I’m 49 years old and was laid off from my six-figure sales job. I now make $52,000 in an entry-level role where I work alongside college grads.

• Damon Duncan, a former 49 -year -old sales engineer, received a harsh payment interruption after being dismissed.

• Duncan’s salary fell from $ 148,000 to $ 52,000 and affected the lifestyle of his family.

• Despite hundreds of jobs, Duncan is struggling to re -enter the technical sales area.

This Asi-to-DENS is based on conversations with 49-year-old Damon Duncan in Atlanta. His identity and salary were confirmed by Business Insider. This speech is arranged for length and clarity.

In April 2023, I was dismissed as a sales engineer. That was the last thing I had in my career.

More than two years have passed since I worked in the field of technical sales. After a merger of my company, I took a few relevant roles, but in August 2024, I was dismissed for the second time and I was unemployed until I took a hard step – both of them Position and Payment.

From being a sales engineer, an architect and account manager, I went to work in a consulting company in a cold calling business.

The majority of the people I work with are just coming out of the university. When I sit with them in the common room, “This is my first new child work from the university” and I live here almost 50 years old, a child is about to go to university.

Came with a big wage cut

I’m doing it now One third of what I do In my sales engineering business. My basic salary in my old business was $ 148,000, but now $ 52,000.

Dispensing costs us a lot of money and therefore we no longer travel. During this time, our loan received a big blow and we could not have a loan to go to our daughter to university. So he decided to get a gap and start a local school of technology, and he created savings and credit to be able to buy and transfer a loan.

We had to cancel too many services. Typically, we can hire someone to do bigger things, but now I have to do them at the weekend.

Now, instead of spending my weekends with my family, I spend something around the house, such as rebuilding a ladder, working in cars, painting in rooms, changing light fixtures, AC plugs, light switches and other projects.

We couldn’t afford to fix my daughter’s car, so we had to get rid of it. Now we fell into two cars instead of three. We have to buy too many cars, that’s not very important, but from time to time it bothers us. My company also asked us to go back to the office, so I have to take an hour to work and return. So, I’m on my way for two hours a day.

It impressed my family.

I don’t understand the market anymore

I’m trying to go back to the area that supports me for a better part of 20 years, but nobody hire me or interviews with me.

Since then dismissal I applied for hundreds of jobs in 2023. I received an offer last year, but it was canceled due to the company changes. Other than that, I had an interview, but I never went on an acceptance round.

I’m still applying anywhere between two to five jobs a day.

No matter what I do to my resume, or how much social assistance I do is not important, it doesn’t matter. I do everything they tell me to do, and they may be darts on a piece of paper, I hope they’ve got down and not fall. I don’t understand the market anymore. It doesn’t make any sense.

I’m doing this because I have invoices to pay and I need to provide a family. So, I hope I stuck where I was until I found another job.

I feel that people think I am very expensive because of my experience or that I will leave the moment I find something better. They do not realize that I am applying not only because it is a job in my field, but also because I see it as a possible career.

I don’t need a job. I’m not 20 years old anymore. I need a career. I have three children who are about to go to college, and two of them are on the way. He’il pay my daughters’ weddings in the future. I will work until the age of 80. I need a stable career.

Can also be A age played here. But elderly people have wisdom and experience. They’re not sports bikes. They take time. And elderly people like me, gen Xers, willing to flutter and work. I work with an entry -level business and I have 24 years of experience. If this doesn’t prove how curled we are and how willing we are to do and work, I don’t know what he’s doing.

Did you fight to find a job? We want to get news from you. Contact the reporter via e -mail aaltchek@insider.com or via secure messaging application signal Aalt.19.

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