Over-50

Hey, Late Bloomer - Don't Give Up Before the Miracle

Yes, there really is such an entity as a "late bloomer." 

Researcher David Galeson studied that issue. What he came up with is that there are two kinds of achievers.

One is the young person, like Mozart, who discovered his gift early and had the confidence to leverage it in his work.

The other kind are the aging searchers. They go through much of their lives experimenting. That could be in different fields or just with different approaches. Then they have the ah-ha moment - this is it - and they go with it. An example is Frank Lloyd Wright.

Galeson put his findings in the seminal book "Old Masters, Young Geniuses." 

Any of us, if we keep at it, that is not give up before the miracle, can become a late bloomer.

Examples of those are are all around us.

Take Betty White. A relatively minor player in entertainment, she transformed into a megawatt star. She grabbed the potential in a persona that struts aging.

Clint Eastwood navigated from low-brow films to profound drama such as "The Unforgiven."

At age 60, I made the leap from buttoned-down, in the background business ghostwriter to syndicated blogger and paid influencer. 

A former lawyer I coached in communications put together a successful online business in music instrcution. He was 67. He felt he had to wait until he received the financial safety net of Social Security. Yes, he found his bliss, finally. His father, a big-time lawyer, wouldn't pay for his education unless he went the law route. 

Instead of thinking in terms of "comebacks," aim for a "firstback." It's a professional new path or the old one with a genius fresh approach. 

Smart global ghostwriting, with SEO and social networking know-how. Emergencies welcome. Complimentary consultation (pressure-free) janegenova374@gmail.com.

 

Aging - Ram Dass Sure Tried to Remove the Stigma (but failed)

Ram Dass was exactly the right guru to take on aging. After all, he had had suffered a severe stroke. That was and is those who are aging's worst fear. 

At first, like most strong, influential professionals, Dass denied he was becoming older. When, for example, the train conductor told him about the senior discount, he was thrown for a loop. Also, he didn't pay attention to taking his blood pressure medication.

But, then he dug into his vast body of knowledge of other cultures and recognized that America had it all wrong about aging. In India, it's a plus, associated with aging. 

Out of his deep thinking about aging came his book "Still Here." Although published in 2000, it still ranks high on Amazon: 19,038. In it, he positioned and packaging aging as simply a natural phase, part of the continuity of life. He makes fun of the assumption that aging is a problem.

The book is a soothing read. Yes, it does help anyone struggling with the reality of becoming older to calm down.

But, on the macro level, "Still Here" didn't disrupt anything. The stigma about becoming older hasn't lessened. Society still makes those over-50 feel they have done something very wrong by piling on too many birthdays. And they are being punished. 

Research documents that more than half of those over-50 will be forced out of their job and only one in 10 of them will ever earn comparable money. 

Socially, the aging become invisible. 

The label imposed on them "Ok, boomer," captures the hostility younger generations have toward them. 

Back in 2000, when Dass published his book, he observed that the age bias is the last kind of prejudice society can get away with. Women, those with same-sex orientations, people of color, and the disabled have made significant strides in being treated with dignity and as equals. Not so the aging.

That hasn't changed. The powerful lobbying organization AARP can huff and puff and it still can't blow away the dark cloud that hangs over the aging process. 

Meanwhile, there is the rent or property tax that has to get paid. Here, free to click open, is my book on how to land, keep, and move on to better work, at any age Download Outwitting ageism.

Coaching, lecturing, and writing/ghostwriting thought leadership content on human resources and careers.  

For individual coaching – sliding scale fees. Complimentary initial consultation. The special area of expertise is the displaced over-50 professional. Please contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.

The Marketing Mix - Bob Dilenschneider, 76, Continued to Leverage Books

Everything changes.

That includes the marketing mix.

As professionals, businesses, and nonprofits age, they tend to not pivot, at least not fast enough, to what is effective.

During his long career in public affairs, Bob Dilenschneider has leveraged publishing books as marketing tools. His firm in Manhattan also promoted the books clients had published. 

That worked until it stopped working, at least not as well.

On December 31, 2019, Dilenschneider's most recent book - "Decisions" - had been published. The marketing initiative actually could be counterproductive. On Kindle, Amazon ranks it at 711,740. The paperback version is at 385, 161.

Such rankings can tarnish a brand.

The lesson here is not necessarily Don't Publish a Book. This week Dan Peres' memoir "As Needed for Pain" was published. On Amazon, it ranks 1,246. For that former editor in chief of Details book publishing can and probably will open new career doors, as well as generate profits. 

The lesson is that, with the marketing mix mutating minute by minute in a digital world, those over-50 have to research options before they invest resources. Dilenschneider might have created new equity for his brand by creating a free-to-download e-book.

Here, also free to download, is my own e-book on how to navigate out of a comfort zone. 

This lesson also applies to the search for a job or contract assignment. The recruitment industry, for example, is being disrupted by artificial intelligence. Resumes, cover letters, and in-person interviews are becoming so yesterday. That means the over-50 have to research how to present themselves in ways that lands them work in 2020, not 1990. 

Here, another free download, is my e-book on how to get, hold, and move on to better work, at any age Download Outwitting ageism.

Coaching, lecturing, and writing/ghostwriting thought leadership content on human resources and careers.

For individual coaching – sliding scale fees. Complimentary initial consultation. The special area of expertise is the displaced over-50 professional. Please contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.

 

The Game OK, Boomer Hasn't Been Taught

"My goal for the next decade isn't to be liked but to be understood." - Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg at quarterly earning call, as quoted by Jessica Guynn, USA Today, January 29, 2020

Is likeability losing its importance in professional life?

Sure, Dan Goleman hammered and is still hammering the importance of high Emotional Intelligence (EI).

But what EI constitutes might be changing.

In this chaotic era, what counts more may be, yes, the ability to be understood, respected, useful, and, yes, even feared. 

It was way back in 1988 - light years ago, in digital time - that journalist Hedrick Smith published his then-seminal book "The Power Game." In myriad circles, it became the bible for learning about power. 

In it, Smith discussed likeability as a source of power. Other sources Smith cited ranged from confidence to the ability to obstruct. 

He might have been totally accurate about likeability in 1988. That was before:

•  Whole industries were wiped out by technology. Holding on to work, any kind, became a dog fight. Those who generated the results for bosses and made them look good, not the most likeable, didn't get laid off. Co-workers might have felt bad when that very nice person got axed. And that was that.
•  Doing favors (The Favor Bank) gets professionals more than relationships. The law associate the partner doesn't like pulls strings. The son is admitted to a prestige prep school. The associate is given the best cases to work on.
•  Assets went poof in the real estate collapse and The Great Recession. Elder poverty replaces the Golden Years.
•  Feminism's Third Wave was socializing women to be independent, not necessarily nice. 
•  The phenomenon of political polarization make stars of those not liked. Incidentally, Richard Pryor got it that his way to the top depended on not being liked. 

Of course, there are niche games like influencer in which likes on social networks are critical.

But the majority of you aren't playing in that sandbox. 

Businesses, the nonprofits, and government positions increasingly are about delivering a service or providing a product at the right price efficiently. The relationship part is less and less and less a factor. Even in traditional kinds of professional services such law, the relationship is often irrelevant. Client churn is high. Client loyalty is an anachronism.

This shift from the likeability factor is preparing the world for the dominance of artificial intelligence (AI). Currently you will still find cute faces painted on robots. Soon, you will get it that you don't even want a likeable look on the robot who is the part-time nanny. You want the software to provide intuitive responses.

Prediction: The language of Emotional Intelligence will be revised, radically. The emotionally smart might be described in the same words used to capture what Zuckerberg is all about. 

Place your sponsored content on this blog. Here are 6 tips for search engine optimization (SEO) in 2020. Coaching on SEO and Ghostwriting for sponsored content also available. Sliding scale fees. Please take advantage of a complimentary consultation janegenova374@gmail.com.

"Elder Poverty" - That Term Is Replacing "Golden Years"

Katherine S. Newman documents the financial struggle Baby Boomers are having.  

Her breakthrough book is "Downhill From Here: Retirement Insecurity In The Age of Inequality." It outs how the supposed golden years have mutated into widespread elder poverty. Here it can ordered from Amazon.

Essentially a perfect storm has taken place during the past 20 years. It's impacted both blue collar and white collar workers.

Just some of the factors are:

Global competition. That put pressure on companies to reduce costs. Bye-bye manpower. Older workers were the first to go.

Elimination of Defined Pension Plans. When it comes to retirement, you're on your own, buddy.

Guaranteed pensions are reduced, sometimes significantly. The house has to be sold. The retiree has to go back to work. 

Stock market and real estate crashes. Nest eggs get smaller, if they exist at all.

Stagnant wages. Yet, expenses keep going up. Save for retirement? With what?

Technology. Whole industries such as printing go poof or on the way to vanishing. Unable to find new jobs the former workers are forced in a retirement they didn't anticipate and don't want.

Age bias. After losing a job it's harder to find one. And rarely does that pay a comparable wage.

And, help is not on the way. That could change with the 2020 Election. But even if it does lessening elder poverty will take time. 

Meanwhile, too many caught in the web blame themselves. The refrain is: How did we wind up like this?

There's a lesson to be learned from history. Many were scarred forever by The Great Depression. They blamed themselves. Their faces hardened with self-hate. Then there were those who just navigated it. It was what it was. When better times came they enjoyed them. 

Meanwhile, it is possible to earn income. In fact you can land, hold, and move on to better work. Here, free to click open and read, is my book Download Outwitting ageism.

But, you're thinking: I'm set in my ways. Here, also free to download, is how to exit your comfort zone. 

Coaching, lecturing, and writing/ghostwriting thought leadership content on human resources and careers.

For individual coaching – sliding scale fees. Complimentary initial consultation. The special area of expertise is the displaced over-50 professional. Please contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.

 

End of Life Issues - A Matter of Perspective

The mainstream euphemism for "death" is "end of life issues."

Once totally taboo in hard-charging optimistic Americana, death has come out of the closet.

On conservative network television, there are commercials about end of life responsibilities such as not burdening loved ones with expenses. So, buy this kind of insurance policy.

The Wall Street Journal has an article about how those in their 80s view life now that the ending is near.

And, my classmates from pre-gentrification Jersey City, New Jersey Snyder High School openly talk about the reality that one day they will no longer be here on planet earth. 

Of course, just like most phenomena in life, that each one of us is going to die generates myriad perspectives. 

When I was growing up on the mean streets of Jersey City, some folks who had it even tougher than the usual amount in immigrant neighborhoods were matter of fact. When they died, that was that. Over. In addition, they didn't anticipate any blissful afterlife. There was not going to be any reward for the pain suffered playing the game after being dealt a bad hand.

In my doctoral studies at the University of Michigan, the history of ideas provided diverse points of view of The Next after departing this dimension. 

At Harvard Law School, the subject was compensation for wrongful deaths.

And, when I bunked in senior housing complex Bella Vista in New Haven, Connecticut, the talk tended to be pragmatic. Such and such an apartment would become available for your good friend once the current renter, well, you know. 

Currently, in my circle of fellow baby boomers (yes, there are silos among the generations), the tone of conversations about our own deaths is shock. We who had been so important for experts, ranging from sociologists to journalists, to analyze and struggle to understand won't even exist any more. That's unthinkable.

Meanwhile, we are already living our lives differently, anticipating they will soon enough go kaput.

Among the modifications:

•  Not adopting any more companion animals. From what we have observed, family and friends don't take good care of the four-leggers who become orphans. Current angst is: Not dying before our current best friends do.
•  Having an up-to-date will for the state in which we reside.. That's a nuisance since some of us have made mistakes in relocating. We saw Arizona as Paradise. We did wills there. Now they have to be redo them since we are back east, at least as far east as we can afford, e.g. midwest. 
•  Finally pulling out all stops on a bucket list. Sure, we could make it to age 110 and need to fund those years but why the hell keep saving? The tough nut to crack is overriding the ranting of financial planners about how much we must have so that we won't wind up homeless. 
•  Questioning every platitude. A fellow boomer and I concluded that, no, relationships aren't everything. If we have one human being to confide in and depend on we are indeed fortunate. Also, that's plenty. People can be a pain in butt. No, we don't welcome more photos of your grandkids on Facebook.
•  Speaking our mind. Extreme verbal editing had been necessary in the peak of our earning years. Success happens through other people. Now, there is little or nothing to gain from holding our tongue. 

Alongside the challenge of embracing that we are going to die is the irony that that might not come for a long time. We ponder: Do we really want to be here in our 90s and beyond? In a retirement community out west where I coached the aging who still wanted to work there were many stealth suicides. Old old age can be undoable for some.

For those who are determined to still earn a buck from working, here is my guide, free to click open, on landing, holding, and moving on to better work Download Outwitting ageism. "At my age" (as Millennials would say) I am still hustling about 50 hours a week. My mission is to able to wave goodbye to planet earth from my word processor. 

Coaching, lecturing, and writing/ghostwriting thought leadership content on human resources and careers.

For individual coaching – sliding scale fees. Complimentary initial consultation. The special area of expertise is the displaced over-50 professional. Please contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.

 

Transition - Before the Train Leaves the Station, Put Together Your Elevator Speech

In her 70s, Maye Musk remains a super model. 

In addition, she has become a best-selling author.

About a week ago, her book "A Woman Makes A Plan" was published. Immediately, it caught fire. Currently, it has the amazingly high Amazon ranking of 1,509. 

A central meme of "A Woman Makes A Plan" is the fresh opportunity that comes from starting over. Musk grabbed it during distressful parts of the her life and leveraged it as a platform for personal and professional success.

That's Musk's story.

Your own experience with starting over might not have been so rosy.

One major problem might have been this: You brought the past with you. Not only internally, that is, in your head, heart, and soul. You also didn't recognize the need to create a new "elevator speech." From the get-go that puts limits of possibilities.

Essentially the elevator speech is a short "commercial" which captures who you are and how that "who" can benefit others - employers, co-workers, subordinates, clients/customers, friends, neighbors, community groups, and other kinds of constituencies. 

The benefit could be as simple as uplifting their spirits and helping them feel better about themselves.

Or it could be letting them know you could be useful to them in their careers.

Ironically, the elevator speech is not about you. It's about them. That way of being other-oriented happens through the genius of well-done indirect communications. 

The elevator speech is all positive.

It requires an investment of your time.

And, you bet, you must put it together, fine-tune it, and practice it before you parachute into your Next. Remember you only have about 7 seconds to transmit the right message.

Advanced preparation prevents blowing it because once you're in-place you're overwhelmed. Such stress leads to blurting, disclosing negatives, and ignoring the nuances of human bonding. According to the researchers on mirror neurons, we humans influence each other, cell by cell. It's up to you to leverage that to your advantage. Otherwise you can become downright self-defeating in the new setting. 

Let's look at effective and counterproductive elevator speeches:

Effective: Isn't Cleveland special! (That level of enthusiasm puts you in the conversational driver's seat.) It's such a blessing to have a position with Jones Day. How the kids love their school.

Counterproductive: We're having an adjustment leaving Manhattan (That's an immediate put-down of Cleveland) But Jones Day made me an offer I couldn't refuse (You sound arrogant.)

Effective:  I'm here. Can't believe it. I was 6 years old when my family vacationed in Tucson. The rest of my life I made it my business to return. I want the kind of life you have. How blessed you are. 

Counterproductive: Los Angeles was such a rat race. Too much traffic. (That positions and packages you as a complainer.) I hope this works out better.  Does the heat get to you? (Listeners get annoyed that you didn't factor that in before making the decision to relocate.)

Effective. I want to hear all about you. (There is the Dale Carnegie fundamental of showing a sincere interest in people.) Can I treat you to a latte? (Free can't be resisted). Starbucks, I found, is on the corner. (You sound like you are making a real effect to make this home.)

Counterproductive: When I get settled let's get together. (No body cares about your state of being overwhelmed.) By then, I will probably heal from being unemployed from the crash in the legal market. (You brought the stink along with you.)

Sure, new starts can be brutal rites of passage. But that transition can be transformed into the adventure of taking on another identity. Graduates of elite colleges are willing to earn peanuts just for a shot at being hired for acting roles. Trying on another persona can be equally satisfying. Plus, the return on the investment could be extreme success, in life and work. 

Experts on building power relationships - be they dramatist William Shakespeare or sociologist Erving Goffman - hammer the importance of setting a face to meet all the faces out there. That entails putting together the right elevator speech. Then continually modifying it as time passes. 

After a year in Cleveland and at Jones Day, here is how that could play out:

Effective: Cleveland has been so good to us. But you know the needs more than we do. How can we make a difference? My two boys want to pitch in, too.

Ineffective: The long hours of work. I haven't even gotten to the museum yet. I shouldn't be annoyed but I am that my kids want me to coach their teams.

Takeaway: The most efficient route to success is through other people. It's your mission to talk your way in. 

Smart global ghostwriting, with niche social networking know-how. Emergencies welcome. Complimentary consultation (pressure-free) janegenova374@gmail.com.

Hey, Tell Them To Stop Talking Retirement to You

"Not all Americans find retirement to be a top priority." - Alexandra Malito, MarketWatch, January 3, 2020. 

Aging does not have to mean letting go of working for income.

In fact, found the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, over the last 30 years the number of those 65 and older who are employees or self-employed has tripled and the number of those 75 or older has quadrupled.

In short, just as in the Second Women's Movement in the early 1970s, aging in America is becoming all about choice.

There are those I interviewed in Oro Valley, Arizona, who opted to leave working and that was that. Sure, they admitted they could use extra money to "do what we want." But to them that wasn't "worth" being an employee again. 

On the other hand, there were entrepreneurs in Oro Valley I interviewed who had eased off but not stopped operating their businesses. It wasn't so much for the money. More it was to stay in the game. What they knew from those who did retire is this: Shortly after officially retiring one's professional identity goes poof. The phone, the email account, and the texts - all stop. There is The Great Silence. 

At age 59, I discovered the digital medium of blogging. It was so rare for a baby boomer like myself to embrace blogging, including for client assignments, that marketer Toby Bloomberg did an article on us. The coming of digital opened a whole new chapter in the careers of those who might have retired 30 years ago. Of course, I am still at it, with my three syndicated sites open for sponsored content. In addition, they are a key new-business development tool.

What also keeps me working essentially full time is that a communications niche which has collapsed - books - has bounced back. Weekly, I receive inquiries from those around the  world who need a ghostwriter or editor for their books. Increasingly those books are read on Kindle, not in print form. Books are the price of entry in professional services, ranging from management consulting to public affairs. 

On the internet, I also run into college classmates - Class of 1967 - who also have chosen to stay in the labor market. Among them is E. Jane Beckwick, art professor at a New York City college.

"These days," that's no surprise. It has become a fresh kind of status symbol to be still working "at our age." A sign of changing times, in the past four or five years, fewer are asking older professionals "Are you still working?" That has become as insulting as "Ok, Boomer." 

But, that doesn't mean there haven't been bumps on the road. For those struggling to land work or hold onto it, here, free to click open, is my book on developing the attitude needed to keep earning income Download Outwitting ageism.

In addition, for those who recognize they must change in order to be marketable and can't, here, also free to download, is my book on sliding out of a comfort zone. 

Coaching, lecturing, and writing/ghostwriting thought leadership content on human resources and careers.

 For individual coaching – sliding scale fees. Complimentary initial consultation. The special area of expertise is the displaced over-50 professional. Please contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.

 

Stay Home Tonight - Do Your Failure Resume

For those who intend to do 2020 differently than 2019, a must-do is what is known as a Failure Resume.

January 31st is the last day to put that together. Why it's necessary is that it identifies patterns that have been obstacles in the past. That awareness can help prevent them in the future.

In addition, there can be a lifting of resentment against people, places, and things humans tend to blame for their setbacks. The Failure Resume gives the opportunity to take ownership of what part you yourself played in the disappointment. 

In her career-guide best-seller "What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20" Tina Seelig presents excerpts from her own failures in resume form. She focuses on three categories of failure: professional, academic, and personal.

You could add to or delete from that list. 

There is no one template. A simple version for professional failures could cover:

• What seemed like a sure thing but didn't pan out
• My direct role in the setback
• Lessons learned.

Sometimes it's useful to seek out input from others in creating the sections of the resume. Too often we simply can't see ourselves and how our mindsets and behaviors were destructive.

In 12-step programs that's how the Fifth Step goes. The human beings determined to free themselves of the wreckage of the past discuss their "character defects" with a person they trust. Essentially the attitude is: Here is what I think I figured out, but, is that the way it really went down?

The good news in all this comes from Seeig. She observes:

" ... if you aren't failing sometimes, then you aren't taking enough risks." 

The parents of baby boomers and even the older members of Generation X took few or no risks. Their model had been the job-for-life. It was irrelevant back then if they thrived on that path or not. No surprise, they eagerly embraced retirement. In contrast, the new status symbol is becoming who is able to hold on working the longest.

Coaching, lecturing, and writing/ghostwriting thought leadership content on human resources and careers.  

For individual coaching – sliding scale fees. Complimentary initial consultation. The special area of expertise is the displaced over-50 professional. Please contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.

The Hustle for Work - What about Those "Auditions?"

Sure, the numbers have it that the job market in the U.S. is strong. 

However, what the statistics don't disclose is the lack of those really good jobs. 

There are fewer of them. And, as "What Color Is Your Parachute?" hammers, their shelf life is shorter.

The new normal is to be continually searching for work. Settle in? That train had left the station and is not circling back. On Amazon, used copies of "What Color" start at six bucks. There are also multiple copies, free to check out, in the public library.

Along the way to where we are now in the labor market, there has developed the phenomenon of the job "audition."

Essentially that is a mandate in the recruitment process that you do unpaid work. Yes, there are versions of that which do pay but the compensation for the "test" is frequently peanuts.

Regarding that requirement, older professionals (and some members of iGen) ask me: Should we invest the time in an "audition." Essentially what's being positioned and packaged as an "audition" is doing a freebie.

Employers contend that they need to have concrete evidence that you can actually do the job. 

But because the assignments bring no compensation, job and assignment applicants wonder: Should I do this?

After all, it could be that 200 folks are applying for the job. About 20 or more could be selected to audition. The odds of having your "entry" chosen aren't exactly excellent.

In addition, employers could be setting up a scam to hunt for ideas and not pay for them.

The New York Post published a feature on the growing use and misuse of auditions. 

Well, like so much in life and in how to earn a buck, there are no absolute answers. Here are 4 commonsense tips:

When Up Against It. If you perceive yourself as some degree of "desperate," then it's smart to do what it takes to earn income. At the time.

The "they" want you to take a a one-hour editing test. Sure, go along.

However, the "they" may want a comprehensive proposal on how to boost the reponses to the Call To Action and, if you get the assignment, it only pays $15 an hour. For your mental health, pass on that. No, you don't want to work with those players. The odds are they will operate a Dickensian type of employment situation.

Instead, grab a survival something, anything. There are plenty of them. One 56-year man I coached had only a two-month financial reserve, then it would be homelessness. He created several kinds of resumes and cover letters.

Quickly, he landed a security-guard contract job which provided company-paid training and uniforms. The compensation was above-average in the field.

When his confidence came back, he began to navigate back to his original career path.

Here, free to click open, is my book on getting, holding, and moving on to better work, no matter your age Download Outwitting ageism.

And, here, also free to download, is how to exit a hardened comfort zone. 

Your mindset should be twofold:

• There are always survival jobs. Most don't require auditions. 
• Nothing gets you work like already having work. If you are clever you can position and package that work experience on your resume as a useful fit on your career path. No, a survival job doesn't have to blow up the overall professional journey. 

When the opportunity is one of those plums. There are good jobs and good contract assignments. Those differ from the bottom-fishing for the $11-an-hour ones. Auditioning can be framed as a sensible investment.

A Millennial speechwriter was interviewing for a well-paid corporate full-time position with benefits. At the outset, the hiring team informed him that part of the application process required researching and writing a seven-minute speech on leadership.

It made sense to him to do that. No, he wasn't selected for the job. But he experienced no sour grapes. To today he assesses auditioning as a must-do for some kinds of quantum leaps on the career path.

When the employer doesn't seem legit. Applicants for work, beware. There are all sorts of scams embedded in the job market.

You have to use your intuition. Ask yourself: Does this particular business or supposed non-profit feel not-quite-right? Maybe the interviewer talks too fast. Maybe there's excessive gush about where the job can lead. 

Confirm your intuition by checking Glassdoor, Google ratings, and profiles of the leadership. Contact your government officials, such as the office of your U.S. Senator, about other methods of investigation. 

Ask around. 

If you are left with too many questions, don't move along to the audition.

The usual kiss-off is the highly professional phase "Thank you." No, don't shift to rage and blast the group. Before posting anything about the group on social media or social networks, bone up on the legalities of defamation and libel. Nolo is a free excellent legal source. 

You aren't sure. Nothing is black and white. Not in the kind of opportunity there is. Not in your evaluation of if the audition is worth doing. You have choices. That's the good and bad news.

No matter what your generation or what the economy is doing, forever there has been work available.

During The Great Depression, members of my immigrant family in downtown Jersey City, New Jersey, did cherry-pick how they would earn income. Even though they were at the bottom of the food chain, they trusted their hustle enough to exit the unthinkable.

One uncle wound up a boss on the Hudson River docks.

One aunt opened a grocery specializing in ingredients for Italian cooking. She and her husband did a FIRE (financial independence, retire early) before that concept went mainstream. 

Not all my family's money-making moves panned out. What was significant is that they didn't wallow in regret. No, they didn't get a bad taste in their mouths about how to earn a buck. They just kept moving along the employment continuum. 

There is nothing naive or downright dumb about going for this or that. The "they" want an example of your coding. You decide to do that. You don't get the assignment. So? 

On that one, you will be more astute next time in connecting the dots on what kind of risks you will take to better your earning situation.

Takeaway: You are in charge of your search for work. The "they" can huff and puff but they can't blow your self-esteem, hope, and future success away.

Coaching, lecturing, and writing/ghostwriting thought leadership content on human resources and careers.  

For individual coaching – sliding scale fees. Complimentary initial consultation. The special area of expertise is the displaced over-50 professional. Please contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.