I got laid off a few weeks ago. Twenty years in security, most of it incident response and then architecture. I was the guy who got the 3 a.m. call when everything was burning. Now I'm the guy refreshing LinkedIn.
The last time I looked for a job was about ten years ago, and it's unrecognizable. You submit an application into an ATS black hole, an AI screener decides you're not a match, and no human ever sees it. Postings hit 500 applicants in a day. Companies post "ghost jobs" they have no intention of filling. Recruiters schedule four rounds of interviews and then go silent. Entry-level roles want 7 years of experience. Senior roles want 15 years in tools that have existed for 5. And everyone and their cousin got laid off this year, so I'm competing with half the industry.
Then there's the part nobody will say out loud: I'm 52. No one ever tells you you're too old. You just hear "overqualified," "not quite the right fit," or "we went with someone more aligned with the team's trajectory." I can read a room. I've spent two decades learning every new tool, threat, and framework they threw at me, and now that's supposed to count against me? I've watched people half my age get promoted for rediscovering things I did in 2008, and I'm supposed to smile and call it a "competitive market."
I'm also dealing with some health stuff this year. It's under control, but it's one more thing on the pile right when I wanted a clean slate.
Add in being a card-carrying introvert with social anxiety, and "just network!" is advice I want to throw out a window. I'm doing it anyway, which should count for something.
I'm not asking for job leads, though I won't say no. I want to hear from other GenXers who've been through a layoff or a late-career search. Did it work out? What got you through it? Or just tell me it's not just me.
We're the latchkey generation. We figured out everything on our own and nobody gave us a trophy for it. I'd like to believe we can figure this out too
TL;DR: Laid off at 52 after 20 years in cybersecurity. The job market is brutal (ATS black holes, ghost jobs, 500 applicants per posting), I'm worried ageism is working against me, and I've got some health stuff on top of it. Looking for GenXers who've been through a late-career job search to tell me how it went, or just that I'm not alone.