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Original poster

Desperate for work at 59

255 replies

Pinkypong · 06/10/2022 13:29

Please help.
im 59 and desperate for work. I’ve had the odd shop job. I don’t have any skills, years ago I did design, well I can do design but my photoshop and illustrator skills let me down.
im supposed to retire and I can’t, ever I don’t think.
is it ridiculous to apply to be a teacher? By the time I get in the course I’ll be 60.so that’s stupid, I’d have to do maths o level too.
what can I do? Is there some sort of help out there? Are there courses? Not degree but just something to get me into a job. I’m so stuck and lost and anxious. It’s causing massive riffs between me and Dh. I don’t know how I got to this age without a job, I get the odd bit of freelance but it doesn’t last. I’m too anxious to think straight.

OP posts:
Shiningstarr · 10/10/2022 06:37

Pinkypong · 08/10/2022 03:32

Is it even possible to train to be a teacher at 59? It would be a good career

Have you already got a degree?

RoobarbandCustud · 10/10/2022 06:48

If you are kind, have some people skills, drive, have access to a car and would feel able to provide intimate personal care to older/disabled individuals you would find it easy to get a job as a Home Carer or in a Care Home. There are opportunities for progression. If you really want to work with children there are jobs galore in residential childrens homes but you need to be very very resilient as the young people are going through the hardest times and most difficult to work with. Good luck OP.

ByeByeMissAmericanPie · 10/10/2022 07:01

Baby steps. Ignore your husband, and get yourself into an area that really inspires you… be it teaching or retail work. Look at volunteering opportunities in those areas if you can’t get a ‘proper’ job to start with.

I agree with most of the other posters in that your ‘D’ H is a piece of work, and if you ever decide to leave him, at least you’ll have an income and a job you enjoy.
You sound so confused and worn down by it all. Hang in there.

Original poster
Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 07:11

Hi sHiningstarr I have a degree but no maths.
roobarb I didn’t want to do care as I find it distressing but am changing my mind.
byebye thank you. People have said that, narrow your search etc. but there just doesn’t seem to be jobs in art and design, which I where my talents lie. And what I used to do.
im shocked that people think Dh is a piece of work.

OP posts:
VladsPants · 10/10/2022 07:12

As others have mentioned already, many places actively want to employ older women. I used to recruit for a supermarket and definitely would have preferred someone like you to a younger person. Less likely to find another job and leave, better sense of responsibility, life experience in general, etc. Just make sure if you apply that you are willing and able to do any shifts they need, as that was often the sticking point.

Re your dh, at best he’s an arsehole. How awful that you are feeling this way and he’s not being your no1 supporter. That’s not what marriage should look like. But I understand it’s a lot for you to take in at the moment.

Give the medication time to work and be kind to yourself. You will get past this and all will be well. Every small thing you do is a step towards this. Even just taking a tablet every morning.

I suffer with anxiety and am not in the best place right now, but I know it WILL pass and life will work itself out.

You sound like a lovely person, and employer will be lucky to have you.

VladsPants · 10/10/2022 07:13

*any employer

Shiningstarr · 10/10/2022 07:21

Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 07:11

Hi sHiningstarr I have a degree but no maths.
roobarb I didn’t want to do care as I find it distressing but am changing my mind.
byebye thank you. People have said that, narrow your search etc. but there just doesn’t seem to be jobs in art and design, which I where my talents lie. And what I used to do.
im shocked that people think Dh is a piece of work.

Will care work be a good enough job though, in your DH's eyes? Does he think of this as a 'proper' job? It's still minimum wage, so not sure if this is one of the 'proper jobs' he is thinking.

OnTheBrinkOfChange · 10/10/2022 07:29

Asda is a very good employee of older people. I would aim for the supermarkets to be honest. There is no way you can do teaching so don't even go there now. I wouldn't think of the graphic design either in terms of a job. Just get a job that you can go into, get it done and go home again.

Shiningstarr · 10/10/2022 07:37

If you're thinking of the PGCE to become a teacher, have you factored in the course fees?

Shiningstarr · 10/10/2022 07:37

OnTheBrinkOfChange · 10/10/2022 07:29

Asda is a very good employee of older people. I would aim for the supermarkets to be honest. There is no way you can do teaching so don't even go there now. I wouldn't think of the graphic design either in terms of a job. Just get a job that you can go into, get it done and go home again.

I agree, but her DH doesn't view that as a 'proper job'.

MrsLargeEmbodied · 10/10/2022 08:07

if you work in a retirement home you can branch out into Events coordinator or similar.

Original poster
Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 08:08

Oh gosh vladspants I’m sorry to hear you are suffering from anxiety, it’s so debilitating and horrible. Here’s a big hug.
im very glad yo think it will pass and life WILL work itself out. I’m sure you’re right and it’s just a big old blip.
thank you for the reassuring vote of confidence. That means a lot. I hope you feel better soon 💐
shiningstarr no it’s not a proper job I’d be wasting my time etc. can hear the row from here!
no I can’t do a pgdce. It would mean doing maths this year and applying the year after. I did try and apply , and wish I’d kept it up now. At the time it was difficult to get to maths lessons, then the course was very popular and I was warned I wouldn’t stand a chance without x and y, and of course everyone I know including the teachers at the school said how hard it was etc. and I found it overwhelming again. Tbf. I’d just had cancer so was struggling with that. Recovery took me ages.
no he doesn’t regard asda as a proper job.
oh god I’m screwed.

OP posts:
Original poster
Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 08:10

Mrs large that sounds interesting. I imagine that’s setting up day trips and activities? That might count as a proper job!

OP posts:
MrsLargeEmbodied · 10/10/2022 08:10

you have to have the courage of your convictions, whatever you chose

MrsLargeEmbodied · 10/10/2022 08:11

Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 08:10

Mrs large that sounds interesting. I imagine that’s setting up day trips and activities? That might count as a proper job!

yes, it sounds good doesnt it

Original poster
Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 08:14

Right I’m off to comb the job listings. Oh I hate this so much.

OP posts:
Snowberry3 · 10/10/2022 09:17

Can you teach your design skills - Set up classes in the local college or art gallery or wherever people attend art classes.
I'm retired and so many people have the time to learn new skills and want new hobbies.
It won't make you a lot of money but could be a stepping stone to something else.

Shiningstarr · 10/10/2022 09:18

What job does your DH do?

OhamIreally · 10/10/2022 09:18

@Pinkypong are you on LinkedIn? You can set job search parameters. There's a lot of remote working stuff that would mean you're not confined to one geographical area but given what you've said about your husband I don't think home working would necessarily be in your best interests.
You can set it to email you with job that meet your criteria.
If there are specific organisations that you think you would like to work for look on their website as they will have a careers section- if they get direct applications it saves them an agency fee which gives you an advantage over an agency applicant if it's down to two the same.

ICanHideButICantRun · 10/10/2022 09:21

I'm interested to know why you wanted to do teaching. You know you don't have the qualifications for it and the qualifications you do have are out of date. You must know it's an incredibly stressful job, even for someone in their early 20s. You must know that it's a terrible job for someone with anxiety. You also must know that most teachers want to leave when they are your age.

Why did you home in on that as a possible career?

Original poster
Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 09:29

Thanks Snowberry I did think of this, Dh wasn’t too keen.
Dh has a very difficult job doing lots of complicated maths, so he is exhausted and overworked
thanks ohamireally I am on LinkedIn. I think the challenge is that I need to get better skills to head in a direction and I don’t know where to start. I’d better just start.
some lovely pps have suggested a few things that are essential so I’ll get on and learn them.

OP posts:
Original poster
Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 09:34

Hi, icanhide desperation! I did apply years ago, and was advised not to by so many people. The structure really appeals, there is a path to follow and I wouldn’t be spinning all over the place. Obviously it’s not going to happen, I shouldn’t think they’d want to train me for such a short time.

OP posts:
mimosa1 · 10/10/2022 13:21

Hi OP, would you consider after school childcare for school age children? Most nannies near me want full time hours but working parents with primary age kids would usually bite your hand off for term time help from 3.30 to 7.00 and some flex during school holidays. (I'm one of them!) and part time nannies near me charge between 12 and 18 pounds an hour.

KoruKids offers training and placement, so you could go through them initially though It would initially lay less as they take a fee vs going it alone.

Very best of luck to you. You sound thoughtful and clever with lots of valuable life experience.

Original poster
Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 16:08

Oh gosh thanks mimosa. Again, it’s a question of Dh. And our house is just awful.

OP posts:
Shiningstarr · 10/10/2022 16:41

Pinkypong · 10/10/2022 16:08

Oh gosh thanks mimosa. Again, it’s a question of Dh. And our house is just awful.

What do you mean, it's a question of DH?

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