Older workers can bring a lot of value to the table
Looking for a job is a sales process. As a job seeker, your job is to sell yourself to your next employer. It may be more difficult than it sounds.
The good news is that, especially as an older job seeker, you have a lot to sell. First and foremost, you have years – if not decades – of work experience. The vast majority of jobs out there require experience – and the more, the better. Direct job experience is crucial and industry experience is that much more of a case in your favor.
Then there are the many intangibles. Virtually all older workers have a strong work ethic; plus they tend to be more reliable, dependable, collaborative, steadfast, etc., etc. We could go on but even the Internet may not be large enough to contain all those benefits.
All those attributes should make you an extraordinarily strong candidate for any employer. But, alas, sometimes that’s not enough.
What will push your candidacy over the top and make you irresistible to that employer? Can you, as their next employee, demonstrate value to their bottom line?
Having years of experience and industry background won’t do it. Being reliable and dependable may not crack that nut either. But bottom-line value should make any hiring manager take notice.
Precisely how you can demonstrate this will vary from job to job, from company to company. There are just too many possibilities to enumerate them all here. Can you contribute to their bottom line by having fewer sick days? Possibly. Can your experience help them cut costs to improve profitability? Sounds good. Have you a good track record of attracting new customers?
All those things can improve an employer’s bottom line and make you the most memorable of all their job candidates.