Over-50

Boundaries - The Developmental Task You Might Not Have Mastered

Compassion is commendable. It's a value you have practiced all your 50+ years. You have been praised for it. Now, your neighbor just had been laid off. You feel bad for her and ask what you can do to help out. You also experience a wave of sadness for the 28,000 who are losing their jobs at Disney and the 8,000 at Shell. 

Over-identification with the challenge the current unemployed are facing, though, is not praiseworthy. They are jobless. You are not. If you can't embrace that difference you may not have developed your boundaries or sense of yourself.  

As a result you might looping around and around in sets of emotions which wear you out. And that in itself can block your ability to give your career your all. For example, your boss misses out on a promotion. You over-empathize. Your administrative assistant, who didn't have the opportunity to do college when youth usually does, Zooms towards his degree at night. You experience guilt that you were more fortunate. By 10 A.M. in the workday, you're already exhausted.

No career coach such as myself should play Sigmund Freud. Had I been a psychologist I would be licensed to speculate why you don't have a solid fix on where you begin and end and where the world operates outside you. That's the development task newborns have to master. You may have missed out on that one. 

Instead, I provide exit ramps out of that emotional and social entanglement. Here are 4.

• Accept the reality that life, as the saying goes, is an existential tragedy. There is much suffering, including what's perceived as unfairness. You can help relieve the pain for others. But you are not able to restructure how life operates. That is, unless you are a magical creature in one of those Disney movies before COVID-19.

 

• The answers are within each of us. Those include your neighbor who lost her job and the boss who strived so diligently to get ahead. It's up to them to figure out their Next. Not you. If you assume that's your role you can be downright intrusive. And annoying.

 

• Shift your focus to your own goals. Without all that noise going on in your head you might become much more successful. Even in the worst of economic times, human beings can achieve amazing things. During The Great Depression, my immigrant family built up a series of small businesses throughout Jersey City, New Jersey. At age 55, they were able to retire to the Jersey Shore.

 

• Stop being surprised when your own professional world unravels. Unlike what Mr. Rogers told us, no, we are not special. Bad things happen to us too in our lives. No human being is immune. American Buddhist nun Pema Chodron hammers: Lean into the pain, not attempt to flee it through self-destructive tactics such as rage or addiction.

Once you have created solid boundaries, you'll discover it easier to navigate life as it is. Stress will fall away. Inner peace will be the norm. 

 

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com).

 

The Holidays - COVID-19 Gets Most of Us Around the World Off the Hook from the Usual Social Stress

The silver lining in COVID-19 is that social distancing frees us up from the holiday stress of interacting with all those people who have been in our lives during the past 50+ years. They are called "relatives" and "close friends." Time may have frayed those relationships.

The Wall Street Journal focuses on this phenomenon in South Korea. During its version of a thanksgiving holiday loved ones - real and supposed - are restricted to Zoom encounters. No, the mother in law won't be traveling a long distance to be together with family. And, the family might discover that the holiday break in the routine can be rejuvenating versus angst-filled. 

Since COVID-19 is circling back, we in the U.S. might also be spending our own Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's relatively alone.

At this point of our lives, the children are grown. The spouse may or may not be still around. Parents may be dead or in assisted care facilities. And, we have been betrayed often enough to be cautious about who else to make part of our little lives.

So, we can plan to relax. Or, research in depth the technology needed to podcast and how to build an audience. Another option is that if we are unemployed, underemployed or had launched a business we can reimagine how we are marketing ourselves.

Solitude, even in America which celebrates gregariousness, can come to be respected. Instead of being groomed to network, toddlers in upscale nursery school can be socialized on how to be alone with themselves - and love it. 

That can be the pandemic's gift to us. 

There might no longer be a stigma associated with admitting: I want to be alone. 

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download UnleashingPossibilitywithJaneGenovaCareerCoaching

Aging - Time to Start Unbundling from Work as Your Identity (support Universal Basic Income)

Friday's jobs report might bring bad news.

That could include lackluster or no growth of employment in your industry.

And the jobs situation could worsen.

After all, COVID-19 seems to be circling back. The election could thrown the American economy into disarray. 

Meanwhile, here it is Tuesday and The Wall Street Journal features Universal Basic Income (UBI). That is strings-free funds handed out on a monthly basis.

There are myriad versions of it, both proposed as a temporary solution for the financial carnage of the pandemic and as a permanent one for jobs and whole industries vanishing because of technology. During the Democratic presidential debates then-candidate Andrew Yang endorsed it. 

Recently, one kind of UPI is being piloted in a low-income city in California. That consists of $500 a month for those who opt out of working. 

And, immediately, of course, those imbued with the Protestant Ethic - that is our identity shaped by work - push back. They contend that such a "hand-out" would create a disincentive to work. For those only reflecting on the COVID-19 emergency, there is the argument that not going to work will become a bad habit. 

But, for some futurists that disincentive might be a humane solution to technological unemployment. A snapshot of that had been how digital put so many print journalists and editors out of work. It's come to this: Artificial Intelligence can produce publishable content, w/o human intervention after the programming has been established.

The unthinkable is becoming necessary to think about. That's introducing the value system which reduces or eliminates paid work as what primarily determines identity.

When the oddball Puritans started their unique economy in the new world they embedded that ethos. We are our work. When professionals lose their well-paid work, they become invisible. Shame also hovers over. Hey, can't you keep a job! That is happening more frequently and at a younger age through forced early retirements. 

Suppose that scenario will no longer play out? You can navigate from paid work to an existence of creativity, laboring for the public good and improving your body and mind. The ancient elite in Greece embraced some of that lifestyle. History classifies that period in time as a golden age.

Another objection is the cost. It's estimated that UBI for individuals earning about $20,000 and households earning about $40,000, the hit to the U.S. would be $1.2 trillion annually. However, those supporting UBI can point out the cost of poverty. Those are the expenses associated with substandard pre-natal care to incarceration. 

Yes, it could become that norm that the brightest and the best and most highly educated could be without work. 

To prevent riots and self-destructive behavior, those will have to be socialized to perceive working for a living as way over-rated. That's analogous to the underlying message being delivered to those put out to pasture at increasingly young ages. The meme is: You had put too many eggs in the career basket. Now go out there and learn to enjoy yourself. Pick up gig assignments on the side. 

Reflection: It might be possible to have a full, fulling life w/o working for a living. The word "work" may no longer be sacred.

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download UnleashingPossibilitywithJaneGenovaCareerCoaching

Stressed, Fear of Losing It - Your Professional Future Depends on Heading Off a "Breakdown"

The takedown of Brad Parscale by the police in Florida kept getting replayed on national media. The story had legs because Parscale, before his demotion, had been Donald Trump's campaign manager. 

Many assumed that Parscale was then transported to a psychiatric facility - involuntarily. And, reports Law & Crime, that's exactly what occurred. 

FL's Baker Act makes it legal to determine that someone should be taken to and maintained at such a center for diagnosis and treatment. That will be for 72 hours.

After that they could be released or, if they choose to, stay on. However, if there is an assessment that person should remain beyond 72 hours, that's relayed to the court and the person should have access to a lawyer. 

Obviously, the Baker Act has its pros and cons. Both the person and society can be protected from home. On the other hand, a situation can be conjured up which can position and package the person as a danger. The behavior could simply be aberrant. Many with mental illness can be annoying, but not a source of hard, not to themselves and not to others. 

Unfortunately for Parscale, stigma still hovers over just about every form of mental illness. His brand will have difficulty being restored after this incident. That, of course, will impact his ability to make a good living. Currently he is still employed in the campaign loop. But, for how long?

That's exactly why those under stress or simply sliding toward  a loss of control should seek out help before they become undone. Some speculate that a "breakdown" is a signal that one's life, as it is, isn't working.

It's possible to prevent a breakdown by taking an objective look at the dynamics of that life. Often that will involve re-balancing the professional and personal.

It's unnatural, for instance, that human beings should be totally their professional identity. Parscale might have been throw into a downward spiral by a demotion. Had his values been in balance he might have sorted out his feelings and then decided to seek employment elsewhere. Setbacks, often severe, are the new norm in an unforgiving labor market. 

In the process of the life audit, risky behavior such as excessive drinking should be ditched. Parscale's wife reported that he had been drinking. 

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download UnleashingPossibilitywithJaneGenovaCareerCoaching

Marketing Differently & Have Your Target Market Pay for the Pitch

During COVID-19 times, the mandate has been: Market Differently.

In this article, published today on O'Dwyerpr.com, I describe how Substack facilitates just that. The intellectually fun part is the tactic is downright counterintuitive.

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download UnleashingPossibilitywithJaneGenovaCareerCoaching

Even If You Have a (seemingly) Secure Job, Explore Multiple Sources of Income

"A survey done by Upwork, the world’s largest remote talent platform, found that 59 million Americans engaged in freelance work in the past year, contributing $1.2 trillion to the US economy." - Virginia Backaitis, New York Post, September 27, 2020. 

Freelancing has become the way to make ends meet - as well as explore other lines of work and acquire new skills. The buzz phrase of that is "multiple sources of income." Freelancing is evolving into the new normal for those with solid careers, the between-jobbers, aging shut off from traditional labor market and full-time gig workers. 

It's considered downright naive to depend on one industry, one employer or one set of skills to earn a living. The world economy has become too unpredictable. The volatility likely won't end when the pandemic is through inflicting its ugliness on humanity. In addition, in America, despite the high unemployment, inflation is a reality. Everything from housing to groceries is on an uptick. 

How do freelancers find assignments? Here are recommendations:

• Surf the internet for general and field-specific help-wanted platforms. Have resumes and cover letters custom-made for each set of skills you are trying to market. 

 

• Figure out what individuals and organizations would be useful to email unsolicited pitches to hire you. Create transmittals that focus on the benefit to the recipient, not on you. This is sales. Successful salespeople define the situation in terms of the prospect, not themselves. 

 

• Become active on professional network LinkedIn. Your profile headliner should broadcast what you do for employers and clients. Post often. Frequently "like" and make comments on others' posts. Be very positive. 

 

• Gain exposure on other social networks such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

 

• Join organizations at which you can network in-person. Bring old-fashioned paper business cards. 

Freelance assignments can catapult you into a full-time position which provides a regular salary and benefits.

 

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download UnleashingPossibilitywithJaneGenovaCareerCoaching

Bob Dilenschneider's Catholicism Branding on Trial - Nomination of Amy Coney Barrett

"[Bob] Dilenschneider has been dogged by controversy, including the PR firm [Hill & Knowlton] signing on the National Conference of Catholic Bishops to promote their stand against abortion, an appointment that angered many employees and clients." - George Lazarus, Chicago Tribune, September 27, 2020.

Branding carries risk. Public affairs leader Bob Dilenschneider's brand identity, built on being in the loop of Roman Catholicism, is well-known.  Among his clients is Catholic association Knights of Columbus.

Frequently Dilenschneider publishes on the positive role of Pope Francis. 

With the nomination of Roman Catholic Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court, Dilenschneider's positioning and packaging as an advocate for that religion can become a liability.

In The Wall Street Journal, Dominic Green time-travels back to the kick-off of anti-Catholic ideology.

It extends back longer than those oddball Puritans who made their disruptive religion their business. Think game-changer Henry VIII who broke the chokehold that ancient religion had on Europe. 

With the Barrett nomination, that push-back on Roman Catholic beliefs will explode into extreme harshness.

It's unlikely that comics will bring back the old jokes about the preoccupation with human sexual activity. Classic had been the Catholic school's supposed prohibition of girls' wearing shiny patent leather shoes. Those were assumed to reflect the female's panties. Horror.

Instead, anticipate how much the fundamentals of the religion mirror those of the far right. At the top of the list is prolife. That influences every law from abortion to assisted suicide. 

Another issue could be the global power of that religion. Such influence has become suspect. After all, so many modern military conflicts have been triggered by religious ideology.

At one time Catholicism had been one of the most recognizable worldwide brands. Recently, though, its market share has declined. Ever since the Boston Globe broke the story about priest sexual abuse of boys the Roman Catholic Church has been struggling for a comeback. 

Depending on the outcome of the U.S. Senate confirmation process, institutions associated with Catholicism could take a major hit.

So effective could be the attack on that belief system that, for example, members of parishes could lose confidence in the priestly leadership. Say good-bye also to the parish K-8 parish school. No more those cute uniforms trotting around the neighborhood.

Catholic colleges such as Seton Hill, Greensburg, Pennsylvania could lose enrollment. For years, on this blog I recommended that it rebrand as "faith-based." In myriad circles, anything Catholic leaves a bad taste. This is an era when small liberal arts institutions of higher education are on the brink of collapsing. As Boston Magazine reports, that's the new usual in New England. 

The media could ditch quoting worldwide leader of Catholicism Pope Francis on holidays such as Christmas. Replace that with a leader in Buddhist thought. Suggestion: American Buddhist nun Pema Chodron. 

In addition, will Dilenschneider's clients wishing not to be ensnared in the religious controversy exit his agency in Manhattan? This is an opportunity for other public relations players to poach those accounts?  

This nomination could be creating the tipping point in the wobbly hold that religion still has on some minds, hearts and pocketbooks in America. During the mid 20th century that power went over the top with immigration. Catholicism seized the opportunity of socializing those newcomers to Americana. In return for that service, the hierarchy demanded rigid conformation to the beliefs. Families with 12 children were not unusual. Barrett has seven children. 

Prediction: This nomination bodes ill for the global Roman Catholic brand. 

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Younger Retirees Probably Won't Receive What Older Ones Currently Are Getting Monthly

"Among the numerous adverse effects of the current crisis [COVID-19] is the steep incline in the expected insolvency dates for Social Security and Medicare’s programs, which are expected to run out of money in 11 years compared with the previous projection of 15 years." - MarketWatch, September25, 2020.

Younger retirees could find that the amount older retirees for Social Security and for Medicare are receiving can't be counted on. The haircut on Social Security could be 25%. Older recipients who are still alive then would also have to cope with the reduction in the monthly payment.

The reasons include:

• Less tax revenues
• Growth of the aging population
• Trust fund assets growing more slowly given lower interest rates.

Social Security could become insolvent by 2031. Medicare by 2024. Either or both can be catastrophic for the aging.

The prediction: Retirement will be partial. Here, free to read, is my book on how to land, hold and move on to better work, at any age Download Outwitting ageism.

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download UnleashingPossibilitywithJaneGenovaCareerCoaching

 

COVID-19 - Could Be Best of Times for Aging Entrepreneurs

"Americans are starting new businesses at the fastest rate in more than a decade, according to government data, seizing on pent-up demand and new opportunities after the pandemic shut down and reshaped the economy." - The Wall Street Journal, September 26, 2020.According to the U.S. Census Bureau. so far this year 3.2 million new businesses have been launched, versus 2.7 million at this same time in 2019. In addition, there has been a surge of entrepreneurs in the over-50 demographic. After being forced out of their jobs, they connect the dots. It could be easier to launch a business versus competing with younger generations for jobs. 

In coaching clients, including the over-50, I find the thinking is: We don't have not much to lose. Their job security is wobbly or already gone.

The options are both within their former career field or  beyond in other fields. What I warn is not to make that too big a stretch.

A significant number of transitions, points out Forbes, fail. Self-employment is difficult enough without adding on too many layers of what-to-learn that perhaps can't be mastered.

The former teachers who plan a manufacturing operation with the supply chain in China could be parachuting into what's over their heads. 

A successful move from an elite law firm to his own psychotherapy practice panned out well for Will Meyerhofer. After all, the "family business" was in that niche. However, he did have to invest in more formal higher education in order to hang out a shingle. For him, obviously, this initiative was not too disruptive. His little piece of heaven in New York City is called A Quiet Room. 

Currently, unlike the go-go boom times before 9/11, The Great Recession and the fallout from COVID-19, entrepreneurs seem  more realistic.

For more thing, as Forbes notes, they usually have the financial resources they need to fund a new venture. Or, they welcome doing side hustles. 

Another is that they are approaching the situation as an experiment.

But they are optimistic about what they can derive from the experience. Entrepreneurship provides unique learning lessons. If Venture XY doesn't eventually generate revenue, they can apply what they found out to another enterprise or back in the traditional workforce.

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download UnleashingPossibilitywithJaneGenovaCareerCoaching

The 4 Aspects of Retirement You're Most Worried About - 4 Hedges

A favorite of media is the extreme angst among retirees and those heading to the end of their career. 

Forbes narrows that to 4 issues:

Outliving yours financial resources

Gains from investments won't produce as much as expected. The volatility in the market during COVID-19 multiplied that terror exponentially. Will there be another market crash analogous to what triggered The Great Depression?

Rising cost of medical care. Medicare and the Medicare supplements don't cover everything. For long-term care, you and your spouse are on your own.

Death of the spouse. Could that plunge you below the poverty level?

Of course, the traditional thing to do is to provide solutions. That Forbes does. However, essentially they are platitudes. For example, the recommendation is to hire a financial planner. Certainly that has merit. But a financial planner can't rescue you or the nation from wildly inflating medical costs. The same applies to the wild ride the stock market has been on. 

The reality is that you have to create your own hedges.

At the top of the list is to keep working until you can't because of bad health. Here, free to read, is my book on how to land, hold and move on to better work, no matter what year in which you were born  Download Outwitting ageism. 

Another hedge is to assume you will have a very long life. That can motivate you to radical frugality or minimalism. No matter how much income exists, there is no reason why you should be spending much of it. In his family memoir "Making Toast," Roger Rosenblatt hammers how little you need when older. Enough becomes more than enough.

A third hedge is to expand interests. That in itself can insulate losses such as of a spouse, close friends and pets. Also, it can distract from the preoccupation with money. Here is my book, also a free read, on how to exit your comfort zones.

There's a big world out there and participating doesn't necessarily have to cost you a penny. Examples range from activist organizations to courses provided free by local organizations such as the public library. 

The fourth is to make it your personal mission to grab onto joy. The world of financial planners seemed filled with joy-snatchers. Joy will open you to your own unique strategies and tactics for managing money. Doom and gloom will lock you inside yourself. 

Small changes can have big impacts. Results-driven career coaching.  Affordable rates (sliding scale).  Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download UnleashingPossibilitywithJaneGenovaCareerCoaching