Am I good enough? This ordinary fifty-and-still-counting girl’s job search experience

Two summers ago, I spent fifty-plus hours drafting twenty-two resumes to fit the criteria of more than 30 advertised positions. I landed two interviews. During one interview, I realized I really didn’t want the job (and wasn’t offered it), and the other was for a part-time position that was awarded to someone else.

My morale took a huge hit. I’d just completed my Master’s in Professional Writing in the hopes of securing a job that included words. This fifty-and-still-counting ordinary gal felt she was not good enough, not smart enough, and that people might not like her – words that hurt and that are the antithesis of Stuart  Stuart Smalley’s Daily Affirmations.

To improve my chances of not being overlooked, I researched “how to write the perfect resume” and “resumes for people over 50.”

The Indeed Editorial Team, American Association of Retired Persons and  National Council on Aging offer materials that are meant to help the older crowd find employment. My take-away from these and other articles boil down to three main assumptions:

1. The above-50 job seeker is not ready to stop working and desires a career change.
2. The job seeker is ready for or close to retirement but doesn’t want to remain idle at home.
3. The job seeker possesses a strong, specific knowledge or skill set that is easily transferrable and will ensure emotional, financial and geographic success.

My long-haul career doesn’t recognize retirement or idleness, nor do I contain a super-specific talent that easily crosses borders. My specific knowledge set fits into the bag of a handy-Anne (get it?) and includes things like removing stains from all types of fabrics, personal grocery shopping, daily scheduler, pet technician, gardener, housecleaner, spokesperson, and chauffeur.

I’ve also earned wages that require tax forms. I worked as a forester, cartographer, database manager and educator. Sometimes I worked full-time, sometimes I squeezed hours in where I could.

My challenge two years ago was to translate this magical menagerie of abilities into a digital resume that is scanned for keywords such as customer service, leadership, accountability, self-starter, editor, writer, ability to communicate. I can, and have, completed all these tasks, but couldn’t condense that message enough to make a difference to resume readers, most of which are computerized algorithms.

Here is what I learned that the articles did not mention during my summer of resume writing:

1. Skills with part-time status hold little value. Algorithms divide the skills listed for a position by one another and by the number of projected hours worked in a year. If that skill doesn’t meet the advertised time commitment, the application is tossed.
2. Volunteerism often does not count towards required experience.
3. Potential employees have little opportunity to discuss talents with a human being during initial screening processes.

Given these restrictions, how can I brand myself in a manner that showcases my many faceted skills so that I can be hired in my dream job? Or even to work part-time at the local big box store for $9-$12 an hour?

I couldn’t. I filled out applications and slugged through digital interview processes for several big box stores without success.

Have you ever participated in digital interviews? They are entirely humiliating yet seem to be increasingly popular. A pre-recorded person will ask you questions, and you answer via video. There is no conversation. It’s just you talking to your computer screen, kind of like Stuart Smalley talking to his mirror. That’s the first impression a hiring agency gets of you. A grainy, imperfect, image of you talking to a computer.

For fun, I messed around in Canva to see if I could create a picturesque brand to include with my employment papers. I wanted something that said “Hire me!” “I’m unique!” “I can do it!”

Luckily, I didn’t need to include my Slushee-zebra monster – magic mushroom campaign to prove my candidacy. Instead, a wonderful human being who served as my committee chair for my master’s thesis offered me a position as an adjunct. She knew me as a person, writer and educator.

Which reiterates my concern of how impersonal the job application market has become. The loss of personal connections  is scary. Resumes and job applications share words, not personalities.

I’m fortunate that my personality resonated well with my current boss, and that I now have a part-time job that pays more than $12 an hour.

I realize that searching for employment is a struggle for many people, not just those of us who are fifty-and-still-counting. Many young adults I’ve talked to have expressed frustration with similar obstacles. The one difference is that many of the jobs they apply for, jobs that used to be considered entry-level positions such as baristas, retail associates, cashiers, now search for people with 1-4 years of experience.

Where does this leave those who are seeking employment?

I have no idea, unfortunately. But, if I ever crack the SEO code of algorithms related to job searches, and find human sources to talk to before filling out applications, I’ll let you know.

Most importantly, even though this ordinary girl may have never met you, she wants to share three things with you, in all sincerity, that she learned long ago from Stuart Smalley:

1. You are good enough.
2. You are smart enough.
3. People like you.

Eventually, someone will help connect you to the lifestyle of a tax-paying, contributing, successful working member of society. You may not secure your dream job, but you will at least have enough money to putz around in the free version of Canva to create a strong brand for yourself.

When you do get a job, consider it my honor to welcome you to the club!