I wish this was all in my head but I can't help but think it's the industry's ageism working against me. I turned 50 today and for the last year, it has been a disaster trying to find a job. Turn 50 and you’re no longer considered part of the game. I guess they think we are too outdated and/or irrelevant to be part of the industry. Do you think this is true or do you have counterpoints?

It's a little weird when you start to wonder how you got to be the same age as all the old people. But yes, there is ageism in the industry. It's not talked about, and no one can admit to it, but it exists. Younger talent is generally cheaper, so there's that. But it's also just a general feeling that older people have lost their spark, regardless of how combustible some of us still seem to be.

It’s salary-ism as much as it is ageism. Often go hand in hand. That’s not a new insight but important to keep in mind. Unless your agency has a big boring profitable client that they staff with reliable, experienced, (expensive) folks, there’s often nowhere to go.

One mistake agencies make is assuming older creative leaders can no longer nurture award winning work. The bigger mistake is staffing those aforementioned accounts with green CDs for the purposes of saving a few bucks.

You saw this coming, right? It was this way when we were young. So please tell me you knew this was coming.

I owe a debt of gratitude and remorse for the ways I nudged boomers out to make room for me 2 decades ago.

And, I sleep a bit better at night knowing all the millennials I personally hated as they were pushing me out a decade ago are now dealing with it. It is inevitable.

My advice is this: Redefine what success looks like for your career. You can still kill it as a go to freelancer, consultant, whatever. No, your name is no longer in the About Us tab on the agency website. No, you no longer are going to Cannes and no one really wants you on the jury. But you can crank out good work now. Just do that. I make more at freelance than I did when I ran the department. I have a roster of CDs that I work for now that were my interns way back when. Just change your perspective and enjoy the work.

In pharma and ten years older than you. No sign of me being pushed out, (yet) although even pharma is trying to gain some ‘tude hiring hotshots. They might eek out a big idea once in 100 tries but are frustrated and usually blow up sooner or later

I understand your thoughts and feelings, as I myself am approaching 50. I am getting myself out of that mind set and have been networking - brand yourself and be proud of all your accomplishments. Highlight those successes. It can be hard to do that, but that is starting to open opportunities for me. As a leader, I have always put my team first and highlight and encourage them in their careers. They are the backbone. What I told myself though, I need to do the same for myself. Hope reading this, helps.

I will end in saying… we need to start a retreat for 40+ creative leaders - where we can network and lean in on each other. ☺️

Due respect to some of the comments here but ageism is everywhere in advertising, it’s institutionalized for reasons relating to both bias and economics (at 50 with a couple of decades, if you’re not more expensive than a junior, you in the wrong biz), and if you swing over to the Over 40 Bowl you’ll find it’s talked about by everyone—both the perpetrators (Mark Reade famously bragging that WPP really only has younger on staff these days) and the afflicted.

My route around it was always to DIY, but that’s not available to everyone, so best advice is to look at places in the industry where the stupidity around age is a little less prevalent. The thought about pharma is one you hear a lot; freelance is going to be your best bet so if employed now, start building that network yesterday.

I am so sorry to hear that OP but you are still so young. There are plenty of jobs out there that will hire someone experienced over someone young, I think its a matter of finding the right place for you at this point. Best of luck to you in the search.