Back in the Day

Previous roles are changed as life cycles evolve.

Today is Gerry Crispin’s birthday. He’s over 55 which is one of the thresholds for deeming a person as old, or ready to retire, or antiquated, or no longer useful. In other words, a target for age discrimination, whether passive or overt. Yet those who are 40 and older, even as old as in their late 80s, are still active in the work marketplace via many forms of employment and engagement. There is still a need for their knowledge, skills, and talent. Those attributes, those assets, provide a great deal of value to whatever enterprise chooses to include them in their mixture of talent.

I used this day to post a (as usual) teasing birthday wish to Gerry that read: “Have people started asking you about what you did back in the day? I just know you have a great response for that.”

For those of you who are curious about how “back in the day” is defined, Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English says it means “a long time ago, when you were much younger.”

Actually (never short on words or responses), Gerry did have a great public response, while also laughing at himself. It was:

lol. When the dinosaurs roamed the earth, recruiting was different but, as a candidate, you could physically apply to more companies then on a given day (Saturday before noon) with envelopes, paper resumes and stamps than you can in an entire week online. We could do a test…if there were any newspaper classifieds left but there isn’t so you’ll just have to take my word for it.

He raises some good discussion points. Undaunted, I had a response to his observations.

In the days of classified ads, all people were paid a minimum, livable wage. Thus, they were able to afford the cost of paper, copies, envelopes, stamps, transportation costs. But then, mailboxes were on every other street corner or the postal worker picked up the outgoing letters while delivering the new.

In those days, also, there wasn’t as much research required (or at least invested in) finding a job.

Now, in this digital age, there is less volume in terms of sent resumes because there’s more need for research. The challenges of making online applications can be time consuming if the employer doesn’t have a good webmaster.

Additionally, people are so busy working two, and up to five, jobs (as well as gigs) that they simply don’t have the time to do as many applications as back in the ’60s.

Then there are the discouragement and disillusion factors.

Gen Xers and Millennials (and even some who are older) have no qualms about expressing their belief that gray hair is an indication of being old, retired, and no longer active in the workforce. They will politely inquire about what it was like “back in the day” while forgetting that there are many who have gray hair and hold very responsible positions in businesses, while sitting on boards of directors, practicing from the bench (Associate Justice Kennedy), and being very involved in their consulting and training professions.

These gray- and white-haired stoics are not out in the pasture. An elite number have managed to stay afloat in the relevant and needed arena and are proving their worth in gold. And there are those who have been worn down to the rim and taken out of the game, many times not by choice.

Applying for work “back in the day” was more reasonable in many ways. No longer is it possible to simply take the “Help Wanted” sign out of the window and hand it to the owner while saying, “I’d like to apply for the job,” and get considered (even hired) on the spot. Job search was supposed to get better because of technological advances and the reach of cyber presence which also reduced the cost associated with conducting a search and vying for the gold ring along with that younger group.

There’s a vast amount of value in these vintage competitors. The training and preparation during their early days of school was different, more sound. There wasn’t a mass flocking to garner a degree, or even an advanced degree. There was substance being taught and concepts demonstrated in classroom discussion. There was actual experience gained through internships and volunteer work that didn’t detract from earning a meaningful living wage. Wage earning and work experience happened through various channels. For most, that experience and education was recognized and rewarded. But that was back in the day.

References:

• From guns to gay rights, Justice Anthony Kennedy was the Supreme Court’s swing vote, Richard Wolf, USA TODAY (3:32 p.m. ET June 27, 2018 | Updated 10:24 p.m. ET June 27, 2018)
• The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
• Age Discrimination
• EEOC Head On Age Discrimination By Employers, Chris Farrell Contributor, Next Avenue (Aug 17, 2018, 01:00pm)
• Facebook will remove 5,000 ad targeting categories to prevent discrimination, Nick Statt, The Verge (Aug 21, 2018, 1:23pm EDT)
• Try These 7 Smart Strategies to Find a Job, Randy Lilleston, AARP (March 23, 2018)
• Avoid the Seven Mistakes Job Seekers in Their 50s Make, How to sell yourself in a digital work world, sharpen your interview skills and write a look-at-me résumé, James A. Martin, AARP

Resources:

• Unfinished Work: The Struggle to Build an Aging American Workforce
• HR Genius