on throughout the day. When you are bloated, gaining weight, having brain fog, etc., it is really difficult to not lose hope. There are studies that have been done that show that exercise can change up your body chemistry and neurology. It is important to go outside and walk around the block a few times during the day. First of all, it gives your eyes a break from the screen. Secondly, you can breathe in the outside air. I know some of it is polluted, but if it is sunny out, you can counteract that with that dose of Vitamin D! You get your blood circulating, you are going to sing your fav tunes under your breath (do you really care what the neighbors think?) and you will come back reenergized to tackle more job search related activities.

5.   The recruiter is not your therapist.

I honestly cannot count the number of job seekers over the past decade who do the BMW thing (Bitch, Moan, Whine) about their former bosses, former colleagues, current companies at which they have interviewed/been rejected, or been ignored/ghosted, the divorce and custody issues, the invalid parent needing support, and the list goes to infinity and beyond. Recruiters cannot solve your problems, nor do they have the time to do so. The purpose of the interactions is to assess your fit for the reqs (recruiter-speak for the roles we are trying to fill). You have one time to make a first impression. Be your best professional self! If you have to practice with a family member or friend or someone in your support group, please do this first. Leave the baggage at the train station. It won’t miss you and will be there when you return. (Or, you can just leave it there. Better option!)

6.   Don’t say, “I’ll do ANYTHING!”

First of all, this isn’t true. Secondly, you sound desperate. (Okay, we know that you are, but you should never sound like it!) A recruiter’s job is not to try to find a job for you in their company. A recruiter’s job is to fill the positions that have been assigned to them, and they may be totally unaware of what other positions in their company for which you may be qualified. Do your homework. Just apply to ONE job at the company and see that one through. Don’t think it is not noticed when you apply to five completely different jobs. Those applications usually posit into one database. Even though people think that it shows that they are versatile, the recruiter is interpreting it as a lack of focus.

7.   Do the math. And, the research!

Write down the requirements of the position, and how you fit each one. Then add some of the top reasons you would like to work at the company, such as mission, methodology, opportunity to learn new things, etc. but be specific. Finish with at least three questions you want to ask the phone interviewer, and none of those will be about compensation! They should be relevant to the role you will be undertaking, or the future goals of the company. Review the website, social media sites, and learn all that you can about the company. Then email this info to yourself with the company name in the subject line. Put this in a "jobs" folder so that if recruiter or sourcer cold calls you when you are grocery shopping, you can run out to the car, while keeping them engaged, pull this up on your phone, and be able to have the notes right in front of you. I advised one person to ALWAYS take the call, because recruiters will just keep going down the list. He told the owner of a search firm that it wasn't a convenient time and asked for another time. This offended her as her time was a scarce commodity, and he did not value that. ALWAYS BE PREPARED, AND READY. You need this job, right? One of the complaints recruiters have (yes, we have them, too!) is that a candidate will know nothing about the company when we phone screen them. This tells us that you don’t care about who we are or what we do. You just want a job, and you will take one any which way or where that you can.

8.   “Never, never, never give up.” –Winston Churchill

I have been grieved by the countless messages I have gotten from all over the world of people who are at the “throw in the towel” point of their job search. Please don’t give up! I can empathize about how belittling the process is, how hard the rejection is, at times, for the roles we REALLY wanted. The perpetual ghosting. It is demoralizing. No two ways about this. However, I love the word “persevere”. It means cheerful, hopeful endurance. We can choose joy in our journey. We are not merely victims of our circumstances. We can remain hopeful, because why else do we wake up every morning? As Scarlett O’Hara said, “Tomorrow IS another day!”

What you can do each day while you are asking, seeking, knocking, (begging!) is to wake up each morning and think about three things for which you are thankful. Just before falling asleep (please don’t let that be in front of an infomercial on the telly!) think about three things that were good about the day. Do not dwell on everything that is wrong with your life or the world. Is this a magic bullet? No. But negativity just oozes through your pores, whether on a phone screen or a F2F interview. Stay positive by thinking positive thoughts. Remember: “Watch your thoughts for they become words. Watch your words for they become actions. Watch your actions for they become your habits. Watch your habits, for they become your character,” –quote attributed to multiple people.

One of my favorite sources of information (legit, and useful!) is from https://www.workitdaily.com/ There you will find info on what to wear/not to wear to the interview, what to say/never say on the interview, important things to include on your resume, and other great tips. We need all the help we can get, but not just from anywhere/anyone! Just because a person writes a column or blog does not make them an expert, so be careful out there! Most of the recruiters I know also recommend following https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/jtodonnell/ who is the genius behind the advice at WorkItDaily.

UPDATE! A fantastic article by FastCompany about resumes from none other than Google: Google's Director of Talent Explains How to Write a Killer Resume

About me:

I have spent a decade of volunteering in career transition groups, giving workshops on everything from how to find a job out of college to how to start a second career after retirement. There are many seasons of one’s career. If you find yourself in the “Over 40” group, you are not alone. You are facing challenges you never thought possible, and neither did thousands all over the world. I don’t help people get jobs. I recruit for companies and help them hire the best people for their positions. I work in human resources to help companies engage with and retain those great hires. I cannot personally help each person in transition, but check out the links in this article. Additionally, here is a GREAT article about how to optimize your LinkedIn profile. You can also follow me on Twitter: @JoWeech

Wishing you all the best in your job search journey!