Age and the Job market

Record high jobless rates and new college graduates hitting the job market makes finding a job so much harder for those who have been laid off or can illustrate a “long and varied list of work experience.” Struggling through both time and financial constraints to earn a degree and acquiring “extensive training” in areas of specialties that normally would have guaranteed them a foot in the door, it has become harder to find a job at 50 plus. Seeking to compete with the younger, the techno knowledge of the internet and the more vibrant group coming out of college with no experience, their chances are slim of being hired.

However, there may be a hidden fact that impacts such action as many well qualified people over 50 and looking for a job have engaged in what we call a “self-fulfilling prophecy” or a self demise of their own confidence and ability to compete with others and maintaining the edge to compete. Thinking too much about your age can hamper your chances thus showing even the slightest about how your age applies to the job you seek your own words or actions may put the nail in the coffin to terminate your opportunities to be successful. Employers will never reveal the reason for the not-hire decision as they are most aware of federal discrimination laws and its impact on their business if suspected. However, it may be the applicant who directs themselves to such a decision based on their own concerns about age and the ability to compete in a particular market or job assignment.

Self-promoting of your experience and willingness to pass on that experience to others in an organization can in fact provide an effective management tool if recognized. Many employers have mentor programs that can benefit from such an approach and if used wisely, it could in fact be a growth factor for successful career development for others who may lack the experience or are novice but identified as being potential great employees with mentoring and training.

Talking to a career expert and proper preparation for future interviews should be considered if you are lacking the self-confidence to implement this approach on your own. Selling your own experience and wisdom can in fact be recognized as you forget about age discrimination and allow your creativity and energy to remain positive and pass this on to the future. Finally, as for age discrimination in the hiring process I am sure it does exist or happen but as career specialties will tell you “if you walk in the door believing that's what's going to happen, that's what's going to happen and it's not because of age. You are going to be discriminated against because you are not presenting yourself as the professional they are looking to hire."

Moral Compass = moral intellect = individuality

We all know that at times in our lives there are events occurring that cross our own moral values thus creating conflicts that have to be resolved most of the time, under pressure especially in the workplace. Working with individuals who are driven and influential in your personal and professional life creates situations or needs to resolve or find resolutions on both ends that require a certain degree of delicacy to fix the problem. Learning how to do the right thing is not easy and requires strength and internal fortitude to stay the course according to your own moral compass. Walking a fine line between being a compliant worker or a disgruntled worker, you try to meet your organization or your family in the middle balancing a tightrope that resembles walking on the top of a picket fence. Your first reaction is to react with anger and become verbally aggressive towards the source of the issue often resulting in shooting the messenger rather than the person sending the message. Executives walking a fence are rarely acceptable in leadership positions thus your own conscious must alert you to what direction to take as you expand your own personal and professional endeavors. Explaining his moral reasoning he writes “

So how do we do the right thing under pressure and strategies do we use to avoid conflicts? The answer is strength in emotional intellect [think smart] and moral intellect [think right] as you make your decision based on these two principles that are not the same in any way. Emotional intellect can be defined as doing something good or bad or ethical or unethical in many cases. Moral intellect is skills that are driven to do good and is a very important element of leadership. It is the cause and course we take that is worthwhile and gives us the necessary fundamentals for life’ challenges.

Being a good leader you must believe in holding on to a set of well developed principles and consistently use those principles to guide you through your daily events. This same set should be the same set that all organizations adhere to throughout time but as we already know, there are many who have drifted away from the “right” thing to do and created their own fundamental beliefs that are embedded to suit their own needs rather that the “good” for others. Embracing the universal principles throughout the business world and your personal life includes taking and recognizing the elements of personal responsibility, reciprocity of your acts or good faith, and the ability to empathize with others. Basically this resembles those qualities taught in most religions and preached throughout the world as sound guidance for positive behaviors that self respect, taking responsibility for your own acts and caring for others.

Antonio Rossini’s Theory of Ethics explains moral powers are “two kinds of moral powers: those moral in themselves and those moral by participation. The former direct the practical judgment and the latter regulate affections and external acts. External moral acts presuppose the power of acting externally, this becomes a moral power when moved by moral affectivity. This power in turn becomes moral when moved by practical esteem or practical judgment which in itself is a moral power. The others are powers by participation. When speaking on the “Conscience” Rosmini wrote “If I make a practical judgment based on non moral motives I sin, and certain affections and immoral actions follow. I am conscious of sinning, and experience interior bitterness. I am conscious of not assenting to direct knowledge and of violating it. I judge myself, declaring my practical judgment evil and immoral. This judgment is moral conscience. It is a speculative judgment on the morality of my practical judgment and its consequences. We say we must follow our conscience. That is, we must appreciate and judge things for what they are worth, love them proportionately, and then act according to this well ordered love. Conscience precedes practical judgment, indicating how it should be made. When it has been made conscience approves or disapproves of it.”

Explaining his definition of moral reasoning he writes “Practical Reason: Is the capacity of voluntary reflection to form decisive esteem of the object and consequently of the action which follows. As we saw above, decisive love is bound up with this esteem and the external action then follows. The practical reason is the power which controls the practical judgment. This power vacillates in its preference between moral and eudaimonological [concerned with human happiness. It is the power to apply being as a rule for judging our own subjective good] motives presented to it. After it has considered them, it makes the practical judgment or esteem which activates the affection and then issues in an external act. It is the judge between the utility and probity of actions. It judges what is better to do here and now and is based on moral and eudaimonological reasons. For example, 'Do I feed myself and leave my brother or sister to starve, or do I deprive myself and give them what they need?' Both ethical and eudaimonological reason are included in practical reason. These are theoretical and speculative and reduced to practice by practical reason. A comparison is made between moral and eudaimonological motives, their importance is weighed and an operative judgment is made. Affection and action follow immediately. This is the practical judgment as opposed to the speculative judgment and it is controlled by the practical reason.”


Walking the talk means to be in position with your self-identified moral compass [that includes your basic moral principles, personal values, and beliefs]; your goals and your behavior including those inward or unspoken thoughts, emotions and external actions. Living in alignment means being consistent with personal goals and is not something that is accidental in any means. Moral intellect is an outgrowth of “living in alignment,” the interconnection of an individual’s moral compass (basic moral principles, personal values, and beliefs); their goals; and their behavior, including inward thoughts, emotions, and external actions. “Living in alignment means an individual’s behavior is consistent with their goals and that their goals are consistent with their moral compass. Living in alignment is not accidental. It requires individual strength in understanding and building on each component while maintaining alignment among all components, especially during pressure points in our work or personal life.”

Just like your vehicle’s GPS serves as your navigational tool while you are on the road, your moral compass keeps you on track in your life’s journey, analogous to the GPS used in your vehicle. However, just like the GPS system it may lead you into the right direction but there are many individual and sometimes complicated decisions that have to be made to stay on course. Giving you the aide of general directions gives you confidence in your destination and goals but to achieve the best out of life you must be creative and use your personal strengths and potential to arrive at your destiny with a safe and sound attitude or purpose.

The bottom line is if you use your moral compass with good awareness of its power as it would be hard to conduct your business or personal life with ignorance and deniability of what is right or wrong in the matters at hand. A leader must recognize this advantage gives them the ability to achieve lasting personal and organization performance and dependability others seek to acquire through sound mentorship and leadership methods.