Every week, I get questions like these:
➡️ “Do you think my age will make me susceptible to discrimination?”
➡️ “Do you think this résumé gap will hurt my chances?”
➡️ “The market is bad right now. Will I even find a job?”
➡️ “I only have government experience, will a private company hire me?”
Here’s my question back:
Of all those worries… which ones can you actually control?
Can you control if someone discriminates against you?
Can you erase a résumé gap?
Can you undo decades of work experience?
Can you change the economy?
The answer is no.
And yet, people spend hours every day obsessing over these things — things that drain energy, fuel anxiety, and slow down progress.
Here’s the reality:
Every second you spend worrying about what you can’t control takes time away from what you can.
Try this exercise, Draw two columns:
Column 1: Things I Can Control
Column 2: Things I Cannot Control
Now write them all down.
Circle the things in the first column, and commit to acting on them.
Keep that list somewhere visible. Every time you feel discouraged or stuck, look at it and refocus on what’s in your control. That’s where progress happens.
Here’s what you can control:
✅ Your résumé. Does it make your value clear? Or does it force the reader to piece it together?
✅ Your message. Are you showing your worth in a direct, confident, and persuasive way?
✅ Your job search strategy. Are you sending your résumé into a black hole of 300+ applicants, or are you networking, building relationships, and getting in front of decision-makers?
You can’t control everything, but you can control enough. And if you focus your time, attention, and effort there, your job search will be faster, less stressful, and far more effective.
Stop worrying about what you can’t change.
Double down on what you can.
That’s where growth happens, and where opportunity starts.
👉 Join one of our free webinars at YourNextJump.com/webinar to learn how to focus on what matters most in your job search.
You got this! 👊
Age, Gaps, Bad Markets… Do They Really Matter?
