Over-50

Incidentally, We Members of the Mickey Mouse Club Didn't Care About Who Walt Disney Really Was

M-i-c-k-e-y M-o-u-s-e. 

Poof. The iconic Disney logo can be eliminated from popular culture.

Deadline reports there is growing scrutiny of Disney's founder Walt Disney.

He was an obviously flawed human being. In fact, on speeches I had created on leadership for chief executive officers I leveraged his attitudes about his workforce as negatives. For example, he couldn't understand why employees would want higher compensation. After all, went his thinking, weren't they fortunate to be part of his team. In addition, he was in no way the kind of verbally polished leader of today. The undertow of his messaging signaled prejudice.

But that was then. A different time. Entrepreneurs, be they Disney or Henry Ford, could operate by their own rules. 

Today, Bob Iger, by so many current metrics, scores high on leadership. His memoir "The Ride of a Lifetime" captures his ethos of deep caring, especially of all the humans in the loop. They range from employees to consumers. 

On Glassdoor, the overall rating for working at Disney is "4" out of a possible "5."

After retiring from the job of chief executive officer, Iger parachuted back in when the business of Disney became troubled. 

Actually, as I argue in this article, Disney seems stuck. But that's a strategic matter, not a cultural one. Iger has a big job ahead of him.

That, unfortunately, will likely include the struggle to preserve the Disney logo. The founder's flaws have tainted the essence of what Mickey Mouse meant to generations. Part of that was the extreme power of creativity. 

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Bob Dilenschneider, 76 - In the Era of The Social Brand as Everything (and when Google is your homepage)

How is your social media branding doing?

Likely if it's serving your professional needs well, it probably doesn't include a book you published recently.

In digital, "real" books are an anachronism, with some exceptions.

Sure, though, knock out some free e-ones as a download on your website. But, since Google is your new homepage, that website per se has less and less ROI.

Now and then, Google will pick up some content from your website. But the game is actually about what makes it onto search engines about you. Add onto that reality this: Google is currently a major part of your resume. Employers review your social branding. 

And, just as important, in the era of Amazon - as public relations player Bob Dilenschneider should have known - publishing a book is a risk. If it doesn't get traction in Amazon rankings, that book puts the author in what could be called The Amazon Corridor of Shame."

Here's an interesting tidbit in the annals of branding. There's a lesson here. 

On December 31, 2019, scheduled to help folks with their own decisions in 2020, Dilenschneider published the book "Decisions."

Since then, it never did catch fire.

Right now, at 6:00P.M. ET, its Amazon ranking is 700,749.

The number of customers who had reviewed: six.

No Big Brandname has given it gush. After all, both the long-time business celebrities on Dilenschneider's network - Roger Ailes and Jack Welch - have died.

The composite social brand is what counts, not being the author of a book, at least not one which isn't a best-seller or a juicy expose.

The elephant in the room is: Could "Decisions" or, by extension, any book had done okay had there been no coronavirus? A judge on the bench assessing who's in and who's out would rule that issue speculative and irrelevant. All that matters is what's getting attention for and enhancing the social brand in the now. 

Those in the trenches of executive communications in the Fortune 100 and in marketing for BigLaw, for instance, have to embrace that development. That is, if they want to generate results for their clients.

In addition, they are probably struggling to hold onto their jobs during the latest Stalin-like purge of white-collar workers. As The New York Times reports, once they are knocked out the 2020 sandbox, they wind up in suspended animation. Too many do not understand how to grab onto work in a very different phase of the American labor market. They may never land comparable jobs. 

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Workers as Endangered Species - Not Just the Aging

Yes, lives are being lost. So are jobs.

But, the preoccupation is with the longer-term impact of COVID-19 on global and U.S. employment security. 

The UN, reports BusinessInsider, predicts that in Q2, globally 195 million full-time jobs will go poof. 

As we know from other disruptive economic times, some of those jobs may not come back. Will new kinds replace them? Maybe not, in this era of Artificial Intelligence.

So, let's look at implications. 

Universal Basic Income (UBI) provides commonsense financial and social solutions. 

There can be myriad ways of understanding UBI. In this time of disappearing jobs UBI can indicate providing guaranteed income, much like Social Security, to those who opt out of doing what provides income. There are no strings with UBI. 

But the vision for UBI is that those receiving the regular payments will focus on artistic pursuits, volunteering, and organized public works such as building habitats for the low income. 

UBI can prevent social unrest.

Retraining those in hardest-hit sectors such as retail, hospitality, and law-firm staff.

No one has to be a McKinsey management consultant to recognize that in the Post-COVID-19 world order businesses will restructure to (hopefully) prevent another collapse. Since manpower is usually the highest expense the types and numbers of employees and contract workers will be reviewed. 

Those knocked out of the box were probably already an endangered species because of technology. Just look at the self-check-outs in retail, online transactions in hospitality, and remote practice of law.

Retraining can be a national initiative. That will be labeled as making a living "just-in-time." There will be no messaging that the new path will be a permanent one.

Higher education has to conduct a come-to-jesus review about what it is providing its consumers for so much money. 

The tip of the iceberg is the debate about if and how much tuition should be refunded because of the shift from in-person to online instruction. The bigger issue is: What exactly are consumers of higher education receiving?

With students forced to leave campus, the traditional "college experience" as a rite of passage could lose its hold on the nation.

Soon enough what could come down is the assumption that a college degree is necessary for success in the work world. A strengthened public school K-12 system can eliminate the need for much of what is provided in college. The rest can be delivered as-needed.

Much of that can be learned online. Since 2008, most of concepts and technology I needed and still need to master for operating my two communications I picked up online. In the past three weeks I got down cold how to ride and maintain my new motorcycle through instructional videos on YouTube.

As those macro matters are considered and debated, on the individual level we should follow the advice of journalist Ana Marie Cox. On social networks she tells each one of us to pat our selves on the back for getting through yet another day of the Year of COVID-19.

UPDATE:

BusinessInsider reports that Spain is establishing permanent basic income.

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Radical Frugality: Hang Out at the Toledo County Public Library

Founding father Ben Franklin had been the primary mover in establishing a way ordinary people had access to books.

That was the public library.

Since that time - the 1730s - the public library has become a lot more than books. Essentially, it's a Third Place, where human beings like to hang out, in addition to their homes, work, and school.

Currently, there are more internet stations, CDs, and DVDs than books. Outreach includes training in everything from how to search for a job to operate Microsoft Office. Groups book the community room for activities such as presenting the secular-humanists point of view.

Obviously, all this requires money. If the funding is less than needed, then the local library system can deteriorate. The brand becomes a joke. People use it less. The media can pile on.

That's why smart public relations is a must-do to keep the flow of funding going. Funding sources usually include:

Federal, state, and local grants

County/city allocations

Levies and referendums

Property taxes

Donations.

One of the best examples of a public library which knows how to tell its story is the Toledo, Ohio Lucas County Public Library. 

Glance at the check-out receipt. At the bottom is, in bold type, the statement:

"You just saved approximately ____ by using your Toledo Lucas County Public Library today."

For me, on 12/28/19, the amount was $140. I had checked out:

Against Empathy

Utopia Is Creepy

What I Wish I Knew When I was 20

Sober curious

Fat, Forty, and Fired

You Are Awesome

Given that I relocated to Toledo at the end of August 2019 and had checked out an average of six books weekly that means that, as the Toledo County Public Library documents, I have saved about $2,240.

Those savings can be channeled into buying more from local merchants. You bet, the public library helps drive Toledo's economy. 

Not long ago I treated myself to one of those specialized bikes from Wersell's Bike Shop, located on W. Central Avenue. The perk from shopping local versus online from a major ecommerce retailer is personal service.

When the bike was making funny noises, Wersell owner Jill had her team repair it w/o charge. An institution in Toledo since 1945, Wersell creates the infrastructure for a biking culture. That enhances the city's green ethos. In turn, that adds to its national profile. 

Another brilliant promotional tactic is the library's seasonal "Program Guide." In print (how cool), the 69-page brochure lists, by branches, all the activities for that time frame. The January - April 2020 one, on pages 17 through 19, has for the Kent branch these categories:

Young Children (0 -5)

Kids (5 -10)

Teens (13 - 18)

Youth

Adults (18+)

All Ages

For adults, free digital courses range from an introduction to Canva to Google Sheets.

A third way Lucas County Library puts itself out there is through its ability to nurture old-fashioned word-of-mouth.

When I mentioned that I would go to Barnes & Noble to try to find a map of Toledo, a neighbor told me that the LaGrange branch stocks those (free) in the lobby. You got it, again I saved money.

In a lecture on architecture, several attendees noted the contours of the West Toledo branch. Go look at it, they told me. 

And, when I needed a book for an upcoming assignment, the local client told me to forget Kindle. The Lucas County library system acts fast on getting to us books not at that particular branch, even new ones. More money saved.

When The Recession finally hits, public libraries throughout America will find their funding in play.

Before that, they can be proactive.

They can analyze how Toledo positions and packages itself as the go-to community resource. They can import aspects of that model.

Public opinion probably has become more powerful than government, leaders, and even wealth.

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Ok, Boomer - "Gillmor Gang" Still Providing Information, Insight into Tech and More

It's listed on TechCrunch. 

Or, just key in on a search engine "Gillmor Gang."

And you will find global thought leaders over-50 presenting developments in the world of tech as understandable and meaningful. There are no Millennial or iGen buzzwords which tend to alienate Ok, Boomer.

The latest broadcast focused on streaming, old and new tech, and the U.S. primaries.

The pace is slow.

The tone is bemused cynicism.

Since the commentators, including host Steve Gillmor, have already made their mark, there is no battle of the egos.

Also, forget make-the-audience-feel-good spin. In analyzing the current impeachment process and 2020 Election there was the recognition of the worse case scenarios. Yes, Donald Trump could politically sail through whatever and be around for four more years.

Takeaway: More of us should set up show with this kind of tone and analysis. One focus could be on the crisis of age bias - and not only in the U.S.

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Work Search 2020 - Don't Set Yourself Up for Told You're "Impressive"

It could be the hunt for a job, gig assignment, or clients for your business.

The response you don't want to receive has the word "impressive" in it. 

That is the kiss of death.

Yes, those doing the hiring joyfully tell you: Your background and talent are so impressive. However ...

Make it your business in your search for work in 2020 to interpret too much of that impressive messaging as a red flag that you have to review all aspects of the hunt. That extends from what kind of work you're looking for to how you present yourself in those Artificial Intelligence interview videos.

Meanwhile, employers who want to protect their brands from derision should ditch the term "impressive." That opens them to a skit on "Saturday Night Live" about the Recruiting Bots.

This is the era of authenticity. Those doing the hiring need to come up with language that resonates with the mind and heart. Not being brought aboard for an opportunity is a devastating experience. There are myriad ways to say "no." Leveraging buzzword "impressive" is such a raw put-down.

Smart global ghostwriting, with social networking know-know. Emergencies welcome. Complimentary consultation (pressure-free) janegenova374@gmail.com.

Those Over-50 & AI - Are We Being Knocked Out of Box (or, worse, not even allowed near it)?

By now, it's fairly well known that AI, that is, artificial intelligence, is inherently biased.

After all, humans create the algorithms for AI and those humans use data which contain some or maybe a lot of bias. That's just the way it is.

One example of that had been the racial bias found in healthcare algorithms. U.S. senators such as Cory Booker are looking into those. 

So, the world should be appropriately skeptical of the use of AI in recruiting. After all, so much is at stake in the hiring process, both for the individual and for the organization.

Recode published a major article on the advantages of AI in recruiting as well as the concerns of those in government, ranging from Congress and state legislatures to the EEOC, about what is called "automated decision making decisions." That article is by Rebecca Heilweil. 

Those systems have become essentially end-to-end.

At the front end, they can determine where a help-wanted ad is placed. Already that has become controversial. It had been discovered that those placed on Facebook reflected bias against women and the aging. 

Next the algorithms can be used to choose the resumes which should be reviewed first - and those simply tossed.

Often now, the next step is an AI video interview in which factors ranging from language to facial expressions are assessed. Only at the very last phase of the recruiting process might there be an in-person interview. 

Along the way there might be AI personality assessment tilted toward predicting if this kind of professional will succeed at the organization, how long with that employee stay, and is he or she capable of being promoted. 

The criteria for those decisions usually have been derived from the databases at the organization. That is, historic information is being used to make current decisions. Of course, that immediately raises a red flag since everything keeps changing. 

According to LinkedIn, 67% of those in the recruiting loop find AI helpful. For any job opening thousands of resumes might come in. AI speeds up sorting through the first cut. In itself, that saves money. 

So, yes, this is an efficiency payoff front the get-go. But, some object that the sorting mechanisms could be unfairly knocking out of the box atypical applicants. 

Most of the major concerns about AI fall into three categories:

• Bias. It was found that an AI recruiting tool developed by Amazon (but not used) favored males over females. That was primarily because it had been developed from past employment data at Amazon. That had been compiled when the majority of employees were male.  
• Lack of transparency. Frequently the applicant being interviewed has not been informed that the process is using a video system, what is being assessed, and how will it be used. No consent might have been given. 
• No guarantee of accuracy. After all, hiring is a social process. AI, as it is now constituted, might not pick up nuance. 

Already, in Congress there has been introduced the Algorithm Accountability Act. There is a call for the FTC to review what's going on in the kinds of evaluations of applicants that are being made via video platforms such as HireVue's. 

The EEOC has received two complaints about facial analysis. 

In Illinois, soon to go into effect is the Artificial Intelligence Interview Act. Before the video is clicked on, there must be explicit notification of the process, consent given, and explanation about what is being focused on, evaluated, and interpreted. 

All of this is linked to the guidance established in 1978 by the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Section Procedures.  That has been the federal government's way to help organizations not have selection factors which negatively impact minority groups.

Among those protected groups is the older worker. Clearly, one has to ask: Can't the very existence of a video interview early in the process knock the over-50 job hunter out of the box? 

Full Disclosure: Over-50, I avoid all hiring processes for contract assignments and new client accounts which involve video. 

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Network TV's Golden Age Will Die Off With Us Baby Boomers

It's the end of an era: Free network TV.

Network TV no longer matters to those doing the judging of the Golden Globes: the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

None of the major categories nominated for awards were from network TV. Instead they were for productions via streaming or cable. Here are more details from the New York Post.

Of course, network TV was never really free. The price paid was enduring the commercials. Some of those, as the SuperBowl pounded, were truly entertaining or served the public interest. Most, especially about skin diseases and belly fat, seemed in downright bad taste. 

Network TV has had a good run.

In fact, it even had a Golden Age. Programming ranging from "Ed Sullivan" (remember Elvis and the Beatles) to Hallmark Television Playhouse provided quality entertainment and the unique window on the world. However, their legacy dies with baby boomers. 

Now, even the heavy hitters such as producer Dick Wolf (creator of the "Law & Order" franchise) seem to be running low on creativity. His "Law & Order SVU" is strained. And what saves his Wednesday Chicago series is the complex personality and personal warmth on "Chicago Med" of psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Charles. 

The new greats, and they will have a long half life, come from cable such as HBO's "The Sopranos" and AMC's "Breaking Bad."

Prediction: As network TV continues to lose relevance, there will be more and more scandals at ABC, CBS, and NBC. And, not only the sexual misconduct kind. Expect lawsuits about the deliberate infliction of emotional abuse and age bias. Lawyers should be hovering over, like vultures. 

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Would Mary Richards Have Friends Today?

The lack of common ground isn't just in politics in America.

In more and more aspects of life there also is less and less common space.

That's what Matthew Walther observes in his article on loneliness in The Week. That puts the odds against finding other human beings we can become friends with. The crisis of loneliness deepens.

According to YouGov, 30% of U.S. millennials say they are lonely and 20% contend they have no friends. What it's come to, notes Walther, is that we "pretend pets are people."

So, let's look at what used to be common space and is no more. Here are 5 examples I find useful to focus on and why they have disappeared:

•  Home. Walther hammers that raising a family is no longer affordable. Those connections have gone the way of the low-IQ phone. More of us live alone. But, sure, it had been possible to make friends even when single. Remember how Mary Richards and Rhoda, both in their own apartments, developed a deep relationship. Now, after all the stress from the whatever, we singles are not reaching out. Meanwhile, we are trapped in an i-world of messaging, movies, and games. 
• College. Forget it. As Yale professor Deresiewicz captures in "Excellent Sheep," higher education, especially at the top of the food chain, has become a competitive arena for high grades. Chasing after them makes the time-consuming process of developing friendships unlikely. Also, the postings of all the other students on Instagram are a source of feeling less-than. Best to steer clear of the whole people thing. 
•  Work. Who isn't after our job? And there are simply many more rats eager to gain favor with superiors by carrying tales about us. Maybe this saga is true, maybe it isn't. In northeast Ohio a millennial claims the reason she was fired was because she confided in a co-worker her battle with clinical depression and anxiety.
•  The store. No one goes there any more, not even for groceries, which are delivered.
•  Church. Gallup documents that membership in a religious organization is down to 50%. From 1937 through the late 1970s it was at 70+%.  

However, if we are determined not to be so so lonely, we can explore where common space can be. Here is what I have discovered is promising during the 63 months I have struggled to find companionship since I uprooted from the New York Metro area:

•  Gyms. Both those stand-alone ones and the in-house fitness centers in residential complexes are wide open to socializing. If we are cautious and don't push too hard too soon to move the gymbuddyness to the next level we could wind up with a few people to talk with. 
•  Recovery meetings. The friendship, or as it is called the "fellowship," is the key driver in attending regularly.  It's like the good old days, with folks inviting us to go out for coffee or have fun at pig roasts by the lake.
•  Wellness groups, ranging from yoga to meditation. People feel they are doing the right thing and are more receptive to welcome those also pursuing healthy goals.
•  Pet parks. I have witnessed romances blossom as the canines tend to bring people together. Here a tail wags, there a tail wags. Soon we are not alone. 
•  Goodwill and consignment stores. Traditional retail is out. But hunting in-person for steep bargains has become a national hobby. In that space it's easy to get conversations going which often move on to human beings sharing their stories.

However, even with these tactics, expect a slow journey to being back in a friendship loop. Interacting is, well, counter-trend. The trend is i-immersion. 

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The Most Efficient & Effective Tool for Revenge - Make Fun of the SuperJerk

Back in early days of blogging (if anyone can even remember those) a Harvard Law 3L - Jeremy Blackman - created AnonymousLawyer.

A parody of daily life in BigLaw, it had a large readership and might have influenced the snark tone of Abovethelaw.com. It became okay to make partners in law firms look like superjerks.

In addition, the fake created a new career path for Blackman in publishing and entertainment.

The extreme power of parody is now being played out in fake Election 2020 campaign site JoeBiden. info. BigMedia already has picked up on it. And, as with most parody, it can have devastating effects on what it is making fun of.

Created by political consultant Patrick Mauldon of Vici Media Group, it targets both Biden's high profile flaws (e.g. being "hands on") to lousy policy decisions (e.g. supporting a not-smart war).

Well-done, JoeBiden.info can be the reason that Biden decides to exit the race. In last week's debate his campaign suffered what might be irreversible blows. To borrow a term from the "John Wick" films, Biden appears to have been made "excommunicado."

Meanwhile, such a boldly outrageous approach can be a model for others to take on opponents. Of course, raw imitation would reduce the impact. There would have to be a different kind of version of that template.

The dynamic underlying the ability of satire to inflect severe reputational damage is something few folks think about: Humor is cruel. 

Baby Boomers with resentments can get the hang of fake and finally even the score with those they perceive have done them wrong. This template has been proven out. 

 

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