Questions

Ageism has made it difficult for me to get a job in my industry, but my family prefers I get a job. I have enough money to survive for 12 months without work. What advice would you give?

You really need to ensure that you are starting a business for the right reason, as the life of en entrepreneur is difficult and not for everyone. (See my recent article here:

https://medium.com/@heathriel/everything-i-need-to-know-about-startups-i-learned-from-quantum-leap-ae2996b66210?source=featured

If you are absolutely 100% sure that you can do this and you have your family's support as well, then what you need to do is do a Venn diagram of what skills you have to offer, where your interests lie, and what customers in your area are willing to pay for.

With a year's worth of cash in the bank to support yourself (and, presumably your family) you are likely looking at consulting services to start rather than a full scale manufacturing/product operation.

If you do have an idea for a product to be created, you can go to a place like SCORE who can help you with your business plan and maneuvering through the SBA site. There are loans available to small businesses with 25 year terms currently from the government, if you are collateralized (which at your age, you are in a better position than someone just out of college.)

If, however, you want a job, then use your age as an asset rather than a detriment. I have worked with many people much older than 50 in tech companies that were hired at that age and we were lucky to have them.

Perhaps your resume needs tweaking, or perhaps the problem is you are applying for jobs in the first place rather than networking and showing peoe they can't possibly survive without you.

Either path requires effort, and I'm sure you are up to the task.


Answered 9 years ago

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