I am in my 50s, still motivated to be in the career field that I am in. I had lost my job in January, there was the need for the company to cut back in resources. Since then I have been active in the career world, my resume and application has got responses and I have had virtual and in-person interviews. Despite my resume success and good interview skills, I have not been hired as of yet.

I realize that the hiring market is flat and that there are less new career opportunities out there. If it is competition that I face to not get hired I can be satisfied with that. But the fact that I am older and mature is something I wonder factors in the hiring decisions to not hire me.

Here's the thing about being an older, experienced candidate...when it comes to getting interview feedback, you will never be told that you are not being hired because you are older. Yes, it is illegal to discriminate on the basis of age, and companies know this. So if you get interview or rejection feedback at all, some of what was noted can be wishy-washy.

For example, telling me that I am not "skilled enough" despite 20 years in the career field is one of those wishy-washy reasons I was rejected for...and I think that is such a BS reason. There are new technologies, new processes and new environments that every company or corporation has that provides the learning and work challenges for anybody that gets hired into a new role.

If there is the opportunity to talk about this and to make light of other experiences, then here's the post to start the conversation.