grow older better

Tag: working

  • Our Golden Years? Not Really

    golden_years

    Reaching 65, retiring, relaxing and having fun used to be the goal of most Americans…the "golden years" of aging.

    With the economic bust, many who thought they would be retired are still working….out of sheer necessity…they need the income and they sorely need the health insurance.

    According to the National Council on Aging:

    Over 20 million Americans aged 60+ are economically insecure—living at or below 250% of the federal poverty level (FPL) ($27,225 per year for a single person). These older adults struggle each day with rising housing and health care bills, inadequate nutrition, lack of access to transportation, diminished savings, and job loss. For older adults who are above the poverty level, one major adverse life event can change today’s realities into tomorrow’s troubles.

    Women, who earn less than men [77 cents to the man's dollar] fare less well as they age too. 56% are disadvantaged financially – while only 30% of men are.

    But life need not be economically bleak as we age.

    It may be difficult to find a "job" but it is far less difficult to have your own business.

    A business that can bring in sufficient income to take the tarnish off the golden years and make them shine!!

     

    If you want to learn more about being self-employed let me know…I've written some on this and will write more….

     

    Thoughts? Comments? Thanks!




  • But I Don’t Know What To Do Or How To Do It!

    When I talk to groups of people about being self-employed, it seems the older people in the audience may be a bit more afraid than younger folks about being self-employed.

     

    It isn’t just older folks who can’t find jobs but we older ones have had many more years of being in someone else’s employ and may not have any real idea of what we can do or how we can do it.

     

    Or we think we don’t know what to do or how to do it.

    Or we may just be plain old scared!

     

    We need to step out of our comfort zones and change our emotional attachment to jobs! 

     

    Think about it – you are out of a job because your job had NO emotional attachment to you!

     

    I won’t go into a rant about businesses, outsourcing and greed here [I have another blog for that]  but we have learned that if you are an employee, you can be let go at the drop of the proverbial hat. 

     

    We used to think that if we found a good job and worked hard, we would be taken care of for life. We’d have that job til we were 65, then we’d have a pension, continued health care coverage and also Social Security benefits.

     

    This is no longer the case. Jobs have been lost, pensions gobbled up in the Wall Street mess and Social Security stuck in the mud.

     

    If you weigh the scary scenarios – you might begin to think that trying your hand at being self-employed is not as scary as depending on a job or the government.

     

    Yes. It can be scary! But it can also be freeing.

     

    Imagine:

    • making money from what you already know how to do.
    • making money from a hobby you have loved for years
    • getting up each day and seeing your income making activity as  fun
    • letting your creativity having free rein

     

    Then imagine how your emotional self will feel when you earn that first real bit of money!  Your self-esteem will sky rocket!!

    You don't know what to do?  Here's a suggestion:

    Start right now and make a list of all the things you are good at.

     

    Just let your brain run free and if you get stuck, ask your friends and family what they see you as good and great at doing.

     

    And stay tuned for what to do with your list.

  • Older and Unemployed? Try Working For YOU!

    From everything I hear, there might be a small increase in Social Security for 2012 – BUT – any increase is likely to be offset by an increase in the cost of Medicare. So it seems we will be into year 3 of no actual increase in the monthly income.

    The economy is improving slightly but I'll bet older people are not the ones that will be getting hired or getting the "good" jobs.

    Older people with experience are seen as requiring higher pay levels.  It's better for the bottom line to hire young people for lower pay.

    Then there is the office mentality [shh – it's a well kept secret] of not hiring people smarter or more capable than you because they might "get" your job. 

    People who are not seen as threats are safer hires.

    In short: The job market isn't going to look too good for older workers for a long while – if ever. And if you rely on Social Security – it's not going to increase.

    I therefore put this question out there for you:

    If you want to increase your income [and most do] why not be your own boss?

    Stop job hunting!

    For most, job hunting is a debilitating experience. You apply for many jobs and do not even get a courtesy reply of "sorry." You don't even get an acknowledgement that your resume has been received. In fact, you never hear anything from the places you apply to.

    And if you do manage to get a live interview, you may still never hear from them again. Interviews are done for many reasons, and, in my opinion, not all of them ethical reasons.

    What can you do to earn money?

    • Become your own boss!
    • Become an entrepreneur!
    • Do what you always wanted to do!
    • Turn your long time dreams into reality!

    There is much to say about being self employed or an entrepreneur that I'll post on the topic over the next few weeks.

    Stay tuned in

     

    Comments?  Questions?

  • Best Network Marketing Businesses For Seniors? 3 criteria for you to contemplate

     
    The myth of seniors sitting at home in their rocking chairs is rapidly dissipating, as more and more seniors are becoming entrepreneurs.

    Today’s 60 or 65-year-old is not ready to “retire.” And it looks like the 65, 70, [or even 75 and older] are not retiring either – instead many are becoming entrepreneurs. No sitting at home for these active minds!

    We know that staying active and challenging one’s mind with new tasks are ways to stay healthy as we age. What better way than to join a network marketing business where you are the CEO – a sure way to keep the brain cells active!

    How do you decide which MLM or network marketing company to join and work with? [MLM and network marketing are used interchangeably to describe the same business model.]

    There are 3 important criteria:

    • You must love and use the products.
    • You must like and enjoy being with the people in your network: locally, nationally and worldwide.
    • There must be a good compensation plan.
    1- Loving and using the products.

    When looking at a company you may want to try the products as a consumer before joining as an associate and make sure you love them. Or – you can skip this step if know and trust the person telling you about them – and you know that person uses the products.

    This knowing and trusting leads into the 2nd criteria:

    2- Liking and enjoying the others in your network. 

    Network marketing is a social activity. You have to talk with people and so it keeps one engaged socially as one ages. But it is best for your personal aging if you really enjoy spending time with those in your chosen company.

    Attend a few local meetings about the company and the products to see how much you enjoy chatting with and learning from those in the room. If you do join, you too will bring people to meetings like this and many will become your good friends – so this is an important criteria.

    3 – Make sure the compensation plan is a good one. 

    If you are going to put in your valuable time and energy – make sure you are well paid for your efforts. 

    There are so many variations on compensation plans; you will have to compare one with another and decide what works for you. Often independent sources rate MLM plans and you can look up that information online.

    Extra caveats:

    Don’t fall for the “make money fast” or “get in at the beginning.” Network marketing takes work and a good company will be around for a long time so it will not matter when you join.

    There are more criteria one can look at and I invite you to sign up for emails to learn more about network marketing and how it might be a good fit for you and your aging.
     
    Comments? Thanks

  • End of 2006 coming soon

    Wow – this year went by at warp speed for me…..and when we turn the new year, it becomes another year I have been in Portland as I moved into my “new” place in early January 2004. These 3 years went as fast as did 2006…. Is it as we age that years seem to go by faster? I don’t know – but one thing I do know is that I am going to start doing some serious research on the psychology of aging and finally do the “book” that I have thought about for a long time. At present my thought is to make it a combo of research along with interviews of “real” people …. We are not the same older generation as our parents or the boomers…we are different…

    As I’ve said before, many of us still work because we like what we do. We are not sitting back and waiting for old age to creep up – we are out there “keeping on keeping on.” We are growing older better and we are setting an example for those “kids” behind us : o )

    glyconutrients, healthy aging, growing older, aging, nutrition, exercise, eating properly,