Returning to employment at 55
Discussion
Hi all
I am thinking of winding my business down,selling the house and downsizing and leaving the city.
I will have to keep working,but maybe now I want to just work to live and do something that I can leave behind me when I get home.
I am, however 55. So how much of a barrier is this when trying to get a job? I have been self employed,running my own business for 15 years
Something in the maintenance/service/handyman role would be the ideal,but I have always worked so am not afraid to take anything if needed.
So as an older candidate what advice would you give me?
I am thinking of winding my business down,selling the house and downsizing and leaving the city.
I will have to keep working,but maybe now I want to just work to live and do something that I can leave behind me when I get home.
I am, however 55. So how much of a barrier is this when trying to get a job? I have been self employed,running my own business for 15 years
Something in the maintenance/service/handyman role would be the ideal,but I have always worked so am not afraid to take anything if needed.
So as an older candidate what advice would you give me?
You haven't been out of work for the last 15 years. I would be honest and state why you're once more in the job market. That said, even if the reason was because the business wasn't doing as well as it used to, I don't think any sensible prospective employer would care.
What is the business you're running? If it's using handyman skills then it makes sense to apply for those kinds of roles.
What is the business you're running? If it's using handyman skills then it makes sense to apply for those kinds of roles.
Hoofy said:
What is the business you're running? If it's using handyman skills then it makes sense to apply for those kinds of roles.
Aerial and satellite installation data cabling installation,little bit of AV stuff wireless networks etc. Its a good little business, it runs off word of mouth and my customers are happy with my work.
The trouble these days is me. My knees and ankles are shot, my days of climbing up on rooftops with ladders on my back are over really. A day of house bashing and cable bashing really does me in. Combine that with coming home, sorting out quotes,sending invoices ordering parts fixing stuff on my desk it gets a bit much. Im doing 20000 a year driving to.
So its time to ease off, I saw a job advertised for a service engineer for commercial weighing scales recently, thought that sort of thing would be great, but would they want a 55 year old?
I have also considered the Taxi route, If I did this I would probably hit the weekends and ease off Monday to Thursday.
bristolracer said:
Hoofy said:
What is the business you're running? If it's using handyman skills then it makes sense to apply for those kinds of roles.
Aerial and satellite installation data cabling installation,little bit of AV stuff wireless networks etc. Its a good little business, it runs off word of mouth and my customers are happy with my work.
The trouble these days is me. My knees and ankles are shot, my days of climbing up on rooftops with ladders on my back are over really. A day of house bashing and cable bashing really does me in. Combine that with coming home, sorting out quotes,sending invoices ordering parts fixing stuff on my desk it gets a bit much. Im doing 20000 a year driving to.
So its time to ease off, I saw a job advertised for a service engineer for commercial weighing scales recently, thought that sort of thing would be great, but would they want a 55 year old?
I have also considered the Taxi route, If I did this I would probably hit the weekends and ease off Monday to Thursday.
A couple of years ago I had someone clear out the guttering on my 2 storey house. He turned up and looked like he weighed 3 times my weight (and I'm not light) but then his pet monkey got out of the passenger seat and was the person who did all the hard work while he talked to me.
Hoofy said:
Why not employ a junior, pay him £20 an hour (or whatever the market rate is for such employees that encourages him to do a good job), get him to do the hard work so you can sit by the pool sipping cocktails while doing the invoices and ordering parts.
Nice idea, but we will be relocating, Bristol is tiresome,the north coast of Devon beckons, change of pace is neededHow far out are you looking to move?
Would you consider a different form of self employment?
As an employee you’re either going to be looking at low wages or grafting.. there’s plenty of opportunity for either, but if you can set yourself up on your own again there’s still money to be made. I know a couple of window cleaners using the ‘long reach’ systems doing well and choosing their own hours for example.
If you’re happy to be self employed I may have something else that suits..
Would you consider a different form of self employment?
As an employee you’re either going to be looking at low wages or grafting.. there’s plenty of opportunity for either, but if you can set yourself up on your own again there’s still money to be made. I know a couple of window cleaners using the ‘long reach’ systems doing well and choosing their own hours for example.
If you’re happy to be self employed I may have something else that suits..
Something like a school caretaker? I've been doing that for the last two and a bit years since selling out to my business partner and haven't looked back since. Obviously the salary's a fraction of what it was, but the mental stress that comes with running a business has gone right out the window, and each time I go for my annual MOT at the doctors they always remark on how all my numbers are reducing nicely.
Reasonably fixed hours and a job you can leave at work until the next day are worth an awful lot as you sail past 50.
Reasonably fixed hours and a job you can leave at work until the next day are worth an awful lot as you sail past 50.
My Dad lost his business at 53 and had to go into a completely new career path (contract construction)
It's not easy, but it can be done.
You have the luxury of being able to choose what to do, when to take the plunge and in a similar field.
I wouldn't see your age as a barrier. People are working longer now and the older generation are seen as reliable and knowledgeable (kids grown up, loads of experience, etc)
As long as you have relevant skills, you should be fine but it does also depend on what your financial aspirations are.
It's not easy, but it can be done.
You have the luxury of being able to choose what to do, when to take the plunge and in a similar field.
I wouldn't see your age as a barrier. People are working longer now and the older generation are seen as reliable and knowledgeable (kids grown up, loads of experience, etc)
As long as you have relevant skills, you should be fine but it does also depend on what your financial aspirations are.
My dad ran a successful firm for 25 years till he sold it and retired at 52. Got bored after a while and decided to go back to work at 57. He was only applying for basic assistant-managerial positions in small companies but got rejected 5 or 6 times for being "over-qualified" - in most instances he had several years more experience than those interviewing and they thought it odd that he was applying for something "lower" in position/salary than he had previously had. Perhaps they thought he was applying with an eye to moving up the ladder quickly and supplanting them?!?
He gave up on the whole office thing, changed his outlook and now works part-time driving for an undertaker (picking up bodies and taking them where they need to be) - s strange job where it pays the same per job (£100) whether they need to be taken 3 miles or 300 miles - he obviously gets a suitable vehicle supplied and they pay the fuel. It's just luck of the draw what job is given but even if it takes a day, £100 isn't too bad.
When he isn't there, he helps out a friend when they are busy, strangely enough doing CCTV installations for his firm.
He can pick and choose what days he works for both which suits him down to the ground.
He gave up on the whole office thing, changed his outlook and now works part-time driving for an undertaker (picking up bodies and taking them where they need to be) - s strange job where it pays the same per job (£100) whether they need to be taken 3 miles or 300 miles - he obviously gets a suitable vehicle supplied and they pay the fuel. It's just luck of the draw what job is given but even if it takes a day, £100 isn't too bad.
When he isn't there, he helps out a friend when they are busy, strangely enough doing CCTV installations for his firm.
He can pick and choose what days he works for both which suits him down to the ground.
bristolracer said:
Hoofy said:
What is the business you're running? If it's using handyman skills then it makes sense to apply for those kinds of roles.
Aerial and satellite installation data cabling installation,little bit of AV stuff wireless networks etc. Its a good little business, it runs off word of mouth and my customers are happy with my work.
The trouble these days is me. My knees and ankles are shot, my days of climbing up on rooftops with ladders on my back are over really. A day of house bashing and cable bashing really does me in. Combine that with coming home, sorting out quotes,sending invoices ordering parts fixing stuff on my desk it gets a bit much. Im doing 20000 a year driving to.
So its time to ease off, I saw a job advertised for a service engineer for commercial weighing scales recently, thought that sort of thing would be great, but would they want a 55 year old?
I have also considered the Taxi route, If I did this I would probably hit the weekends and ease off Monday to Thursday.
How tech savvy are you? Could you become "Bristol Racer mobile IT support bloke" and sort out the IT needs of micro businesses and domestic customers? We need someone like that round here and I don't know of one.
I would always advocate running your own business, if you've the nous to do it.
monkfish1 said:
This^^^^. Id take an older person over most younger people any day of the week. Ive done both several times, i know what i would choose everytime.
I think it takes a balance in any business... older employees can be great mentors to the younger members - I don't see it as either/or.bristolracer said:
Good to know I wont be considered too old
I don’t think it’s too much of an issue these days for skilled roles at least.Given that people change jobs much more frequently now I’d say that getting someone experienced, with a potential 10+ further years of working to come, is a bonus.
Why overlook the 55yo to take on a 25-30yo who might well move on within 2-3 years anyway.
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