As you age, your role in the workforce may become more confusing. While some workers reach the pinnacle of career success in their 50s and 60s, others find their career has languished and they want (or need) something new. You may have reached an obstacle to further growth or grown tired of doing the same thing for so many years. You may even wonder if you’re still relevant alongside younger workers.
How can you beat these challenges and find new inspiration during this crossroads in your career? One way is to use a temporary staffing service. Discover five ways you can use this resource to find new direction.
1. Learn New Skills
Keep yourself relevant and valuable to employers by continually updating and improving your skill set. While you can do this in several ways, such as returning for more education, one of the most effective methods is to try new things first-hand on new jobs.
When you take a different position, you’re organically introduced to new ways, new techniques, and different technology. You might learn something completely new and find you take to it immediately. Or you might be able to put to work a skill you previously only learned about in theory. Temporary agencies offer a wide variety of learning opportunities because they work with many different employers.
2. Try New Industries
Job doldrums may not be the fault of your type of work but rather issues within the industry. Many mature workers who have spent years in various fields have accumulated many transferrable skills and talents. If you’re a financial professional fed up with a punishing corporate office culture, for instance, you might consider taking those financial skills to the construction industry, nonprofits, or startups.
3. Widen Your Network
Networking is important for all workers but is especially important for those at the beginning and late years of a career. Have you expanded your network recently? This can be challenging if you’ve been within the same social or business circle for many years. And if the industry community in your immediate area isn’t very large, you may have limited opportunities.
This is a good time to venture beyond your borders and connect with people in new companies, new industries, new locations, and new positions. Again, a temporary staffing arrangement helps with this because it allows you more freedom to meet people and try new situations.
4. Consider Local Companies
Do you feel like your opportunities as an older worker are limited or have an expiration date in the corporate world? Then try a new environment by looking at local, smaller employers. Small employers are more likely to value experienced workers because these employers often put more emphasis on who can do the job well.
5. Focus on Strengths
The temptation for older workers is often to focus on the wrong things. In particular, they may focus on negatives like outdated skills, a lack of promotions, not enough pay opportunities, or job paths they wish they’d taken. This leads to a cycle of negativity that hampers job success.
Instead, a trained staffing specialist will help you assess yourself through new lenses. They will work with you to highlight — and indeed, to personally recognize the value of — what you’re good at and what you bring to the table to future employers.
Ready to revitalize your career through collaboration with a temporary staffing agency? Start by meeting with the team at Tulsa’s Green Country Staffing. We will help you find your strengths, expand career and salary opportunities, and find your passion once again. Call today to make an appointment or fill out our online application to begin.
