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Antionette

02/26/20 at 8:11PM UTC

Career

End of my rope

I’ve been looking for a job in Menifee, Ca for over 8 months with no luck. No calls for interviews, when a company calls and does leave a message I return the call ASAP but then crickets no follow up from whom called me. I’ve even applied for jobs part time, out of my career just to get a job. I’m all out of ideals, the companies in my area are very unprofessional. I don’t have the ability to drive 2-4 hours to another big city as traffic is so bad in So Ca you will never be on time. I can’t go much longer without any help or guidance. I’m 61, yet just to try to get in front of an interviewer I adjust my age. I really don’t understand how these companies are still around with how they deal with job posts that they leave up all year round. The posts that are out there they want to pay you $17.00 or lower an hour yet want you to give them a hundred grand attitude. I’m lost and have no hope. Guess I’m no longer marketable with my real or fake age. Any and all ideas are welcome as after this week I’ll be dead in the water.

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cms1234

203

02/28/20 at 12:58PM UTC

Antoinette, one last thought? The USCensus is hiring. The range of positions are field work to managers. The salary is different depending on what part of the country you live in, but its always definately liveable and more than $17/hour. Hiring is immediate. Agree with previous posts, especially state, county services, staffing agencies / headhunters, and reaching out religious organizations. Love the Steps as well. Truly the best of luck. We are all pulling for you!

Jackie Ruka

2.07k

ProfessionalHappyologist Thrive in your purpose.

02/27/20 at 5:49PM UTC

Antionette, I think there is a big problem in this nation for people securing new jobs who are qualified and over 45, therefore it is not YOU. So just know you have and are doing all the right things however, the hiring system is severely flawed. Lynn brings up a great step by step plan. In addition, more companies are hiring remote and also looking for customer call reps and other jobs where remote is conducive. I posted in my Pivot group a great remote source namely virtual vocations dot com. There is a small $15 fee a month however, there are lots of jobs on there and you just need that one. I also suggest you write down your goals 2x a day. It actually shifts you out of desperation and into deep faith, possibility and openness to receive. CA is very competitive and it's hard in general to make a living there while affording the cost of living. There are some great low income housing options in Del Mar and other locales. Perhaps lowering your rent or selling your home to live simply might be another option? Just thinking out loud.

Antionette

02/27/20 at 7:17PM UTC

Thank you ALL! The support alone is so awesome ladies! The low income housing has waiting lists for decades ? For those ladies who get a email or letter saying that you went not picked for the position is more than I receive. So being old school I still send a thank you note to the interviewer. I also call to follow up knowing that all who send a resume don’t follow up. I also try to get a hiring managers name so as to not send a resume to a blind email. I only know how do old school trying to stand out as with email you can’t even send a different color paper for your resume. I still think between all of us intelligent ladies on this site we should develop a company that we can all Skype/telecommute it would be great and we would not have to worry about the Coronavires either ? I do know that I appreciate all of your input and I hate that there are so many of us good souls that are looking for work. We may be mature but we are not Granny Clampett ?? We are the ones with experience, connections with in our industry, for the most don’t have children to take care of and can actually be flexible with a work schedule if crunch time is needed. We also have great attendance as we don’t call out to go to the beach or due to being hung over from a party the night before. It’s enough that are body’s are changing/betraying us we can’t understand why we can’t eat like we use to and have cloths we still really like let alone being told in not so many words we are not worth hiring. Well it’s back to the grind of liking for a job or finding a company I want to work at and shoot off a resume ? Thank you all! ?

Lynne Cogan

858

Career Coach for Realizing Professional Dreams

02/26/20 at 7:11PM UTC

Antoinette. I wouldn’t normally do this, but since you are under so much pressure and feeling so stressed, I’m going to give you a “Step 1, Step 2, Step 3 approach” of what to do to help you get yourself out of this. But first, in case you have not researched this, I want to mention that many local and state governments have additional assistance once someone reaches 60. Also, you can start collecting Social Security at 62. I realize that is probably a few months away, but it is lifeline just in front of you. There is the flexibility to stop it once you are supporting yourself again. That said (written). STEP ONE: Start writing a gratitude list of 5 items each morning. You might not feel as though you have anything to be grateful for. But you do. I promise. Just look around. You can start by being grateful for your eyes. You can be grateful for your glasses (if you wear any). You can be grateful for your fingers and toes. You can be grateful for whatever you ate for breakfast. And that you have enough food for today. And for the bed you have to sleep in tonight. You can be grateful for sunsets and rainbows. You can be grateful for friends. You can be grateful for all the people who responded to your post and for your finding FGB. You can be grateful for the internet. You can be grateful for all the jobs you have ever had and for all the money you ever earned and all the things you have bought with that money. Every day five items. STEP TWO: If you have not already done so, contact the city, county, and state governments about what services you are eligible for from food stamps to rental/mortgage assistance to Medicaid. Please, also check to see if any of these governments provide counseling. I don’t mean career assistance, you are already aware of that. I mean social workers or psychologists on a free or low-fee (possibly sliding scale) to help you over through your negativity so your job search can be more productive. Make sure to let them know you are over 60. STEP THREE: Since the average job search is 5-6 months and longer for people who are older but need money NOW, you might want to explore some options that might start paying sooner as a bridge from where you are to the job you really want. (I’ll get back to your real job search in Step 5.) If you have a dependable car, you might be able to do ride sharing (Uber, Lyft) or food delivery (Grub Hub, Door Dash, Uber Eats). With these, you can probably start earning within the week. There are all kinds of websites that you can check out depending on what kinds of work you want to do. There’s Task Rabbit. Babysitting and housecleaning sites. Tutoring sites. Just Google. You also can post your availability for the work you want to do on a networking site called NextDoor. Have you heard of it? It is neighbors connecting and helping one another. It’s quite helpful and active—at least where I live. These jobs may not pay as much as you are accustomed to, but they can help you start digging out of your financial hole. There also are possibilities for getting freelancing work in your field. There are Fiverr.com and many other freelancing sites, including LinkedIn’s ProFinder. These would pay better but probably would require considerably longer to get established. They also might require more research and preparation. STEP FOUR: I know you live in a smaller town. You mentioned there isn’t much available and here are a couple of possibilities for finding a job quickly. If there happen to be any customer service call centers nearby, those jobs are easy to come by and, from my experience, they are more interested in getting customer service reps in seats than in their age, etc. One of the great things about customer service is they are accustomed to constant turnover; as soon as you find another job, you can quit. Another possibility is temping. However, unless you find something long-term, this is not generally steady work. The best thing to do is sign up with five agencies—providing there are any locally. STEP FIVE: I noticed that Susan Smoter’s comment has been deleted. However, remote work does exist. Flexjobs.com specializes in all kinds of flexible work, including remote. Other sites like Indeed, also post remote job openings. In the keyword box where you post the job title you are looking for, add “remote” or “work from home” or “telecommute.” Given your situation, remote work either as an employee or a freelancer/contractor, would seem an excellent possibility. However, it might take time to get what you want. Therefore, use the other options mentioned in Steps 3 and 4, as a bridge. You can do one or more until you can find the work you are looking for.

Anonymous

02/26/20 at 3:21PM UTC

The follow up calls have put you at risk. Unfortunately in this day and time they will call you. Don't call them. A lot of business will now put you on a "do not hire list". Next is ageism. It does exist. You may have experience, but they believe that you guys are slow and unproductive. Just keep trying. You have done all you can do. Just don't do call backs. And keep an eye on Indeed.com. They are pretty good about job openings. And if they tell you the position is no longer open. Then point out their lie.

Vicki Mathison

02/26/20 at 3:37AM UTC (Edited)

Ask someone at your unemployment office for advice i struggled like you when the location I worked at closed. I was with the company 15 years. My interview skills were great, my resume not so much and I was viewed as over confident, over qualified and probably looking for to much money....they helped a lot.

Antionette

02/26/20 at 7:16AM UTC

Ms. Vicki, I’ll try them again. The EDD in Ca is only open from 8-12 M- Thurs & Friday closed. Ca has about a 13% unemployment rate and with EDD being a government office well . . . They are hardly there as they have a job. I’ll check with them again and let you know ? Thank you all as I’m new to this site as I’ve just been looking for ideas for so many weeks now ??

Anonymous

02/26/20 at 2:39AM UTC

We do have job placement agency’s in CA however it’s the unprofessionalism with the employees that say they are trying to place you ? They don’t follow up, return your calls and even call you a lier when you call them out for not sending you the testing the employer requests. I’m not kidding when I asked the gal for copies of who she sent the tests to and when she went cold. I emailed the corporate office contacted the manager and she gave me another representative in another office and he also dropped the ball after the first email to me. I can’t make this stuff up my husband will tell you as he has to hear me mumbling all day long ?

GlassMom

02/26/20 at 1:34AM UTC

I'm not sure how things are in CA, but our state job-placement offices in MN almost always connect job-seekers with something - granted, not always the best jobs given the hiring company has resorted to asking the state for a listing. Usually it's folk who are looking to get off of state aid who have access to these listings. One upside to this approach is getting a handle on what other state programs might be useful to you, or to someone you know/meet who might benefit from those connections.

Jennifer Hyduk

155

02/25/20 at 11:45PM UTC (Edited)

Hi Antionette ? I get it. I too am no spring chicken age wise and have been looking with not a ton of great prospects. I'm also at the point of needing something very soon or my house could be at risk. Unemployment here in AZ is insanely low and doesn't help with much. I understand the fear and anxiety. What I find helps me a little (very little) is a back up plan. What will I do if "xyz" happens? What CAN I do realistically? Even though having to possibly utilize that back plan would make me cry for days as it would mean losing SO MUCH that I worked hard for, I would survive and eventually re-group. What can you do now that could help a little? Sell baked goods to offices? (people love those home made delivered snacks) Walk dogs or pet sit? Drive elderly to appointments? On our neighborhood Next Door page there are lots of people posting for work needed and I see great responses. Have you tried Next Door?

Antionette

02/26/20 at 12:37AM UTC

Ms Jenny from the block I’ve never heard of “Next Door” I will check it out! I just keep hearing my moms voice telling me if I was a typeset/secretary I could type my way to a different job over and over ? I’ve got Medical Claims, Auto dealership A/R, Pet industry- sales at store level, food rep, customer service for pet supply’s. I’m great with customer & patients. I wish we could all start a company together- telecommute and totally kick butt!!