Getting hired tends to be something you worry about more in your 20s than in your 50s. Speaking generally of course. It's not much fun being fired in your 50s.

Getting hired tends to be something you worry about more in your 20s than in your 50s. Speaking generally of course. It's not much fun being fired in your 50s. Although by that point you probably know enough about something that consulting (ie short gigs) are both available and lucrative. But generally, by the time you're in your 50's you've acquired enough expertise that you add more value than you consume. Which means you're unlikely to be fired. That experience, and ability to understand both the upside, and downside, can be really valuable. Certainly good communication skills help, and the better you are at getting information out of your brain, and into everyone else's, the better you'll be for it. For the record, I'm at 42 and counting :)