Why More Baby Boomers Are Rethinking Retirement

Once upon a time, American workers looked forward to the day they turned 65 or 62 and could retire to a quiet, simpler life.

Those days have changed. Now, as the baby boomer generation starts hitting retirement age, they are rethinking the entire retirement options. There are numerous reasons for this. First, and foremost, is financial. Many baby boomers have lost significant amounts of money in the market and in their retirement savings during the economic downturn of the last year.

Another reason has to do with their concern about “What am I going to do with myself?” when they retire. This new generation hits age 60 running, and they are much healthier and think in ways that are much younger and broader than their parents did at the same age.

I have coached several clients around the age of 60–62, who are very concerned about being completely bored during retirement. These individuals have had very successful and rewarding careers up to this point—several were lawyers, another was a very successful high-tech marketing executive.

When they retire at 62 or 65, many of them are still very interested in staying intellectually active and/or pursuing some type of career, at least on a part-time basis. If you consider that people are currently living into their 80s, that leaves a good 20 years of working professional time still available as an option.

So, what can this non-retiring generation do? With entrepreneurship on the rise, this opens many opportunities for baby boomers to open a business or to freelance. This gives them the opportunity to pursue a passion and start a business, which would allow them the flexibility and autonomy to combine work with other leisure activities, normally associated with retirement. I know a former lawyer who retired and then opened a pet-sitting business because pets were his hobby.

Nonprofit work also offers great opportunities to baby boomers when they retire. They could volunteer and work on one or several nonprofit boards. This would still keep them active professionally without tying up all of their time. The same goes for successful business people who have taken early retirement. I have a colleague who was a very successful and well-paid CFO in numerous high-tech startups. After making a lot of money, she took early retirement and now sits on the boards of five companies (She gets paid for this!), and she coaches individuals on how to get, and be successful in, board leadership roles.

If you’re approaching retirement age and pondering several options in a working or volunteer role (anything ranging from working full time in your present position to following your passion), here are five questions to ask yourself first:

1.      What are my financial requirements during retirement?

2.      What is important to me at this point in my life?

3.      What are my interests and passions?

4.      What else would I like to do with my time besides work?

5.      What types of organizations am I passionate about?

Once you have honestly answered these questions, you can determine which options are best for you, and you can start planning what to do for the next chapter of your life.

The Financial Sector Has Begun Hiring Again

I read an interesting article this week in the WSJ about the upswing in financial services hiring. Here are a few pints I took away from the article:

·         Small and medium-sized financial firms are hiring again, although at a very modest rate.

·         The sector has lost over 600,000 jobs since 2006

·         Restructuring is an area that is in demand-more companies are in distress and need help restricting

·         Another hot area is credit-credit specialists are in demand as banks work out problem loans

·         Mortgage refinancing is another area that is in demand.

To read the entire article, please click on:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124511318124517281.html

Dare you ask for a raise now?

Recently, I read a great article in Fortune about asking for a raise in this difficult economy. Here are the salient points from this article.

·         A recent Mercer Consulting study of 850 companies states that over two-thirds (67%) of U.S. employers are planning pay hikes for at least some of their employees before the end of this year.

·         Companies realize that they need to retain talent (i.e., keep their best performers happy) and be ready for the economic turnaround.

·         If you are going to ask for a raise, you need to do your homework and be prepared:

o   Prepare and document your achievements (how you have added value) to the company over the last year.

o   Be empathetic and let your higher ups know that you understand how difficult things are now and that you are willing to revisit this discussion in a few months.

o   Be open to others forms of compensation (bonus, paid vacation, paid parking spot, etc.)

To read the entire article, click here:

http://money.cnn.com/2009/06/11/news/economy/ask.for.raise.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2009061211

Are you ready for telephone interviews?

Telephone interviews used to be used as a quick screening call by HR professionals before inviting a candidate in for a face-to-face interview. Well guess what? In today’s difficult job market, telephone interviews are taking on a new role and job candidates MUST be prepared.

I read a great article on this topic in the WSJ and highlight a few key points below:

·         Telephone interviews are taking place by hiring managers-these are IN-DEPTH interviews and not screening interviews.

·         The same goes for recruiters who are using this tool to ask in-depth questions that would have typically be asked in later interviews.

·         Be prepared to answer question about your full work history, giving CONCRETE examples of accomplishments, value-add to the organization and your strengths.

·         Know your Personal Brand (what’s unique and compelling about you) and don’t be afraid to let it shine during the interview, as this may be your only opportunity to do so.

·         Have a clear, concise and well articulated answer to the question “Why were you laid off?”

To read the entire article, go to:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124390348922474789.html

Without career clarity, social networking and branding, you are NOT going to land a job!

Last week, three prospective clients contact me lamenting that they have been out of work for about 3-9 months and have not been able to find a job. After conversations with each one of them, I began to see some trends; I thought I would share them with the rest of you trying desperately to land a job in this difficult economy:

·         None of these individuals had clear career goals. When I asked them, what they were looking for, I got very vague answers-“Well I could do this or that, or I will take anything”.

o   TIP:  In this economy, you need to be CRYSTAL clear on what you are looking for and the value you can offer a prospective client. And you need to know who your target audience is.

·         None of these people had any differentiation or branding on their resume. All three of their resumes started with “highly accomplished X with 15 years experience in…., seeking  XYZ”.

o   TIP:  Forget “objectives” on resumes and focus on what differentiates you from the crowd-what makes you UNIQUE, special and compelling to your target audience. Add in your brand attributes and strengths using a voice that is authentic to you.

·         Each resume I saw was just a laundry list of “tasks” that each of these individuals had done.

o   TIP:  Employers look for evidence of value-add and accomplishments. Rewrite your resume bullets to focus on your results, and quantity your results the best you can.

·         None of these folks were using social networks to leverage their job search networking efforts.

o   TIP:  Hiring managers and recruiters are using social networks more and more to source and find candidates. They are also using them for background checks as well, performing  due diligence prior to hiring. If you are not on LinkedIn, get a profile up asap. Then  consider Facebook and Twitter as these are the other two that are being used by HR and recruiters.

·         All three of these people were applying to jobs online and using job boards for their job search.

o   TIP: 88% of jobs are NOT sourced through job boards. Companies rely on personal networking, employee referrals and social networking to find candidates. Figure out a way to network with and contact hiring managers, recruiters and employees directly at firms you are interested in working at.

Networking and Personal Branding Go Hand in Hand

Last week, Dan Schawbel, a Personal Branding expert, wrote a fabulous post on Personal Branding, Social Media and recruiting approaches.

In summary, here are some points to take away (based on market research done by Jobvite):

1.       The web has broken down hierarchies, which makes it easier for employers to research candidates and for job seekers to reach employees in prospective firms.

2.       Companies are decreasing the use of more traditional hiring approaches-job boards, campus recruiting, third-party recruiting.

3.       Firms are using social media/networking to find candidates for jobs.  Ninety five percent of employers say they will use LinkedIn, followed by Facebook and Twitter.

4.       HR people are using social networks to research candidates.

What are some things you can do right away to increase your social media networking efforts:

1.       Get clear on your own Personal Brand and differentiators. You cannot express your Personal brand until you know what it is.

2.       Start networking-on and offline-this is the trend of the future, whether you like it or not.

3.       If you do not have a LinkedIn page, start working on one now. You can read, “I’m on LinkedIn Now What”, by Jason Alba to get started.

4.       Check your Google quotient and see where you land in the Google rankings.

To read Dan’s entire article, go to:

http://personalbrandingblog.com/your-network-is-your-only-insurance-policy/

One of the most recent developments for a new career is as a patient advocate in the health care field. This growing new career is considered a potentially hot area for future job seekers. Basically, this job is just what it sounds like—being an advocate for a medical patient.

The patient advocate position has many levels: one is more medically oriented; another is more administrative; and others are more service-oriented. The medical patient advocate would coordinate with other medical professionals on a variety of treatment options and patient care issues. The administrative patient advocate would help with the cost and usage of medical coverage, such as paperwork, insurance options, and reimbursements. And, the service-oriented patient advocates would help with setting up and maintaining physical therapy, home care, visiting nurses, home-delivered meals, and other service availabilities.

If any of this sounds interesting, you will need skills that range from being a health professional to being a very patient and empathetic person to be qualified for employment for one of the levels of patient advocacy. All of these types of patient advocates require excellent communications, problem-solving, time-management, and organizational skills.

If you have the interest and skills needed to be a patient advocate, you can start looking for this type of position at hospitals, nursing homes, health insurance companies, a federal, state, or local health department, or a preventative health organization.

Because the field is new, there is no set program or course of action to take to become a patient advocate. Patient advocates aren’t licensed, and there is no federal or state agency with regulations that supervise patient advocates. There is a master’s degree program in patient advocacy at Sarah Lawrence College in New York, and the University of North Carolina and the University of Wisconsin are considering adding patient advocacy courses.

But, the best idea might be to research the position yourself. Try checking out The Patient Advocacy Foundation at www.patientadvocate.org, the American Nurses Association at www.nursingword.org, the Hospital Stay Handbook: A Guide to Becoming a Patient Advocate for Your Loved Ones by Jari Holland Buck, or just examine the job descriptions for patient advocates, such as those on www.monster.com. Various job descriptions listed on this site require some of the following: a nursing degree; a bachelor’s degree with experience with community organizations and /or the health education field; an associate degree in business; a high school diploma; being bilingual in English and Spanish; and customer or patient service experience.