By Janice Worthington
Janice Worthington, known as America's coach of champions, has been advising industry leaders for three decades. A 14-year former executive recruiter, Janice began empowering candidates in 1987. Her insights have garnered offers for C-level candidates in the most competitive arenas. With Master and Bachelor degrees in Journalism and multiple certifications, her career column is currently featured in American City Business Journals; she has been quoted in the Washington Post, Kiplinger's and Business Week. Her presentations appear in numerous career anthologies. She serves as "Your Career Coach" on CareerBoard·com. Web Site: www·worthingtoncareers·.com
I'm embarrassed to say that recently one of my clients fooled me with a very old joke that many executives seem to be sharing lately. He sheepishly told me that last night he slept like a baby, waking up in tears every three hours. After serving a local telecommunications firm in executive leadership for 18 years, this fellow of 50+ was laid off, much like his pals in technology and manufacturing. So what's a Baby Boomer to do? Keep hope alive!
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act added the age factor to the earlier Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, stating that an employer may not discriminate against candidates based on gender, race, religious preference, or national origin. The designated age against which employers were not allowed to discriminate in the ADEA was forty, and one wonders what was really happening to determine that this particular stage of life should create cause for the passage of special legislation. The answer lies in the anticipated downsizing and layoff activities that ultimately occurred in the 1970's during the worst recession since the Depression of 1929. Focused on the oil crisis and layoffs in the aerospace, automotive and construction industries, companies found their biggest area of payroll expense to be those with the highest salaries who were also closest to retirement pensions. Folks over forty were not necessarily laid off because they were too old to p erform, but because they were too expensive. Obviously this became illegal but the implications of the ADEA pointed out the need for protection for older workers, as opposed to the fact that they were also more lucrative money - makers who directly threatened bottom-lines. So as our decades passed we became inherently age-paranoid.
Today, as we've all seen, there are plenty of younger millionaires. Even if we choose to remember the ADEA, society looks at life stages far differently in 2001, and we now have cause for celebration. Does this surprise the guys mentioned above who still sleep like babies? Without question, but there is a basis to conclude that not only is age not a problem in 2001 but it is repeatedly used as an advantage by candidates who know how deliver resume and interview presentations from positions of strength.
According to Gail Sheehey in her landmark book, New Passages, our 21st century society is tracked as maturing later, from adolescence through senior citizens. On average, teenagers leave home later, adults marry later and start families later than did their grandparents; middle age lasts well into what Sheehey calls the "flourishing 40's" and "flaming 50's," and these decades are seen as periods of liberation rather than debilitation.
So why all the pessimism from the "flourishing and flaming" as they are downsized? Without a doubt, I believe the media to be responsible for leading us to believe that the corporate world would prefer not to welcome back the guys at the top of their games. My memory is tattooed with the TV image of the 50+ job seeker riding on the subway for a full day reading the classified ads in the 1980's as the network anchor lamented his odds of getting hired. Here I was in Columbus, successfully coaching these ver y executives back to work, and here were the major networks sending devastating messages. Needless to say, they wouldn't return my calls. One of the reasons I now write a career column is to reveal what really happens in the trenches, and I continue to spread encouragement, instructing all candidates to operate from positions of strength.
What is a position of strength? First of all, the realization that there is no greater asset than our decades in the business world. My nearly 34 years in my industry attract clients like magnets, and my younger colleagues become fatigued trying to out-market my facts of life. Second, the demonstration and utilization of my knowledge directed toward meeting the needs of my clients is based on the insights my experience has provided. I strongly demonstrate my ability to meet their needs, and from the moment they call me they feel my passion to do the job, a passion that only a seasoned pro could accumulate and project. Finally, despite the fact that I look every bit over 50 , I project a real young 59. By nature I'm energetic, enthusiastic and optimistic; my voice doesn't crack and I know what's happening in the world. Most of all, I never longingly discuss the "good ole days".
For years, I've felt fear for the younger work force if the folks over 40 or 50 ever realize the power they possess. So if you also slept like a baby last night, be encouraged and show your stuff. In this volatile economy, your proven track record and calm sense of "been there-solved that" is more attractive than ever! Just ask Bill Clinton! He's 60!