Getting a Job in Middle-age and the Elephant

As a middle-aged woman, I have been told numerous times that I will never be able get a job. Evidently not only does my age go against me but as well, the fact that I have owned my own businesses will also scare off any potential employers…

I sold my last business over 12 months ago so it really is time to start with the next phase of my life. Initially I was planning on starting another business but I also liked the idea of just getting a job. It has been over 20 years since I last worked for someone but the idea of “all care and no responsibility” appeals to me. As does the consistent and hopefully, generous salary.

So, can a middle-aged woman who has not worked for someone else for over 20 years get a job? Ageism seems harsh and particularly unreasonable. How dare future employers judge me on my age and automatically assume because I probably know more than them about running a business I will not be able to quietly fit in and be great at my job.

Having this in the back of my mind left me a little nervous but finally, a job that seemed to have my name on it, appeared in my news feed. The universe sending me a sign. The ad was friendly… the business owner had his cell phone number and his email address listed. Excitedly I sent him a brief email letting him know that I was perfect for the IT Business Development role he had advertised. Ten minutes later he phoned me. We talked for nearly an hour and then made a time for me to go to his office to meet him. My 30-minute interview slot went to an hour and I am now invited back, along with three other candidates, to do a one-hour presentation on what I would do for the company in the first 90 days.

Let me tell you a bit of a back story before I went for the first interview. I was telling a middle-aged male friend of mine that I had a job interview. He said to me “have you told them how old you are?” I replied “no, why would I?” He said that in the insurance industry the sales people start out by bringing up the objections first. To get possible objections out in the open as soon as possible as opposed to leaving the ‘elephant in the room’. I look at least 5 years, if not 10 years, younger than my actual age and I thought my friend was being a bit of a jerk but I did end up bringing up age… I jokingly said “now you may have noticed I am a bit older. This works for me because I have LOTS of experience and people respect me and take me seriously.” So I did bring up the elephant in the room and it seems like at this stage my age may not be a problem.

Now the stress begins, what are they really looking for? Tim’s parting words to me were “be yourself”. Really? Is that it? I am nervous as hell. I have no idea what I am going to say and even worse what on earth am I going to wear? I will keep you posted on how it went!