Age limit on complete career change?

[Time Waster]

I know there isn't an age limit to completely change your career direction, but in reality there is. Does anyone have an opinion on this?

When younger I heard that once you hit your 50s it's very hard to get a new job if you get made redundant. It gave me the idea that you need to have your last career fixed and in place before late 40s/ early 50s. Just where I am.

For varied reasons I'm in need of a change and worried that if it's a completely new direction I might encounter age related issues.

Any views on this? Any first hand experience or advice?

 

[figbat]

It depends what you mean by "age-related issues". The Equality Act 2010 protects you from discrimination due to age - in other words you should not be treated differently from anybody else just as a consequence of your age, unless there are operational or other justifiable reasons that your age precludes you from a role. Of course identifying age discrimination is difficult - you are unlikely to be told "you're simply too old" and if you are, would you want to fight them and work for a company or person that takes this stand?

 

[kynikos]

My career necessarily took a very different direction in my late 40s and again in my early 50s. Turned out to be beneficial both in financial and wellbeing terms. Can't say I experienced any major problems despite having to declare a significant health issue. Went from a career I hated to one I love - to the extent that I'm still doing three days a week at age 70.

I think the issue faced is around skillset. If you can apply your existing skillset to whatever it is you're after then you can expect to be paid in similar terms to where you are now. A problem can arise where you need to learn new skills - this means your earning potential is much lower - or you use skills which are commonplace and not valued highly. So you can end up having to work long hours if you need to maintain a certain level of income.

There isn't necessarily a trade-off between pay and stress. I had a friend who gave up his (Category A) prison governor career and took what he imagined to be a low stress job 'just driving a van around doing deliveries/pickups at chemists'. Getting stuck in queues behind 85 year olds engaged in conversation with the pharmacist as their only social interaction of the day soon put paid to his target times. So less money, longer hours and plenty of stress. He didn't last long...

I've been fortunate, as one door has closed another has opened, but I think mindset has a lot to do it.

 

[Sharky]

My bil was a successful hotel manager. But the hours were demanding. Following a small inheritance from an elderly relative, he funded himself to be retrained as a plumber. He must have been about 50 when he made the switch and was more than happy.

 

[Hover Fly]

I changed to my present trade at 50+ But I did have related qualifications (2 relevant HNCs plus boatman license) then moved to my present location (new routes and rules of the Thames) at 60+.
It’s possible, but not easy.

 

[Once a Wheeler]

I found this question fairly straightforward to answer. Here's the process:

• First, calculate your life expectency with an online calculator such as this one. (There are plenty of others, just search.)
• Add fifteen years to the result because dying before your time is proof of an active life, well lived; whereas living past your die-by date is a formula for misery.
• Decide when you want to stop working. Note: working, not earning. Stop earning when you have enough money, stop working when you have no more ambition.
• If the stop work date is more than four years away, change for that new career now.
• Remember: the age of six is the best time to start anything. The next best time is now.
• Refuse to conform to age stereotypes and remember that youth is an illness which time will cure. Enjoy the journey.

 

[Time Waster]

It depends what you mean by "age-related issues". The Equality Act 2010 protects you from discrimination due to age - in other words you should not be treated differently from anybody else just as a consequence of your age, unless there are operational or other justifiable reasons that your age precludes you from a role. Of course identifying age discrimination is difficult - you are unlikely to be told "you're simply too old" and if you are, would you want to fight them and work for a company or person that takes this stand?

I think legislation does not prevent anything it is enforcement or risk / threat of enforcement. For that you need to prove it. What are the chances you'll get a Mehmet of an interview panel giving you the recording of the decision saying you're well qualified but too old?

Last time I looked into making a change I tried to get careers advice. Being employed and not in receipt of benefits I got a small budget for some local careers advice from local government. We could all get that budget back then. Trouble was it only payed for cv and job application basic assistance and an aptitude test. I had no issues with job applications it was finding which jobs to apply for, what is a good job I could do needed answering not how to apply. The aptitude test was very mediocre to the point of being very good at being useless. Hence there's possibly a little bit of my careers advice budget l floating around in some council account.

 

[Time Waster]

Skillset? I find that's a difficult one. Qualifications is easy, work history is easy but skills. For me I can't get past the knowledge part of skillset. But that's another issue.

I'm thinking that I'll need training to change. Either train up then make the move or make the move to a job with training because the interviewer identified something useful in you.

 

[mickle]

I became self employed 4 or so years ago. Not my choice to leave my previous job but I now wish I'd done it sooner. Much sooner. I'm earning 3x hourly rate of what I was earning in the bike trade (and I was at a decent manager level). I regret it took me until I was nearly 60 to do it.

 

[cougie uk]

I know there isn't an age limit to completely change your career direction, but in reality there is. Does anyone have an opinion on this?

When younger I heard that once you hit your 50s it's very hard to get a new job if you get made redundant. It gave me the idea that you need to have your last career fixed and in place before late 40s/ early 50s. Just where I am.

For varied reasons I'm in need of a change and worried that if it's a completely new direction I might encounter age related issues.

Any views on this? Any first hand experience or advice?

Surely it depends on the career. If you're going to look for employment by companies it might be trickier.
If you're going to work for yourself - much easier.

 

[Saluki]

I am 58 1/2 and have just begun a new career in a finance company.
I felt it was a bit late for my other ideas about high wire or trapeze artiste or professional athlete.

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

I changed my career to self employed professional cyclist at 57 yrs old. I just took a package and off I went.

 

[ColinJ]

I'd bet that age DOES come into it even if the law says that it should NOT! If a company has 100 applicants and 99 of them are aged 25 to 30, one is 53, and all have exactly the same qualifications and experience... what are the chances of the 53 year old making the shortlist of 10?

OTOH... There will be some companies that are fed up with young people joining them but clearing off a year later once they get a better offer. Maybe they would prefer to employ someone a bit older who would be looking for a job to see them through to retirement?

A friend of mine used to have a senior managerial role, but got made redundant in his late 50s. He decided not to look for a similar stressful position, but he got fed up of sitting around at home. He now works at his local B&Q and is happy chatting to customers and helping them out. He earns far less than he used to but he got a decent redundancy payment and pension from the old job, so he does not need to.

 

[kynikos]

I'd bet that age DOES come into it even if the law says that it should NOT! If a company has 100 applicants and 99 of them are aged 25 to 30, one is 53, and all have exactly the same qualifications and experience... what are the chances of the 53 year old making the shortlist of 10?

If the company in question is looking for someone with the requisite qualifications and experience plus wider life experience they can bring to the company - 100%.

If they're looking for someone with no life skills who can be pushed around - 0%.

And it's the former one I'd want to be working for (and have).

 

[Ming the Merciless]

pany has 100 applicants and 99 of them are aged 25 to 30, one is 53, and all have exactly the same qualifications and experience... what are the chances of the 53 year old making the shortlist of 10?

Don’t put your age on your application