What is the book about? It’s about 30 pages – an easy online reading experience written by Carleen on behalf of Career Partners International (www.cpiworld.com). Be sure to read it if you want to check your career readiness to meet the challenges of a new stage of work in a changed world of work. If, for any reason, the “click” is reluctant to open, select “open hyperlink” on your menu.
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Affordability and ease of reading are the new “musts” in writing books people will actually take the time to read. For a FREE copy of Plan “B” for Boomers , Click here .
Our friend, Wizard Doug Hardy, has a new Monster e-book which distills thousands of conversations over 12 years into a lifelong career strategy. These six fundamental principles are timeless, proven habits that create success in the search and on the job. Because it's an e-book, Amazon can offer it for just $7.99 in the Kindle Store (and you can read it on any computer as well as on Kindle).
Several questions crossed the S-AGE’s desk this past month.
Q. I have two years of college but never finished my degree. I am 53 and wonder what advice you may have for me relative to completing my college education at this age.
A. Of course, I don’t know what you have accomplished in terms of your career so far; I don’t know whether your career is satisfying or, indeed, if it needs major adjustments. So…I will respond only in the terms of the increased need for higher education by people of all ages. The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that 90% of the fastest growing careers (http://www.edu411.org/) in the U.S. require some form of post-secondary education. A bachelor’s degree is now preferred by many employers. A post-secondary education leads to greater earning power. Income comparisons state that people with a bachelor’s degree typically earn $2.1 million in lifetime earnings over the $1.6 million earned by those with associate’s degrees and the $1 million earned by high school graduates.
Even more important than a degree is a degree in an area of high need. There are many, many college graduates who cannot find employment. Do your research as to which degrees and/or certifications are likely to offer you the highest return on your investment in yourself.
Q. I am recently widowed and at a loss as to how to take control of my work life. I have always been the secondary earner in our family.
A. I am sorry for your loss as well as for the adjustments you must face. Here are a few ideas to help you get started on the next phase of your work life.
Insofar as work is available to you, working longer than you anticipated may be the key to your long-term financial success. Many “secondary earners” don’t earn enough to fund their retirement. Consider an investment in a qualified career coach to help guide and optimize the next stages of your career path. Count on yourself, not on your home equity or savings, but on your investment in your career.
Q. My role is that of Director of Learning & Development for a multi-national firm. Where, in your opinion, should our limited training dollars be spent?
A. #1: Development $’s – Build workforce capabilities through careful alignment of evolving individual and organizational needs. Included in this recommendation is setting a new performance standard that links learning to performance metrics. Likewise, coaching of executives is critical to their continued development no matter how experienced they may be. #2: Retention of Key Contributors $’s – Whether through phased retirement, preparation for their later life or up-skilling, retaining critical contributors is an important strategy. Experienced talent is a terrible thing to waste.
Q. Will we go into a double-dip recession?
A. Here’s a question for you; do you think we have emerged from the first dip? In order to begin to answer your own questions about recession, look at a couple of measures relative to my wizardly knowledge about the world of work. Study unemployment and, just as importantly, study the civilian employment population ratio as well as the comparisons between pay in the various sectors of the economy.
1.
The unemployment numbers (U-3 and U-6) are there for you to view just by Googling the numbers. But, it is not just unemployment numbers that tell a story about recession.
2.Look-up the “civilian employment population ratio” for yourself. The distinction between government and civilian employment matters greatly. It is this ratio that will demonstrate to you that no other recession has seen such rapid civilian job destruction as this one has and is doing. Here’s a graph to encourage you to continue your research.
3.Look at average compensation by sector. The compensation gap between federal and private sector workers has doubled in the past decade. The benefit gap is also dramatically higher for all federal and state workers than it is for private sector workers.
Until – or if – we can unleash the private sector, the recession will continue to challenge us. Invention, innovation, favorable tax benefits for business, startups and expansions – all are critical components for us to address before we can emerge strong and economically healthy once again. What do you think? Are we out of balance in terms of pensions and pay between sectors? If you believe that the private sector provides the “engine” in the economy, what do you think must happen before recovery can be sustainable?
