I get a lot of email from you, Readers, and I thank you for sharing your thoughts, suggestions, and stories with me and our team. This past Tuesday, an email from your fellow subscriber Roger Van Parys popped into my inbox, and I just have to share it with you ...

Marc:

I wanted to drop you a line and tell you what a great job you are doing. I have been a subscriber for a number of years. TheLadders allows me to keep up with what is out there and helps me plan my next move.

My career field is international construction. International projects are a somewhat narrow slice of the employment pie, but it does have its rewards. It pays well, requires a bit of "out-of-the-box" thinking, and gives me an opportunity to discover other cultures.

My wife says that I am just too cheap to take her on a vacation. However we have spent a great number of years living abroad, which she would agree wasn't that unpleasant. I remember strolling in the surf along the shore of the Aegean and her commenting that people pay a lot of money to do what we do and we are paid for it. Life truly is grand.

The main reason I am writing is my age... I am 69 and find myself in constant demand. I make mid 6 figure income and pick my projects. I wanted to share this because there are a lot of people out there who think that age is a deterrent. What my employers hire is a 45-year-old with 24 years' experience. Experience is knowing what works and what doesn't... Savvy employers are quick to pick up on this and avoid reinventing the wheel.

Success in job hunting for a mature candidate takes an open mind to location, flexibility, and a sense of humor. The latter is especially important in international work. One finds that things definitely are not the same the world over.

I tried retirement for a year and found it too confining. Listening to my friends discuss their aches and pains got to be a real drag. Today I work with bright, focused individuals who are constantly teaching this old dog new tricks... I love it as it keeps me young, reasonably up to date and makes me a better manager.

TheLadders is an excellent forum and provides the needed perspective to a job-seeking market. It is a solid tribute to your skill as an entrepreneur and your understanding of the employment process.

Keep up the good work.

Best regards,

Roger Van Parys
Spokane, Wash.

Now, as I mentioned, Readers, I get a lot of email from you all - 8,804 last week alone (and our customer service team right here in Manhattan answers 99% of them within 24 hours, so please keep them coming!)

But I felt that Roger's email just took the cake.

I've re-read his email a dozen times this week (skipping over the embarrassingly kind words about our company) during a California business trip and then flying back across the country on JetBlue, and I guess what I liked most about it was that it is just so... admirable. Roger's been contributing to this world, productively, for half a century. And let's face it, there really is a bit of age discrimination out there these days, so who could fault a man for letting that get under his skin and feeling a bit resentful about it?

But Roger's sunny, positive, turn-the-tables-on-them-and-don't-let-them-get-you-down attitude is the attitude of a man with character. Roger is the type of American that made this country great; though he has suffered the "slings and arrows of outrageous fortune," he exhibits a strength that says "I will not bow."

And so Roger's email reminded me of something important.

We are going to make it through these tough times.

We may get rain-soaked, and covered in mud, and beaten and bashed along the way, but this country, and the 2.5 million members of TheLadders.com, and all of us together, are going to make it through.

It's going to take perseverance, and humor, and an open mind, a little humility and some hard work, but we will get through this if we don't let the times get us down, and we set about our daily work with the attitude "the world may give me its worst, but I will bring my best."

And I promise that your 316 friends at TheLadders are doing our best to see you through as quickly and comfortably as possible. We're right here beside you. Look, when you do what we do for a living here at TheLadders.com, you can't help but take the pain and the stress of the many, many job hunts we are assisting in a somewhat personal way. We curse the circumstances, root for your success, and celebrate your inevitable victories.

We've seen this movie literally millions of times, and I can tell you from experience: we are going to make it through this together.

So this week I'd like to thank Roger Van Parys for reminding me to take the toughest lumps in a life with a bit of humor, a touch of grace, and the serene calm of a wise old soul.

Readers, please make it a great, special, and very productive week. After all... "Life truly is grand."

Warmest Regards,

Marc Cenedella
Founder & CEO
TheLadders.com, Inc.