I do agree with Bokkenrijder.
Never ever listen to old people, I did a few years ago and I did a mistake.
Actually even pilots in their forties , they are out of the game.
I am in my thirties, and when I started my CPL IR, I was about 20 y/o.
At that time, older pilots told me : it's not easy but just go to Africa with your backpack and see the companies to find a job etc. Or just do insutrction, towing gliders etc.
Their advices were already old. Just because they did that, then they give these old advices who do not work anymore.
Airlines do not care about your experience in africa, as FI or else, or on any single engine.
Some people will say "all people think it was better before".
But, nowadays, we have just seen , Air France on strike, Lufthansa on strike...which had never happened in the 70 as far as I know.
My advice : don't listen to old pilots, the worst is to listen to the retired pilots (who did not fight for us by the way). I have nothing against them, they are just out of the game from a long time.
Listen to pilots in their 30 or so, who live the reality today and are enough mature and aware of what is happening in the industry.