Hannon - AARP great jobs for everyone 50+: finding work that keeps you happy and healthy and pays the bills

Contents

More Praise for Great Jobs for Everyone 50+

Kerry Hannon presents a treasure chest of job ideas and spot-on practical advice for anyone considering a job change later in life. She combines real-life examples with in-depth knowledge. Whether you are launching a second career later in life or just interested in a bridge job to fill the gap between career employment and complete retirement, Kerry skillfully presents the dos and donts of making a job change. Not only is AARP Great Jobs for Everyone 50 + a road map for a successful transition to retirement, but it is also a stimulating read and gets those wheels turning!

Kevin E. Cahill, PhD, Research Economist, The Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College

A terrific book filled with information on jobs youve never considered and advice you will use.

Nicholas Lore, bestselling author of The Pathfinder: How to Choose or Change Your Career for a Lifetime of Satisfaction and Success

If youre feeling lost or youve given up on your job search, Kerrys new book is required reading. It will help you gain confidence in yourself while showing you different job opportunities and how to get them so that you can bounce back.

Dan Schawbel, author of Me 2.0 and founder of Millennial Branding

Kerry Hannon has inspired and educated millions of readers on what it takes to successfully change careers. Here she describes in depth everything you need to know to find and make a successful transition to your next job. This book can truly change your life!

Gerri Detweiler, credit expert and talk show host

With her new book, Kerry Hannon offers not merely how-to information, but also inspiration. The books stunning range of job opportunitiesmany intriguing and some youve likely never heard ofalong with its great personal stories and no-nonsense advice at every page-turn will tell you this may not be easy, but finding a paying and maybe even purposeful niche for yourself is definitely possible. Great Jobs for Everyone 50 + will prime your motivation and point the way to applying with success.

Paul Kleyman, director of Elders Newsbeat, NewAmericaMedia.org

Copyright 2012 by Kerry Hannon. All rights reserved. AARP is a registered trademark.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Portions of this material originally appeared in AARP.org , Forbes , Forbes.com and U.S. News & World Report , L.P. Reprinted with permission.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Hannon, Kerry.

Great jobs for everyone 50+: finding work that keeps you happy and healthy and pays the bills / Kerry Hannon.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-118-20368-2 (pbk) ISBN 978-1-118-22837-1 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-24070-0 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-26548-2 (ebk)

1. Job huntingUnited States. 2. Older peopleEmploymentUnited States. 3. Middle-aged personsEmploymentUnited States. I. AARP (Organization) II. Title.

HF5382.75.U6H363 2012

331.702084'60973dc23

2012017195

For my Dad, who showed me the joy of helping people find the work they love

Introduction

Cheryl Champagne was 60, with 25 years as a finance manager, when she took an early retirement buyout package from downsizing Hartford Life Insurance Co. in September 2009. She received 18 weeks of severance and spent eight weeks gardening, taking yoga classes, and thinking about the rest of her life. More than anything, what came out of that experience is that I realized I love to work, she says.

Not everyone wants to work simply for the pure love of it. Some of us need to keep working for the income. Others, who have saved enough to retire and choose to work, just want to stay mentally engaged.

While we all may have a common desire to keep working, what motivates us to work and what each of us calls a great job is as individual as we are. Different flavors of ice cream, as my sister likes to say.

Theres no doubt, though, that work at an older age is becoming increasingly common. Growing old in the 21st century is not what it was in the 20th, says Marcie Pitt-Catsouphes, Director of the Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College. As life expectancy continues to increase, older adults are healthier and more active than in the past.

In 2012, 70 percent of workers (up from 61 percent in 2001) said they expected to work for pay in retirement, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institutes (EBRI) Retirement Confidence Survey. Even people with retirement savings see earning a half-time income as a safety net, says Beverly Jones, who advises 50- and 60-somethings as a career coach at Clearways Consulting in Washington, D.C.