Staying in the Game

I am new at this, but I have a lot to share with those over 50 in the job market. No, I'm not dead yet, and still have a pulse!


I have never been out of work for more than 4 months, but 2009 has not been good to me, as I still am one of the millions of people out of work. One month slowly drags on to the next. Oh, there are opportunities, but who can survive on $7 an hour? I know the daily line-up of television so well I can produce an audio version of TV Guide!


My background is in Mall Marketing and Real Estate; which I have worked on and off since 1978 beginning in Miami, Florida. So much has changed! It is a full time job to stay abreast of the all the marketing platforms for corporations. While everyone was getting their Certified Marketing Director designations, I was home mothering my two toddlers for much of the 1980's.

When I elected to go back to work, I was unable to find a job in Mall Marketing in Miami, Florida. I was offered an opportunity in a non-profit organization. Always believing furthering my education was essential to my profession, I got my Accreditation in Public Relations. Everything in Public Relations has also dramatically evolved with the advent of social media, Facebook, Twitter and God knows what else, it is an effort to stay on top of it all.


In June, 1991, I followed my sister out to Denver. Denver is a tough market in itself, where more people have PhD's, and generally have a higher education level per capita.


Finally, my bedtime partner is now "Excel 2007 for Dummies." The problem is, the "dummy" has to understand what he is reading to learn the program. Oh, and yes, one has to have the funding to attend a college class or be tutored.


When I took on my last job in Mall Marketing and Specialty Leasing, I was cautioned from the Regional Marketing Manager that "mall marketing is very different fom the way you remember it, it is now very aggressive and bottom-line oriented" What? no more flowery image advertising? No more casting calls and talent scouting for tabloid covers? No, just hard-core " 'sale' and ''new, low prices.."


I decided it might be time for a change. I went on to get my Real Estate license in 1999, and worked successfully in Real Estate until I separated from my husband in 2006. Real Estate is tentative at best, unless one has a large and loyal following. After 9/11 all that changed for me. My once successful track record dwindled to a closing every 4 months at best.


I have to love what I do to do an effective job. Why should it be any different? After all, we spend at least 8 to 14 hours with the same people in the same environment.


So, the question is, where do I go from here? I have always enjoyed writing and decided to start this blog as an opportunity for talented people, like you and I, to use this as a forum to share advice and tips for those in a similar situation.


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