A World of Opportunity to Reinvent Oneself

In July 2006, I wrote an article on what it was like to start a new career at 50 plus. Today, I got a comment in the form of a request from a reader at that particular blog post. The request is compelling, so it becomes the subject for today's post.

From JC:

I need help figuring out what I am going to do with my life. My wife has taken a job in a different state. I am selling my business and going to join her. I am so excited about starting something new or doing something different. My problem is figuring out what to do. I have a very diverse background. I think I might like to start an internet business but I am not sure what to do. I have been the President of a High Tech electronics company. The business I am selling is a Screenprinting and Embroidery business. I have worked for Japanese and German owned businesses as well. I have traveled internationally for both companies.

I tell you this because I want to explain that even though I have a diverse background I would be willing to do anything. I have even considered lawn care or pressure washing decks and I have always considered opening a pub or restaurant. So please guide me, is there an aptitude test for not so new folks like me?

All of us out here know who George Plimpton is or was. If not he's the guy who tried many many pro sports. I kind of feel like the George Plimpton of the real world. Seriously though I am looking for guidance .

Thank you,

JC

Dear JC,

I'm so impressed with the way you describe your dilemma. One thing that I love about what you are going through is that you have an opportunity to reinvent yourself. The experience you have sitting in your arsenal, will support the new direction...often in ways you can't imagine right now. You say you aren't sure about the direction you want to move into and that is fine. Sometimes you need quiet time for there to be space for an opportunity to present itself.

The important part of change is to allow the change to evolve. So as you move to your new home in your new state, unless you are really cash-strapped, then take the time to open your eyes and mind to your new situation. You indicate a desire to use your hands or to open a restaurant. What that means is that you want a real change from the situation you are now in and to move into something completely different. Since you aren't sure what you want to do, then you have an even bigger world of opportunity. Plan on taking one to two months to figure out a direction. There are a few steps that might be helpful.

1) You will find the direction by opening your mind to ALL opportunities. That means talking to people, everywhere, and being sincerely interested in what they are doing. It can be the person who owns the lunch truck, the handyman who comes to fix your sink, the manager at your local new favorite restaurant, the dry cleaner on the corner. After speaking with many, many people, something will hit a note with you. That is what you will explore next.

2) OK. For example, you find a spark in talking to someone like your gardener. You see that he loves managing a small team and building reliable relationships in the area. Find out more. What works for him. What doesn't. What is his business model (if he has one.)

3) Interview small business owners looking to sell their businesses and find out as much detail as you can about their business models. Eventually one will strike a chord with you. The best model is one that can be duplicated so that you increase your revenue potential by expanding your model. So, for example, a restaurant requires a lot of capital to get through the first two years. How much capital do you want to invest in a new venture? How will you live while you do that? Will your wife's income sustain the two of you? If not, you might prefer to look at options with very low capital investment.

4) Try it out. Maybe you've decided that since you are handy you are going to start a handyman service. You now need to get your first client. You'll get that client by marketing (using all the skills you used to build your other businesses, but at a very grass roots, field level). You'll get your first client, your second and your third. And you'll know very quickly if this is what you want. If not, you'll move to something else.

You don't need an aptitude test. All it will tell you is what you already know about yourself. But what you do need is to look at all opportunity and test it on yourself to see if you find a fit. All work is noble. Whether you are the president of a high tech company, or a small pub owner, or a lawn care specialist, if the fit is right, you'll know.

What a mess. 6.1% unemployment rate.

If you are a Boomer or 50 plusser then I can guarantee that you have not been burying your head in the sand about our economic situation. Let's take a clear look at the financial landscape -- both in the US and Canada and internationally.

We are about to experience possibly a decade of severe recession, which will reshape the entire way the US economy, job marketplace, and family structure functions. This morning, the unemployment rate is at 6.1% and will likely climb to 7% in the next few months. How does that impact a mature worker? Badly. Very badly. Not only have the financial markets have been hit, but small business, traditionally the kindest and most open to hire a Boomer or 50 plusser, is in deep trouble with a staggering credit freeze threatening to shut many more business doors. That means that the already struggling 50 plusser is really going to have to think out of the box in order to secure employment. In the short term, assume your credit will be cut. It is time for personal austerity measures, if you haven't done so yet. That means, no extraneous travel. Dinners at home, cooking from scratch, cutting your cable TV, no buying of shoes, clothes and all those things you can live without. If you have received any type of foreclosure or late notice on your home mortgage, you must contact your lender immediately to apply for loan modification due to hardship.

The austerity measures will in turn affect the small businesses even more adversely than they already are and the economy will shrink. So where is the good news in all of this? Hard to find, but there is a bit there.

If people can take a bus instead of driving, they will. Walk or biking instead of fuel-run travel? They will. Parents and children will live together longer, fostering the all important values of multi-generational information sharing. No more Cable means more reading, more library visits, more outdoor exercise. Cooking, sewing and knitting will come back into vogue (again) and heck, there might even be a resurgence of darning.

If you are 50 plus and looking for work, it will be a long hard haul right now. So that means you'll have to connect with and network with as many people and their leads as you can. If you are relying solely on the internet, think back to when you were first breaking into the job market. How did you find work then? By finding friends of friends of friends, literally knocking on doors, and meeting people face to face.

Is this US election very important? Yes. Canada is having elections prior to the US elections in order to avoid a strong US election impact on the Canadian voter psyche. When we are talking about the need for change in the US, this is not change as most of us know it. I am not an economist or financial advisor by a long shot, but anyone can see that any major strategic and financial reform (which is necessary) will take 8 or 10 years to have a positive, long term result on the overall economy. For those of you who remember living through the austerity measures of the 2nd world war, you'll remember food rations, material rations (shorter skirts), lack of silk, fuel, metals...you name it. I was brought up to avoid credit and only to purchase something if I had money in the bank. I was shocked at the mounds of credit that is offered to Americans (including my 8 year old daughter.) The days of living beyond one's means has to end -- and is ending whether we like it or not. Just try to buy something that takes you over your limit. You'll find yourself quickly declined. Tough for the consumer living on their credit cards and virtually impossible for the small business who counts on credit for cash flow. We're almost as frozen as a mammoth in a glacier.

This time the war has spread to within the US and within the economies of most major markets, and that means serious economic reforms in order to keep this particular, and very young, empire from falling.

Company Stability in an Uncertain Job Market

I received an interesting question from All Experts (I answer questions about job challenges on their site) that is a good one to share. Often times the questions are very specific, but this one has come up a few times from different readers.

Subject: changing jobs

Question:

Hi Janet,

I am 52 yrs young and I am thinking about changing jobs to get closer to home. I am concerned about the "last hired, first fired" idea. What kinds of questions should I ask a potential employer to make sure they won't be letting people go after I start working or that the business isn't headed toward going out of business?

Thank you,
BJN

Answer:

Hi BJN,

You are right to be concerned, especially at 52 where ageism starts creeping into the job market. You can't really come right out and ask a potential employer what their hiring/firing practices are as that would raise a flag for them, however, there is nothing wrong with digging a bit into the stability of the company, it's 1 year and 5 year plan, and the general health of the business.

That way, you are asking about the business objectives and strategies and not specifically about your concerns for your own job stability.

Note: Make sure to do your own research on any company you apply to. You can use resources like www.Google.com , www.Yahoo.com , www.linkedin.com, www.indeed.com, www.zoominfo.com and sometimes www.wikipedia.com as a start.

How the heck can you break into the market? ANY market?

One of the most frustrating aspects of being a mid-age jobseeker is trying to break into a new market...or actually...ANY market once you find yourself with a lack of experience, too much experience, the wrong experience, or...exactly the right experience, but the wrong age, wrong salary, wrong appearance, wrong connections, wrong smile...

The challenge is not only in the US, but in most of the aging countries -- those are all the countries that experienced a surge in population after the 2nd World War. We tend to think of the US as the only country to have to deal with the challenges of aging baby boomers, but most of the British Commonwealth countries, China, India, Japan amongst others. Because I provide support on many different websites, including Eons and AllExpertsi tend to get questions from jobseekers, not only in the US, but in other countries. The issues they bring to me are so similar to the ones boomers face that it is worth noting.

One reader, an immigrant to Canada, was having a lot of trouble finding employment as a new arrival to the country. The challenges he was facing echoed exactly the same challenges our demographic faces. He didn't have the connections to get a foot in the door. His past experience from his native country didn't hold any weight for Canadian employers. He couldn't get a recruiter to get him past the first stage of any job opening. He was running out of money.

Ayay! Sound familiar? I thought so. And the solutions to him finding employment were the same as the ones aging boomers need to employ to get a foot in the employment door in the US, in China, and in Australia! We've explored so many strategies over the past few years, but there are a few that bear repeating:

1) Connections -- who do you know? Doesn't matter how well you know someone, but all contacts know a potential employer. It means, smiling. Talking. Communicating. Asking. Telling. There is nothing to be ashamed about regarding needing work. So talk and ask and leave no stone unturned in trying to find someone who knows someone who knows someone at the company you want to target.

2) Groups -- Communities support community members. Find every community organization you "fit" into and make contacts there. There are physical groups (like religious organizations, community centers, neighborhood watch) and online groups (Facebook, LinkedIn, Eons) and it is in your interest to grow your networks by taking advantage of any group dynamic.

3) Repurpose. That's the big word for the first decade of the new millenium. You repurpose, retool, reshape, redefine your skill sets and experience into the newly desirable skills sets. If you have a tired, old resume, take some time and look at today's job descriptions. Last decade's business "drivers" are now measurable "metrics", so find out the catch phrases and make sure you include them in your descriptions. If you can't measure it, a company will be less interested than in your quantifiable results.

4) Know your competition. Who is your main competition? Is is the Gen Xer? Gen Yer? Or another boomer with a stronger skill set than yours. Do you know what each demographic's strengths and weaknesses are? If not, better brush up. In the information age, you'd better know how to text, IM and find just about anything on the internet. You also need to know who is interviewing you. If your point of entry is a Gen Yer, your age will absolutely be a barrier to entry. Focus on smaller companies who will value your experience bottled into one person.

Don't give up. Keep your eyes open to all opportunities because you never know what will tickle you or when. Opportunities don't always GRAB your attention...they might just set your spidey senses a'tingling and if you aren't listening, you might miss it.

Online Interview...the New Book Tour Concept

Looking for something to do on Wednesday...around 11 PST or 2 EST? Then you might want to take part in the new form of online book touring -- the online interview. Yours truly will be interviewing Gail Rentsch, author of Smart Women Don't Retire—They Break Free: From Working Full-Time to Living Full-Time, live and online through my very popular and active group on Eons, Careers for Boomers and 50 Plus. To observe, simply head over to the group at: http://www.eons.com/groups/group/careers-for-boomers-and-50-plus

If you want to want to take part in the interactive component and ask a few of your own questions, make sure to head over to Eons in advance and sign up as a member (you can only post messages and replies, or to join groups if you are an Eons member.)

Gail's book take a candid, fact-filled look at the challenging transitions women face in their 50's and 60's and how that translates into real life. This promises to be a fun and lively exchange, so don't miss it.

So, how will it work online?

When you head over to the group on Wednesday., you'll see a message with the title "Janet (Gen Plus) interviews Gail (Smart Women) HERE!" You'll see my questions and Gail's responses within THAT message stream. At the same time, you can post your own question to Gail by starting a new message and she'll respond in real time, or if you are shy, just send me a "private message" and I'll ask your question for you through my message stream. We've only got a tight 30 minutes with Gail on her busy book tour schedule, but don't worry -- if you have questions that don't get answered in time, Gail will come back and answer them later that day.

What if I can't join you?

If you can't join us live, but have questions about your own transition that you'd like to have answered, feel free to send me your questions in advance (through private message on Eons or at wspiegel@genplususa.com ) and I'll do my best to get them included in our discussion.Should be fun! Looking forward to having you join us. Great book, great author, great group. Nuff said. Hope to see you on Wednesday at 11 PST, 2pm EST.

Mid-Life Loves Dogs...Watch for Pooch Buddies

I am about to reveal some interesting insights into my personal life which will likely give you some perspective into the topics I've been delving into over the past few months...and particularly into my love of career-chunking or multi-channeling.

A few months ago, I left the corporate world after a very long run (about 15 years) and since I was able to, decided to take the time...really take the time...and think. (Some might say I've been influenced by Eckhart Tolle, but that wouldn't be correct.)

Since the age of 20, I have never had more than a few weeks of time to gather myself, my thoughts really, together, and take a deep look at my life. So the past two months have been astoundingly fantastic. I've discovered that I love being home to take my daughter to school in the morning and to pick her up at the end of the day. I love business and I've also discovered just how much I love hanging out with my dog. And so I started a dog-walking/boarding service to see just how much I do, in fact, love hanging out with dogs...as a business. And I do. Love it.

So, if you live in the San Fernando Valley, in Los Angeles, California, and you see a woman walking by with a dog or two on leash and a T-shirt or baseball cap that says "Pooch Buddies", it will be me or someone who works for me! If you see my car with the window decal that says "Pooch Buddies" that is definitely me, so honk and wave hello.

If you live in the Valley (from Thousand Oaks to Studio City) or Westside, or know someone who does and need help with your dog care, please visit my other website: www.poochbuddies.com (some dog products are already being sold there) and I'd love to help you out. But here is the best thing of all. Who will I be hiring as I grow? You got it...Gen Plussers. So, if you are a boomer or 50 plusser and want to potentially be a dog walker/sitter for me (that means getting paid to exercise and enjoy being with a dog), just let me know. And if you want to start up Pooch Buddies in your neck of the woods, let me know and we'll sort that out, too. I won't be talking about Pooch Buddies on this website as it isn't in the scope of topics I cover here, but I will let you know how my career-chunking goes and also when I need more of you to apply for a job as a Pooch Buddy!

Woof.

How is business going to be hit? How are jobs going to be affected in 2008?

The economy (as evidenced by the news over the past several months) is doing more than slowing down. It is roaring to a screeching halt...and right where it will hurt the middle class. If you think of who really supports the economy, it is the small business. Although the mega-conglommerates take in so much of the money up for grabs, small business is the army of ants that build, work, and continue, to support the country.

This year is going to hit small business really hard because of trickle down effect. With so many super-companies shutting so many doors (see my article on retail closures) let's look, for a second at a detail on impact. Let's take Ann Taylor. They are closing 117 stores. That is 117 store managers and assistant managers that fit into the definition of the middle class. In one store, the one manager will now be unemployed for, let's say 4 - 6 months which is a reasonable average in today's market. She (most Ann Taylor store managers will likely be female) has to support herself and there is a 50% chance that she is divorced and may also be a single mother. If she had a health plan, she'll now have to pay COBRA in order to keep her plan, but let's assume, she can't come up with the $500-$900/month it may cost to keep the plan. She'll let it lapse and will join the ranks of the uninsured. Her focus will be on paying the rent, for her car (or not), food, and the care of her children.

Will she go to her dentist for her routine cleaning? Likely not. Will she switch from her hair stylist to a less expensive walk-in chain? Or grow her hair long? Likely. Make her own meals rather than dine out? Yup. Avoid paying for expensive movies in the theaters? Yup. Cut off her cable? Possibly. Switch off the cell or landline and only have one phone? Probably.

And that is just the start. Now let's move on to the dentist. The dentist relies on teeth cleaning for business retention so that when a cavity or cracked tooth crops up, you go to the dentist who has been cleaning your teeth for years. Out of the 117 Ann Taylor stores, with only 2 managers at each, that is about 234 teeth cleanings that will likely not happen. If a woman gets her hair cut every six weeks, then over 6 months, that would be just under 1200 haircuts lost. The dentists will lose over $20,000 just from those 117 stores. And the stylists...about $280,000. (If you are an economist, you'll likely argue my figures...but this is just for illustration purposes.)

So what am I going to keep my eyes on in the next six months? The dental industry, and the beauty industry. How will dental hygenists do in terms of finding work upon graduation in 6 months? What about cosmetologists (hair stylists)? Will more dental offices open or close? How many new hair salons will open? How many will close their doors?

If I were looking for a job right now, where would I look? In recession proof areas -- services and products that people cannot live without. And I wouldn't be looking at the market today, but trying to project what that trickle-down affect will impact 6 months or a year from today.

More to Pennsylvania than a primary!

Primary, schmimary (I'm a Clinton fan, so I really should say "yay", but it spoils the opening).

Back to the topic. Where are the jobs? Well, here is some good news. Some of you have been looking for work opportunities in Pennsylvania. Say welcome to a new Gen Plus employer: Development Dimensions International. If you live in or near Bridgeville, PA, then head over to Gen Plus and get your resume in to DDI. This job won't last long. If you apply for the job, make sure that you flag your resume as coming from Gen Plus so you don't get lost in the shuffle.

Diversifying Your Porfolio...Career Portfolio That Is...

In money matters, financial advisors tell us the rule of thumb is to diversify our investments. Never put all your eggs in one basket. Never 100% in stocks and certainly never 100% all in one stock. You need some cash, some bonds, CDs or term deposits, mutual funds, stock mix (domestic and international), big and small business. That way if one sector crashes, at least you are safe in your other areas of investment. Your portfolio may wobble, but it will not fall.

If you are risk adverse, then you hedge your portfolio to the bond/cash side of conservative investment. If you are risk confident, more money to play with, you look for dynamic trends and high paying, riskier stocks. And there is a whole world of range in between.

So why would we, as boomers and 50 plussers treat our career portfolios so differently? I've been exploring the concepts of multi-channel in career, or "career-chunking" and from what I sense, this will become the new direction for our demographic. If you think about your range of career, whether you stayed in one job for 25 years (not as likely anymore) or one industry for 35 years (often the case) or moved around every 4-7 years following a new pursuit (very often the case especially for the later boomers --1957-1964 range) then you have a lifetime of experience and diversity in your skill set that can and should translate into different chunks or opportunities in the job market.

If you are risk adverse, then you'll want one job with one employer and the security that implies to you. That's what you'll look for, that's where you'll feel comfortable and you'll send out 400 - 1000+ resumes in your job search until you find a position that does or doesn't fit into your goals, but will be a job. The fallacy is that there is job security. Take a look at the competition -- the Gen Y'ers that employers are falling over themselves to hang on to. Does Gen Y stick around for more than a couple of years? No. They look for opportunities that fit their life goals and work/life balance and not the other way around. Employers like them because they are very technology savvy -- in fact, way ahead of most of their employers, so they bring a desired skill set to the table. But...they don't have stick-to-it-iveness, don't deliver or believe in customer service, want what they want now (including heft salary jumps), and if the job doesn't fit in with their lifestyle, they'll leave and find one that will.

A one-year job is a long time for a Gen Yer (tech stock) and is a drop in the bucket for a Boomer (blue chip). Wow. Worlds apart, no? So, if there really no longer is job security, and even worse, if it continues to be so hard to find work at 50 plus, how do you pay the bills? That is where chunking or multi-channeling comes in.

Small business will continue to grow as 50 plussers create business in order to make money. We will no longer be saved by (for the most part)traditional jobs with traditional employers for many of us. Pensions are a thing of the past, employee contribution into the medical plans is growing, succession planning is taking a back seat in favor of basic retention initiatives.

So, in order to even understand what you have to offer, in order to take the greatest advantage of career opportunities while minimizing your risk, you need to look at your full portfolio and see where you have spread your work investment. Once you've identified that, then you can focus on your own ROI (Return on Investment).

Let me give you an example. I started off at university with a BA -- liberal arts and a love of film and theatre. My career portfolio then went on to embrace sales, theatre and film careers, non-profit (public relations and development), field director of operations, national director for a large corporation, and building a small business while learning social media and social networking. That is very diverse. My strongest assets are my general management expertise combined with my knowledge of social media (Web 2.0). And within the range of general management alone, I can split out P&L, budgeting, marketing (service or product), management, training, content creation, knowledge management....and on and on...you get the picture.

The smart move, if traditional, conservative job search hasn't been working (and yes, jobs are being cut, and yes, there really is a recession edging in on us...) is to look at each skill set as a portfolio chunk and find focused jobs, contracts, or positions that embrace an individual skill or chunk. This means I retool or reposition my skills to maximize my return on that set. Spreading or diversifying my career portfolio and capitalizing on each area as a subset of that portfolio.

Let's say I had a less eclectic, more traditional career path...if I had been in the mortgage industry for 25 years, or an office manager for 20, it would then be important to identify and isolate the particular skills I developed in those positions to prepare them for retooling and diversification.

To my perception, this is an important theme and one that I'll continue to revisit.

Here is some food for thought. China has 400,000,000 citizens over the age of 50. More than the population of the entire North American continent. They have moved from a rural, agrarian culture, to an industrialized one in a very short time. Kids have left the farms for the cities, leaving aging parents to care for the land. An entire culture is going to be retooled because the government cannot create the types of programs needed to service so many -- all converting demographics at the same time. Kind of like our social security debacle, only multiplied many times over and over again. Compared to the scope of that challenge, boomer chunking/diversification should be a piece'o'cake.

Where to Start at 50 Plus?

I get quite a few emails -- both from this blog and from my group on Eons -- from readers who are trying to find a direction and don't know where to start.

"I'm 59 years old, have just been down-sized out of my position. I've been in mortgage placement my whole life and with the market the way it is...I don't know where to start..."

or

"Help please! At 51, I don't know what to do. I've just gotten through a tough divorce and have to work. All I can find are sales positions in retail stores for $9/hour. I can't make ends meet. I can't get a foot in the door for higher paying positions because I don't have a consistent resume. Where do I start?"

or

"At 62 I still need to work. Even though I held a pretty high-powered executive position, there is no way anyone will hire me at 62. I can't even figure out how to translate my skills into something marketable. Any suggestions?"

These are just a few. But you can get the idea. Everyone feels that they have come to a dead end and are trying to figure out where to start from. And that is the real challenge. Finding a way to change the "dead end" to a "crossroads". Not "starting" again, but continuing, by capitalizing on strengths. A lot of us talk about the challenges about competing against the younger Gen Y'ers. But honestly, we're not competing with them. They are at entry points in their careers. They don't have the experience...the translatable experience behind them.

So, let me look at myself, for example. Background as a general management leader for many years. Experience in film and theatre on the production end. Non-profit experience. And...obviously, web experience. If I have to start again...where WOULD I start? Who would hire me? I've got too much on my plate to even be considered for most positions unless I were looking specifically at high "C", GM or VP positions. But if I was looking to retool myself into a more manageable career, I'd have to take a different approach. I'd have to chunk.

What would those chunks be?

Well, I know how to market via the internet -- both virally and using a field marketing approach to the web. I know how to build and promote websites and products. But I'm a party of one. Am I directly marketable to big business in this chunk? Probably not. But do I create websites and market them for small businesses? Yes. If they are just starting to set up content on a SharePoint system, could I manage that program for them? Yes. Because they need all my expertise, wrapped up in one, less expensive entity. Me.

What could another chunk be? Consulting on setting up and managing a business? Definitely. Motivating and mobilizing a team? Absolutely. But would I be interested in flying all over the world at this stage to consult with companies in China or Japan? Not right now. With an 8 year old to care for. But, can I share these skills with smaller businesses who are overwhelmed with setting up their books or managing a small work force? Yes. That would be great for me.

And on and on. Taking little bits of my vast experience and chunking them out. Does this mean I have to strike out on my own and create a business? No. Certainly not...but it means looking at each skill as a complete skill set and repositioning or retooling my personal brand to get the best representation in my job search. Could I create my own business in this way? Yes, if I had the determination and backup (financial) to build up the business over time. Or, I can rebrand myself for the type of job that fits one or several of my chunks.

So, think about your many skill sets. Break them out. Simplify them. And then, I'd love to hear what YOUR chunks are.

Blogging Boomers Carnival #57...and much, much more...

Ann Harrison, over at Contemporary Retirement is this week's Blogging Boomer host. Head on over for some treats this week, including issues that affect more mature jobseekers.

I also wanted to pass along an excellent article by Scot Herrick, over at Cube Rules, who first chronicled his life at a Cubicle Warrior and is now sharing his job search efforts as an older jobseeker. He and his wife were both laid off at the same time and it has been both a shock and an exciting re-awakening for him. This article looks at the "interview gauntlet" -- the hoops one has to jump through to get through in today's interview process, and the particular challenges facing the older jobseeker. A good read.

Over 50 and Want a Job with NASA? Yes...THAT NASA!

#1 -- Login to your Gen Plus account http://genplususa.com/login.aspx
#2 -- Search for jobs and look for keyword "NASA"
#3 -- Apply to the coolest job opportunity for all -- INCLUDING Boomers, 50 Plussers and retirees...

Huh? That's right. Our good friends at Kelly Services have passed along a spectacular opportunity and I'm spreading the word. Here is the job posting:

NASA (yes, that NASA, the National Association of Space and Aeronautics) is looking for a few good people for an amazing job opportunity! Are you up to the challenge? Kelly Services®, in partnership with NASA Space Camp®, is now recruiting camp counselors! This is a long-term opportunity to work on the NASA campus and be a part of Space Camp, Space Academy®, and the Aviation Challenge®.

What you’ll do as a camp counselor:

• You’ll be supervising, motivating, and teaching young people (ages 9 – 18) as well as adults in a highly educational, exciting, and fun-filled camp environment!
• You’ll lead a team of trainees through their weeklong camp experience.
• When assigned to the simulations area, you will train the students in Space Shuttle mission simulators or jet fighter operations. What you’ll get out of it (aside from a really cool job):
• Enhance your teamwork, leadership, and interpersonal skills.
• Receive valuable experience in the areas of education, space science, and military science toward a future teaching, engineering, science, or military/aviation career. • Free room and board (dorm style) for out-of-town counselors.
• $8 – $9/hour bi-weekly pay with direct deposit.
• Supplemental insurance is available with prescription discount card.
• Intensive paid training and NASA Space History lessons.
• Paid time off.
• Free meals.

What you’ll need to apply:

• Be available beginning in January/February through August (preferred).
• Completion of 30 college credit hours (as a minimum) in any major! Or if you have related life experience (e.g., being in the military), that will work too!
• A real desire to work with trainees ranging from ages 9 – 50 and over.
• You must be at least 20 years of age. Retirees are also welcome!
• Some experience working with children or young adults.
• Two letters of recommendation.
• Your most recent school transcript. [ed. note: your most recent may be from 1962...but that is OK!]
• An interest in space and aviation, and the ability to learn fast and retain information.
• Successful completion of four-week counselor training program (provided by NASA), and completion of required testing.
• Must be able to walk long distances.
• Must be able to handle the demands and rigors of long days and responsibility"

This is a GREAT opportunity. If you currently have NO job, or are looking for a meaningful change, are looking to have an incredible career experience, give back to others, save a bit of money AND have one of the coolest job histories ever, don't delay and apply today. Your life experience has a great deal of value. Go for it. And let me know if you become a NASA counsellor. I'll want to shout it out to the world!

How to make the most out of Kelly Services Job Postings

Kelly Services has been listing a few jobs on the Gen Plus career board in order to bring some of their postings to the 50 plus jobseeker. This is a pilot program that will only work if you are actively applying for the positions.

As a 50 plusser, there are two big, big challenges in the marketplace right now.

1) Employers are not jumping up and down seeking 50 plussers to fill vacant positions -- even if they are vacant for a period of time

2) 50 Plussers are afraid to be pegged as older than 50 for fears of not getting a foot in the door.

Where Kelly Services is a champion is that they have, literally, hundreds and thousands of positions to fill every day and they are looking for you -- the 50 plus worker. Some of the positions are temporary placements, some are temp to permanent, and some are permanent placement. From my personal experience (yes, I was a Kelly Girl back in the 80's), there is a great opportunity to gain permanent placement by starting in a temporary position and catching the eye of your employer because of your great attitude and work ethic. Just to give you an idea, Kelly puts a new employee to work every 30 seconds and every three minutes, a Kelly employee is hired permanently by a customer. That is a solid track record.

So, if you are seeking work, please send your resume in through one of the Kelly Services listings posted on the Gen Plus site (www.genplususa.com/work.aspx). If your application goes into the wrong geographic location, the recruiter will forward it to the correct recruitment office. The role of a placement agency is to fill open positions, so in order to be seen, that means you must apply -- for every open position you may qualify for. These recruiters are looking for you -- every application you send in through Gen Plus is coded specifically so that you will not just drop into the pool of all other candidates.

I'm not seeing enough of you take advantage of this great opportunity, so if you are serious about finding employment, please make sure to submit your resume to the posted positions so that you can be flagged for a Kelly recruiter. (You will not get flagged as Gen Plus through Kelly's direct website...you need to go through the Gen Plus job postings.)

I'd love to see this pilot program grow into something bigger so that you have access to job openings across the country, but you'll need to do your part, too, and apply to posted positions.

Two terrific articles on what's in store for 2007...

One of my favorite columnists, Ann Fischer (Fortune Senior Writer) wrote a great post on What to expect at work in 2008. If you are working and got between a 3-4% raise, you can expect about the same in 2008. And if you are not working, or looking for a new job, there is some great info about what you need to know to stay on top of the job search game and the power of the internet in your online profiling.

Another insightful blog post on Time Goes By takes a look at the health and wealth of the Baby Boomer moving into their 60's. If you are wondering who moved YOUR cheese, check this out and see where (if!) you fit into the retirement picture.

I have to go get a chocolate bar, now. And exercise. Darned resolutions.

Amy Zuckerman and Wendy Spiegel join forces: New national survey on Eons

I'm very pleased to announce that after some serious trendwatching, Amy Zuckerman (of A-Z International) and I have put together a relevant survey on what our demographic is thinking regarding their future careers and the virtual business trend. We teamed up with Eons to get the word out and the survey is picking up interest. It features this weekend and over the next couple of weeks on Eons. Please stop by and make your voice heard. Here is the intro to the survey:

Millions of Americans work out of home or small rental offices utilizing technology to drive their work or business. How many are doing so is unknown as the U.S. Census Bureau has not changed its questions to track the virtual business trend. To do so requires a Congressional mandate, and to date no one in Congress has made public their aim to champion this issue.This may change soon as the New York Times Magazine and NPR recently put a focus on the home-based working population, with Times writer Matt Bai in early November challenging the 2008 presidential candidates to focus on the needs of the growing number of home-based business owners. What he missed was the larger trend – the rise of the virtual work place -- of which home-based entrepreneurs are just a percentage.
Working virtually means operating a business in a small-office setting with technology as a key support mechanism.Given that many people working virtually are Boomers, EONS has teamed up with Amy Zuckerman, the EONS Virtual Business manager and Wendy Spiegel, the EONS Careers for Boomers and 50+ manager, to develop a survey to gather data on the virtual work place and shed some light on Boomer career ambitions. Please take a few minutes to fill out this survey so we can collect missing data, and inform the public. Without data from you on your work styles and retirement plans neither government or service providers -- from homebuilders to broadband providers, health insurers to technology vendors -- can meet your needs.

7 year itch + social philanthropy = jobs for 50 plussers!

I've got the 7 year itch...that's right...I'm 48 1/2...turning 49 within a few short months. That is an exponential "7". 7 squared. 7 x 7. Am I going to buy a new car? Yup. Try to get into better shape? Yup. Make some exponential changes in my life this year? Yup.

I don't know what it is about 7. This past summer, on July 7, 2007 (7/7/7) more people chose to get married than on any other day in recorded history (on a Saturday, the seventh day of the week and many tried for 7:00 pm.) Lucky 7, tripled -- or even quadrupled!

So, this year, in July, I turn 7 x 7. One year away from the big 5-0 (which I am already celebrating in my advocacy of all things 50 plus).

The big question is where is the itch going to take me? Am I going to uproot myself and family and head to a new city for new adventures? Travel to China, finally? I'm not sure, but I feel the wave.

My most compelling itch lies in my desire and need to give back -- in my case, continuing my social efforts on behalf of Gen Plussers (Boomers and 50 plussers) and their need to find meaningful employment opportunities.

And it turns out I'm not so unusual. A colleague passed along an article that was in last week's Business Week, by Toddi Gunther, an interview with Marc Freedman's efforts through think tank Civic Ventures.

My take-away from the article was that, in Freedman's view, Boomers and 50 plussers are determined to continue to find meaning through their social philanthropy -- i.e. giving back to the community -- whether through the type of work they choose to do, the organizations they are involved in, the continued education they take onboard. Freedman has coined the term "encore" careers, which really means the jobs you take on in your continued stages of career choice/development/necessity (!)

How do you define an encore career?
It's when someone can earn income, find new meaning, and use accumulated experience in ways that have a positive impact on society. At the same time, encore careers fill a set of talent shortages that threaten to compromise our education and health-care systems. They represent the best use of the accumulated experience of the baby-boomer population.
Why do you use the term only in the context of
give-back jobs?
We know from surveys that a significant percentage of boomers is already thinking about working in an area of the social sector. Our challenge is to take all of those people and get them jobs.

This resonates with me is because of the efforts (and strides) Gen Plus has been making in connecting the 50-plus friendly employer with the 50 -plus jobseeker. One case in point is our new and very exciting collaboration with Kelly Services (head to our work site for more details or sign up as a jobseeker to look up the job postings!) Not only is Kelly Educational Services focusing in on substitute teaching positions as a viable option for transition or permanent career choices, but according to their Senior Recruiting Specialist:

We see many mature workers come to us because they want to feel that they are giving back and teaching fulfills that.

You may not realize it but you might already meet most of the qualifications to be a substitute teacher, and from folks I know who take on teaching as a career choice, they find it highly rewarding, both emotionally and financially.

If you live in any of these regions, there are jobs posted that may appeal to you:

Los Angeles
Philadelphia
Washington DC
New York
Denver
Chicago
Orlando
Dallas
Houston
Los Angeles
San Francisco
New York

We are highly commited to the success of this pilot program and need you to make your voice heard. So go online, register as a jobseeker (all of this is free, by the way) and if you are interested in one of the Kelly Services jobs, make sure to apply. The recruiters are waiting to hear from you.

Finding a Job at 50 Plus...I Can't Sleep at Night

Just about every day, I receive emails from frustrated jobseekers, who at 50 plus, find themselves unemployable.

The question really is, are they truly unemployable? Or is it just really challenging to match them up with a searching employer?

Do I think the jobs are out there? Yes. I do. I wouldn't be pouring my heart and soul into the cause of 50 plus employment if I didn't believe, that at the end of the day, there would be a positive outcome for 50 plussers in need of work.

The trick...and the one that has me awake at 2:31 am (Pacific Time, for you early birds on the East coast...or on other continents), is finding the ways to match up the jobseeker with that searching employer. Every career site tells you to "think out of the box" in job search. But what does that really mean? I'm going to share my strategy for how I help every jobseeker who writes me, to identify their strengths for the job market.

1. About half of all jobseekers look for their next job via the internet. That's great...and I encourage you to get your resume in good shape, relevent and clean (bullet-pointed and with easy to understand vocabulary), and a strong cover letter. That must be one prong of your career search strategy. The reason you are encouraged to limit your career history on a resume to 10 to 15 years is that employers are really only interested in your past 5 years or so of history...because it is relevent to the current skill set you bring to the table. So you have to identify, for them, what you are really good at.


2. The other half of all jobseekers find their next job through networking, knocking on doors, and by using good old-fashioned fancy footwork. This means making everyone they know aware they are in job search mode, literally hand-delivering resumes to smaller businesses who are not likely to advertise on internet job boards, and looking for positions outside the scope of your job history. (If you are in or near LA, make sure to join us for our free Gen Plus Town Hall on January 22nd. Just email me and let me know you'd like to join us!)


3. Identifying your strengths and your desires. This is the most important part of any job search. Finding out what you are really good at and what you want to do. Have you been in sales the past 10 years and can't get a job because you are perceived as too old? But you LOVE gardening? Why not try to get a job in a nursery? Find what you love and apply your skill set to your passion. Employers will sense your enthusiasm rather than desperation.


4. Developing a strategy. If you have no idea how to set goals and timelines, get a copy of my e-book: "Keep Dreaming: Creating a Strategic Plan for the Rest of Your Life." Small investment, strong result. You can use it for a simple strategy definition, or use all of it and create an overall business plan for your life. Up to you, but a strong piece and created specifically for the 50 Plus jobseeker. Even if you delay getting the workbook, you need to identify your goals, a timeframe for getting there, and measure your own results (just like your former employer measured your contribution to THEIR strategic goals.)


5. Don't give up. Your current job status is not a measure of who you are as a person. It is exactly what it is. A measure of your employment. You either have a job...or you don't. If you don't, then you will get one. Don't give up.


6. Sign up with every temp service you can find and call in every day for a job. If you have not signed up with Kelly Services, do so. They are very committed to the mature worker. (More on that in the next few days.)


7. Claim your space. Don't have a profile on Gen Plus? Linked In? Eons? If you don't have a web presence, get one. It's very simple to head over to any social or business network and put up a bit about you on the internet. The first thing a potential employer will do is google or yahoo you. So you need to be on the web in a positive way...i.e. a presence controlled by you.


8. Just like learning to ride a bike? When you were a kid, did you give up on learning to ride a bike? Fell off a few times and said to yourself, "Nah. I'm not going to ride that bike." Not likely. It is more likely that you got on the bike twenty or thirty times until you got the hang of the balance. It may take you hundreds of job applications until you get your next job. But all you need is one person to say yes to your hire....right?

NOW, maybe I can get to sleep! Have a great weekend.

What do Halloween, Love Search and Job Search All Have in Common?

Boo! They are all scary. So it seems most appropriate to make some parallels between a search for "Mr. or Mrs. Right" and the search for "The Ultimate Job" on this scariest day of the year...Halloween!

On one of my other blogs, Love for Boomers and 50 Plus, I posted on online dating and the sheer terror that many of us feel putting ourselves on the market for love.

"One of my ventures, Gen Plus Singles, is an online dating service, niched to 50 plus. Interestingly, women (who, incidentally, men are TRYING to find) will happily put up their profiles and browse amongst the men, but are incredibly tentative about actually signing up so they can email a fella. Men, on the other hand, are bold. They know what they want, they see it, they sign up, they email. If the woman doesn't write back, they move on to the next woman. So I always wonder, what is it about women (and, yes, I'm one) that makes us so fearful of putting OUR best foot forward? "

Well this got me thinking about the parallels between online dating and job search. About 1/2 of all jobseekers search for work online. (I wonder if 1/2 of loveseekers also search online.) And just as with online dating, it can often be a numbers game. The more resumes you send out, the more jobs you apply for, the better the odds of getting a call. Just as great jobs attract hundreds of resumes, great online profiles also attract many interested potential daters.

So, from my own experience, here is my approach to becoming less fearful in both online dating and online job search.

1) Have a great resume. Just as your online dating profile needs a good photo, a great smile and some compelling description of who you are, your resume needs to function as a good photo, great smile and a compelling description of your career accomplishments.

2) No one wants a fuddy-duddy. Take a look at online dating profiles. Haircut from the '80's? Pass. Glasses from the '70's? Pass. If your resume is simply an updated version of your jobs since 1982, then you are on the wrong track. The new format includes:

• punchy, active, dynamic descriptors
• results of accomplishments (not just responsibilities)
• impactful action words
• bullet points

3) You need quantity to get quality. If you only email once potential love match, your odds of getting a reply are very, very low. If you email 25 interesting candidates, someone will likely write you back and you may end up on a date!

Ditto for job search. If you are on a targeted job search (i.e. you need a new job...now), then you must apply for as many jobs as fit your talents. Look above the box, under the box, beside the box...but look out of the box. Just as you can't really tell the quality of the person from a picture, you can't tell a company from its job description. If you think there might be a fit?....well....there might be.

Again, from my previous post:

"Anytime I've online dated, the only true successes I've had is when I've paid for a membership, searched for the men I liked, and then emailed and emailed until I heard back from the ones I was interested in. Just as men prefer to choose, I prefer to choose. So, if you've been sitting on the fence (and this is for the men, too!), getting bored on your Saturday nights, take a gamble. Put your money where your mouth is, and start emailing. You won't know if you don't try. "

The scariest part of job search or love search is getting started. So get cracking. Fix up your profiles, show the world the best of yourself and say "Boo!" to the ghosts of Halloween!

Finding Your Bliss in Job Search or Career Change

One of the most frustrating challenges jobseekers over 50 face is finding a way to redefine who they are for the current job market. Without that redefinition, simply put...they can't find a job. This past week, Amy Z (A-Z International) invited me to take part in a phone conference on career change issues. One woman's dilemma particularly stood out and we had an interesting exchange that I'd like to share.

Emma (not her real name), from Georgia, was currently working as a sales associate and was very unhappy in her job. She didn't have a college degree to back up her resume and was considering going back to school in order to have additional qualifications to find a job. I didn't think she sounded too excited about that prospect (and going back to school certainly doesn't guarantee a job at the end of the day), so we chatted for awhile. I started digging in to what she loved and it turned out that she was a craft whiz -- she loved making cards, friends asked her for her creations -- and most importantly, when she started talking about this love, her passion, her voice became animated, you could hear her smiling and her vibrancy was palpable over the phone. Other experts on the call also remarked on this.

Our conversation focused, for a time, on how she could start a business, but I could sense that was overwhelming as a concept and not on track with her desires, so I suggested that if she had skill in sales, that she could look for a job in a craft store and start to build up a reputation and connections in an industry that she loved.

With a smile in her voice, she said that she had, in fact, just applied for a sales job in a craft store. But now, she felt proud of that decision and that if she could get a job in a craft store, it would act as a stepping or positioning stone for the next stage of her career.

Granted, we don't all have the luxury of spending an hour on the phone with several experts giving free advice, but there is incredible value in giving voice to your innermost desires. You need to write them down, talk about them, shout them to the world, and you might be very pleasantly surprised to see what ideas can really spark!

Community-Building Conference Call in a New Way!

Amy Z, of A-Z International, and fellow expert blogger on Eons, is hosting a unique phone conference tomorrow, Tuesday, Oct 23, and you are invited!

We all have a lot of concerns, issues AND suggestions for career and business. So, a few weeks ago, Amy hosted her first phone conference to members of her Eons group, and it was extremely well-received. In fact, the information that was shared was so valuable to the other callers, that she and I have joined forces for this one. Amy's expertise is in marketing and building virtual business, and mine is on career and job issues surrounding the Boomer and 50 Plus demographic and we are happy to share our information with you freely, because it is so darn fun!

The call starts at 5:30 pm PST (8:30 pm EST). To control the call, Amy asks that you email her directly for call-in number and password. You can email her at az@a-zinternational.com or me at wspiegel@genplususa.com and one of us will send you the coordinates!

So, if you want to hear what your online buddies sound like and share information in real-time, if not in person, then join us. Amy will be moderating and it should be fun, informative and interesting. The only charge to you is the cost of your long distance call in.

And if you can't spend the whole hour, no problem. Check in and then check out. Amy will be keeping the conference line open from 8:30 - 9:30 p.m. EDT.