I recently invited one of my previous officemates to send her resume for a job opening at our company. She was very concerned if our company accepted people of her age.
I was surprised because she was only in her late 30s and I did not feel she was old enough to worry about it either. Knowing she worked with the company for more than 15 years tell me she wasn’t exposed to what was happening in the outside world to know her value and remain confident she could compete anywhere.
Simple ways to keep up with the changing times
1. Learn from others – Always look around by reading job postings, news or chatting with friends from other companies, especially when you intend to work on a company for a very long time.
2. Get out – My senior manager left and bummed around for one year just to know what was happening around him because our company was his first and only job since graduating out of college. Unless you have enormous savings, vacations would do.
3. Be fashionable – I am not talking about fashion like clothes, jewelries, etc.; but I mean more of the concept of getting to know the smartest and greatest ways to work. Knowing the revolutionized techniques and philosophies in accounting, processes, etc. will help you a long way down the road of your career.
4. Digital age – My friend Rochelle Uyecio told me his father insisted to continuously use a paper notebook to record their business transactions; but with lots of persuasion, he agreed to use a computer and an accounting system for the task. Don’t be afraid to learn the new stuff because it will help you remain competitive against businesses and people using innovation to grow their productivity level.
5. Become a student again – Go back to school if you have the resource and time to educate yourself more. Education is for everyone not just kids.
6. Network – Continuously grow your network of friends and colleagues. Be sociable and keep a certain degree of relationship with people in your circle instead of vanishing in existence from the world.
7. Grab opportunities – Always be on the lookout for trainings, seminars, conferences that you can join to help you learn more, grow your network and increase your value.
8. Resume – Don’t update your resume every 5 years. I update mine every quarter which also serve as my checkpoint whether I have something to write or have remained stagnant for a period of time.
[tags]Career, Management, Success[tags]
8 Simple Ways for Older Workers to Remain Relevant
