Overqualified or just undervalued? Why 50 is the new 50 in journalism.

 Michelle Obama, happy birthday!

Not to be a wet blanket, but at 50, you are lucky not to be on the job market. It's a jungle out there, even for women like you and I with beautiful biceps, handsome politician husbands and gorgeous daughters. OK, maybe that's just you.

When I left my last full-time job, as an editor at Genomeweb in Manhattan, I was in my mid(ish) 40s. I remember attending a workshop at the Department of Labor in New York. A guy was handing out flyers to over-50s.

"Oh, I'm not 50," I said, somewhat amused.

I got a look like, 'okkkkk, Miss 46-and-a-half....'

Someone there said, "I can talk to everyone about how to get a job after 50, how I did it. It can be done, but it will take perseverance and a bit of luck."

Oh, give me a break! You're telling me this is difficult? I do not think so, chubby...

I just needed to be there so I could officially collect my $400 a week or whatever it was for weeks I did not work. I hardly needed advice on how to get a job. After all, I had an interview scheduled with Dow Jones in London in just a couple of weeks. And I had at least five article assignments going simultaneously.


Might as well schedule that vacation to Prague, I thought. And by the way, didn't that lipstick at Sephora have my name on it? The coral one. Oh god, that fatso is still blathering on and on about how the over-50s will need help in the job market. B-o-r-i-n-g.

Well, that was 2008. Since that time, I've had several dozen freelance articles published and many in magazines and news outlets I'd only fantasized about writing for before--Scientific American, Slate, AARP, Prague Post, to name a few. However, I have struck out at every job interview I've had over these past several years. Lately, in fact, I've gotten more used to freelancing and less used to putting myself "out there" to try and find a job. You know, the thing with dental benefits (which I desperately need).


I do keep applying, but I am not getting calls. I got a few calls last year, but none of the interviews panned out. And with every failed interview, a little chunk of my self-confidence goes.

I recently was asked by my alumni association to edit a résumé by one of their young graduates. In doing this, I had to revisit the 23-year-old Laurie, she of the bright eyes and bushy tail - or at least the still hopeful young lady who'd laugh with friends over why a certain interview bombed. After all, it seemed that one out of three interviews resulted in an offer.

I told my dad once that I'd be writing freelance articles for the New York Times before someone would actually offer me a job again. I've now added becoming a published book author to that notion.

This is not to put out a negative vibe. Goodness knows that Dow Jones, Reuters, Crains, Bloomberg, American Metal Market, Chemical Watch and all the other publications and news outlets I've approached have had their reasons. I am sure there was some highly intelligent and super charming fellow journalist out there who upped me on so many levels. Too many levels to count.

I can't help but scratch my head, though, when I review my hundreds of clips and my "new words" list to see how much I've grown since my mid-forties. At 52 I am definitely more informed, more professional, and a lot more hilarious. I'm also a real pushy broad when I need to be, and can network through a cocktail party like a shark at the beach.

I'm just not 34 anymore, or even 43. I'm "mature". And something tells me, before too long the right publication will embrace this.

A toast to over-50s!  Now, where's that flyer again ...?

Michelle Obama pretends to play hockey in a "Let's Move!" and NHL partnership event with Chicago Blackhawks and Washington Capitals players on the South Lawn of the White House, March 11, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)