Table of Contents
A PENGUIN BOOK
OVER 40 & YOURE HIRED!
Oprah, Dr. Phil, NBC Nightly News, Fox News, and CNN are only a few of the more than one thousand TV and radio shows where ROBIN RYAN has been seen offering her advice.
She is the best-selling author of 60 Seconds & Youre Hired!, Soaring on Your Strengths, Winning Resumes, Winning Cover Letters, and What to Do with the Rest of Your Life.
Robin Ryan has been quoted or featured in most major magazines and newspapers, including BusinessWeek, Money, Newsweek, Fortune, Good Housekeeping, USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the Seattle Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Chicago Tribune.
A career counselor for more than twenty years, Robin Ryan uses her expertise daily, as she helps clients across North America land great jobs, get promotions, change careers, and secure higher salaries. A licensed vocational counselor, through telephone and in-person consultations she offers job search programs, resume writing services, salary negotiations, and interview coaching.
A highly sought-after speaker, she frequently appears at colleges, alumni gatherings, corporate training sessions, and association conferences.
Robin Ryan holds a masters degree in counseling and education from Suffolk University and a bachelors degree in sociology from Boston College. She is the former director of counseling services at the University of Washington.
Contact Robin Ryan at 425.226.0414 or visit her website at WWW.ROBINRYAN.COM.
FOR MOM & DAD AND STEVE & JACK
PREFACE
Robin Ryan is the leading job search expert
in America today.
NPR RADIO
CAN THIS BOOK HELP YOU?
Age discrimination does exist. So when you reach 40, you have a new career problem to worry about. Job A hunting for most people is always a daunting task, and the older you get, the harder finding a new job can be. If you want to move on or up or even make a career changeand youve hit the BIG 4-0 or passed itthis book was written specifically to help you.
Face it, if you are over 40 and you want to land a great job, you have to approach the job search processresumes, cover letters, interviews, and how you look for openingsdifferently from how you have before. Youll need a solid strategy and some additional support and insight to build your self-confidence.
Over the last twenty years, Ive worked with more than three thousand over-40 candidates as career counseling clients. I myself have done a lot of hiring, and Im constantly talking to the managers, senior executives, C-level execs, or board members who decide if you get hired or if they choose someone else.
My clients have tried these job search techniques and have successfully used the tools and strategies defined in this book to land new jobs. They learned the best ways to find opportunities; new ways to effectively approach a prospective employer; and how to successfully sell themselves. The results speak for themselves. They got jobshigh-paying, interesting, terrific jobs! Thats the reason I believe this book will be a valuable resource to help you land the position you want.
Ive worked with clients in good times, and in horrible economies. When jobs, industries, and fields they had devoted their life to disappeared. And still, they went on to find a new position, land a better career situation, and even secure a great salary. Why take a major drop in pay if you dont have to? They didnt, and if you want to preserve your lifestyle and prosper, youll learn exactly how to do it in the chapters ahead.
Working together, I know we can make a better future happen for you.
ROBIN RYAN
P.S. Special Bonus only for Over 40 & Youre Hired! book buyers.
I created a special over-40 job search website section where pages are restricted to book buyers only. When you see this symbol, youll find the URL address to the hidden website pages where you can access these special resources. Youll be able to download exclusive tools, forms, templates, charts, and salary surveys, plus the most up-to-date job listing websites I recommend for use in your search. Youll find additonal support to keep you motivated and inspired to reach your career goal as quickly as possible.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
You never know where great inspiration will come from. This time it was from Kristin Spang, my editor at Penguin. She must be credited with suggesting this book. It was her encouragement and ideas that helped spawn this work. We both share a love of our alma materBoston Collegeand its been a joy working with her. I truly appreciated her championing Over 40 & Youre Hired!
My clients are very important people in my life. They inspire me to try harder, and to continue learning new and innovative ways to help them find the success they crave. I am grateful that each has selected me to aid them in achieving their career goals.
Im indebted to all the decision makers and HR managers who shared their insights so openly with me to enable my readers to be more effective and go out and land a great new job.
I have always wanted to help people and make a difference. But no one does it completely alone. A big thank-you goes to my staff. I could not have completed this project without the help of Dee Murphy, Sylva Coppock, and Wanda Bartel. Dee has been the creative source behind the Over 40 Web pages. Shes a terrific assistant too, and I appreciate all her talents and efforts to help me help others.
A sincere thank-you goes to Heidi Harrington, who helped me out each day by bringing my son home from school so I could work uninterrupted. Her kindness was a big deal to me, and I appreciate her generosity. Two of my biggest supporters are John and Sunny Murphythey help me in so many ways that just saying thank you will never be enough.
No matter what I do, its my family that matters most. Jack and Steveno one could love you two more than I do. It is your unconditional love, hugs, and support that enable me to share my knowledge in the hopes of helping many others find great happiness from whatever job they pursue. And for that Ill be eternally grateful.
PART 1
ITS A WHOLE NEW BALL GAME
Success is a direct result of the self-satisfaction
that comes from knowing you did your best to
become the best you possible.
ROBIN RYAN
CHAPTER 1
HIRING IS DIFFERENT NOW
Put your best efforts forward and you will succeed.
ROBIN RYAN
Wed like to offer you the job. Those are wonderful words, words that every job candidate wants to hear. You can achieve this goal, but you will probably reach it in a much different way from how you looked for a job before. Times have changed, so you will have to change to get the outcome you want. Its a highly competitive world when you are over 40. Todays job market is most likely quite different from the last time you went after a new job. The process has changed. The younger competition is growing, and self-marketing is more important than ever before. Employers need talented workers, but when you are over 40, they have concernsserious concernsabout whether you are up to doing the job and giving them their moneys worth.
