Lately I have been paying attention to people my age (over 50) who are unemployed. (including those who don't dye their gray hair!)
I recently spoke with one person who had sent out over 750 resumes in a year and received 4 responses.
I went OMG!
His response: "That’s better than some other people my age that I know, so I must be doing something right!"
We also discussed some other ideas for him to pursue as part of this mass resume mailing campaign.
Here is the plan we came up with.
1. Network in non-traditional groups (tech, social media) to break challenge age perceptions
2. Utilize non-traditional search tools. I recommended a number of job aggregators and local boards outside the big 3 - Indeed, SimplyHired, workforce50, Linkup, jobshouts, etc.
3. Consider other opportunities – contract, consulting, – look for work places like elance, Guru, Sologig, odesk, and others. Consider teaching at colleges or on-line at schools like Webster or the University of PHX.
4. Get over the idea that you have to work in a certain business sector. Stretch boundaries. Consider non-profit, etc
5. Increase your geographic reach. Consider New Orleans, for example. Relocate if necessary, and if possible. You can always move back where you left down the road if you want to
6. Increase your voice wherever possible, with relevance. people will see it. It might help, and certainly can’t hurt!
7. Spend time on new things just for you. Be assertive about your job search, but don’t let it consume you.
Photo source: http://AARP.org
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