Why These Labels Are Killing Careers
Let’s break this down.
Redundant? No. Your role became redundant. You didn’t. There’s a difference, and it matters. You’ve still got more to give, more problems to solve, more value to add.
Overqualified? That’s code for “we’re intimidated.” It just means you’ve seen things and know what works. You’ve lived through market crashes, technology shifts, and corporate restructures. You don’t panic when things go sideways because you’ve been sideways before.
Unemployed? Maybe right now. But not unemployable. And definitely not incapable.
The job market loves these buzzwords. They’re convenient. Clean. Easy to understand. But for GenX+ talent, they become prison cells we get locked into by lazy thinking and unconscious bias.
Here’s what “overqualified” really means: you might ask uncomfortable questions. You won’t work 60-hour weeks for the thrill of it. You know your worth and won’t pretend otherwise. You’ve seen enough bad decisions to spot them coming.
And that terrifies some employers.
Let’s tear the boxes up.
Your skills didn’t expire when you got that redundancy letter. Your network didn’t disappear. Your ability to deliver results under pressure – that’s still there. The problem isn’t you. It’s a system that doesn’t know how to value wisdom without a shiny new job title attached.
It’s recruiters who filter CVs by graduation dates. It’s hiring managers who assume experience equals expensive. It’s HR departments that mistake grey hair for inflexibility.
But change is coming. Smart employers are waking up. They’re realizing that hiring someone who’s already made every mistake means they won’t make them again on your watch.
Here at GenX Talent, we don’t believe in labels that limit. We believe in lived experience that liberates. And the employers posting here? They’re the ones who get it. They understand that battle-tested beats untested every single time.