I've been job searching for over 2 years while raising a child. Here's why I still turned down a job offer.

"I hit two years of being on the job hunt for full-time work this August. I last worked in conference planning for a major trade show company, which is a very specialized niche, but I really enjoyed it. I've continued to look at conference planning jobs, but I've also looked into communications. I've even considered getting certified to teach, since I did that previously."

"I've had the same frustrations many people are having these days: not being chosen for an interview, getting ghosted, getting an interview and then not being the chosen candidate. It's been a blow to my confidence. I feel like it's ageism because I'm over 50. But the most difficult part has been feeling like an absolute failure because I can't provide the way I want to for the middle-school child I'm raising. I am just scraping by."

"When I got a job offer in August, I gave it some serious thought. Someone finally saw me as a great fit, and the company had a stellar culture, a multigenerational team, and a long history of no layoffs. But I usually make a pros and cons list whenever I'm making major life decisions - and it just wasn't meeting everything I needed."

Julie Jordan-Wade has been searching for full-time work for two years since being laid off. She previously worked in conference planning for a major trade show company and has explored communications and teaching certification. She has faced not being selected for interviews, ghosting, and interview rejections, and believes ageism plays a role because she is over 50. She struggles financially while raising a middle-school child and is barely covering essentials. She received a job offer from a company with strong culture but declined because the role's repetitive compliance duties and fit did not meet her needs.

Read at Business Insider