The "personal brand" take sounds like good advice. But in reality it isn't -- I agree with Jennifer a bit that the develoment and branding advice does not take into account how a firing feels like to someone 50. Most people 40 and older take a job firing hard because of the time invested in the career and all the personal life adjustments that came with it. Divorces are also a problem, creating financial burdens that was unexpected, along with a lifetstyle loss of a life partner grown accustomed to.

Pivoting the person as an influencer is not a panacea for every instance. Being in your 50s has to be managed differently, but it certainly means a lot of life is left to be lived. Building a broad skill stack is certainly helpful, but it must be coordinated with the skills companies pay for. In this day and age it is too easy to learn something too narrow in scope for the marketplace. The stack has to be planned well to leverage the skills the person already has. This is particularly true for older skilled workers that can leanr but also have insights and skills that are viable.