In 1938, two women in their forties assumed ficticious names and set out across America to find jobs during what was arguably the worst job ever, especially for people over forty. The headlines at the time reflect the disparity chewing through the Nation’s spirit:

“NO JOBS AT FORTY” DEBATE RAGES; CURES OFFERED

“TOO OLD AT FORTY”: WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT? SPEAKERS OUTLINE THE SOCIAL PROBLEMS WHICH FOLLOW REJECTION OF OLDER WORKERS

COURT VOICES SYMPATHY FOR JOB SEEKERS OVER 40

The women, C. B. Thompson and M. L. Wise, developed a plan to find jobs, and then set out to prove that it would work. It did 70% of the time, and even when they weren’t offered positions, they were given interviews when others couldn’t get the time of day. Their book, We Are Forty and We Did Get Jobs, is full of tips that still apply today. So, if you’re out of work and feel like you’re out of luck and out of options, don’t despair. Here’s some advice from the ages:

Look your best. Nothing runs you down like that run-down look. Get out of bed every morning and get dressed in something other than sweats. We all know that we feel better when we have showered and changed into clothes that we like. Keeping yourself well-groomed at home will help you to feel comfortable and at ease in your “interview” clothes.

Root out the defeatist attitude. Sitting around worrying about how you will pay the mortgage or rent, how you’ll make the car payment, or all the other things we conjure up when we’re in defeatist mode will only keep you stuck where you are. Instead of worrying about what you have lost, channel all of that mental energy into planning how you will find the perfect position. Let your mind wander and day dream about all of the wonderful things to come, and start planning how to get them. No matter how small, positive actions effectively destroy a defeatist attitude.

Find all your employable characteristics. Write down every job you ever held and list every detail of each job. Every detail, no matter how small. Next list all of your hobbies and interests.

Survey all possible fields for your talents. This amounts to the modern-day mantra “think outside the box.” Be willing to go outside of your field. If you were a machinist, do you have talents that would transfer to another, completely different area? A machinist who loves to barbecue might make an excellent chef at a rib joint.

Take your talents to market. During the Great Depression, this meant reading every newspaper and bulletin board you could fine, as well as the telephone book. Today, it means posting your resume everywhere online. Use social-networking sites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to build your network of contacts. Send a copy of your resume to everyone you know.

Put the employer’s needs before your own. Don’t talk about yourself; talk about them. Find out what they are looking for and explain how you can provide it. Keep your troubles to yourself. No one wants to hire a whiner. Things are hard enough these days without a negative Nelly or Ned hanging around.

When the Great Depression hit, there wasn’t any context for it. People had nothing to compare it with. They had to learn as they went. Fortunately for us, they left a record of their struggles. We can learn a lot from what they went through.