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Re: "Age-old" question

Subject: Re: "Age-old" question
From: Jay Maechtlen <techwriter -at- laserpubs -dot- com>
To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Date: Mon, 12 Sep 2016 16:16:08 -0700

If an employer is looking for a perm position - that suggests they want the person around for a while - maybe 5-10 years?
Why would they knowingly hire someone already at retirement age?
Unless you can convince them that you love the field, are having a blast, and want to keep going for another 10 years+, why would they want you?
Plan your pitch accordingly...


On 9/12/2016 9:46 AM, Ken Poshedly wrote:

As some of you may recall from my occasional vents, my current employment situation is 7 1/2 years with a humongous, international, China-based manufacturing company with its only U.S. office here in metro Atlanta. Operations are performed as if they are right in China. They're absolutely SUPER people to work _with_, but the corporate environment stinks. (Contact me off-list for that.)

I'm now 66 and had planned to work here until age 71, but it's just not getting any better here. Rock-bottom salary, no or miniscule pay raises (I was told raises are not that common in China), being supervised by those from the home office who have no idea what they are supposed to do and what I do, etc. (I had to take this job after being out for three months in 2009 due to the recession in late 2008 and had no leverage with which to negotiate even a bare-bones respectable salary.)

And with absolutely no telecommuting allowed (my daily round trip drive is 122 miles), something finally needs to change. So I've decided that it's finally me. I'll be 67 at the end of next month and have had great job interviews over the past 5 years for full-time tech writing positions closer to home, but no takers (let's see. . . I'm over 60. Maybe that's it!). So in November, I plan to draw Social Security AND seek contract work closer to home (even with two kids in college.). I've manage to narrowly avoid several would-have-been fatal collisions on Atlanta interstates (quite honestly, perhaps, due to my quick reflexes developed years ago as a parking attendant and even a taxicab driver in Cleveland, Ohio, while I was in college). But now I look at every trip to and from work as me trying to avoid the unknown driver with my name on his front bumper. So far, so good, but how long can this last?

I keep trying for full-time permanent but it just ain't gonna happen. I did two contract writing things before (one from late 2005 to mid-2007 and another from mid-2007 through end of 2008, when the Great Recession kicked in) and loved doing that. But I was not yet age 60.

So my question to those on this list who are around my age, what success have you had in getting contract tech writing assignments, respectable pay rates, etc., at your elevated age? Details please, and off-list comments are fine.
-- Old Man Ken in Atlanta(but I still play drums!)
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--
Jay Maechtlen
626 444-5112 office
626 840-8875 cell
www.laserpubs.com

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References:
"Age-old" question: From: Ken Poshedly

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