Article by Ceri Wheeldon

Looking for a new job in your 50s following redundancy can be a daunting prospect, not least because the whole job search landscape has changed so much in recent years.

Women over 50 make great employees

The good news is that many companies now recognise that women over 50 make great employees

Job search has moved on since the days where people scanned the situations vacant column and put a CV in an envelope and popped in the post. So much more is now handled online – the specifics of which we talk about in separate articles.

The first thing to remember that you may be unemployed, but you still have  a job, and that ‘job’ is to find new employment. Treat the job search as a job in itself.

• Set yourself a routine, give yourself  set hours to work on your jobsearch activity and allocate a spot in your house as your office/desk

• Give yourself set breaks during the day for coffee, lunch, personal phone calls

• Set yourself objectives for  the day/week. Putting  numbers and timescales against your objectives makes you more likely to achieve them.

For example:

• Research 10 companies you’d like to work for and tailor your cv  and covering letter accordingly before sending

• Register your cv on 5 internet job boards

• Create a personal blog and create 5 blog entries highlighting  your expertise

• Register your cv or make appointments with 3 employment agencies

• Identify 2 courses to attend to supplement your skills

• Make 6  follow-up phone calls

• Send 3 ‘thank you’emails to anyone you have interviewed with to date

• Join and contribute to 10 group discussions on Linkedin

• Ask 3 former colleagues to recommend your work on linkedin

• Book and attend 2 networking events

• Thoroughly prepare for any job interviews by researching the companies online

• Are there any jobfairs/exhibitions relating to your industry? Book yourself in- check if employers on your target list are attending- see if you can call ahead and book an introductory chat before you go.

When you’ve completed your list reward yourself for a job well done and start planning for your next day/week