For your encore hustle consider the who and not the what - Hustler Daily Thumbs Up - October 2

Hello fellow Encore Hustlers

When it comes to planning your encore hustle the "who" can be more important than the "what" according to this article from NextAvenue.  The article features an interview with Rob Cross, a professor at Babson College (Wellesley, MA), who has studied social networks and the workplace.

Cross concludes that for many of us the most important aspect of work is the enjoyment we receive from the people we work with, rather than the type of work we do.  Therefore when it comes to seek out an encore career we should spend some time reflecting on previous work experiences and seek to recreate the work experience that brought you the most meaning and fulfillment.

If you want to read more about Cross check out this article from the Harvard Business Review.

Cheers,
Mr. EH

Decline is not inevitable - Hustler Daily Thumbs Up - July 1

Hello fellow Encore Hustlers

Last week I featured a link to an article from The Atlantic that laminated our professional peak and decline.  I found the article to be overly pessimistic and did not take into consideration other strategies that can be employed as we age.

Chris Farrell, has provided a great rebuttal in NextAvenue that counter-argues that late career can be a time of creativity and entrepreneurship.  Chris has written a great piece and it is worth your time to read.

Cheers,
Mr. EH

Are you ready for a McJob? - Hustler Daily Thumbs Up - May 30

Hello fellow Encore Hustlers

While it can be the dream of many of us to use an encore career to follow a passion, for many others it is simply a means to earn badly needed money and hopefully provide some benefits like healthcare.

When the Social Security check doesn't extend to the end of the month, then any work, even in the  fast food industry, a McJob, as we used say, is good option.

Well, according to this article in NextAvenue, it turns out the McDonald's is partnering with AARP to target the 50 and older workforce to help fill McD's quarters of a million job openings this summer. The program is especially aimed to help the millions of older workers who unemployed or underemployed.

While for millions of us can remember working at McDonald's as being our first job as a teenager, it turns out that this is no longer true for today's generation. Currently McDonald's has 58,000 job openings and senior workers are a hot commodity. They are sought after for their work ethic and soft skills that include problem solving and ability to communicate beyond texting and SnapChat.

Ironically, Mr EH was recently a passenger on a regional flight and the flight attendant was aged 65+. It turned out the attendant  had been recently recruited by airline HR because of his people skills which he displayed while serving them at a fast food establishment. So, like many others before him, he found that working a McJob became a stepping stone to better things.

Cheers,
Mr. EH

No Encore Career? What's Your Excuse - Hustler Daily Thumbs Up - May 21

Nextavenue.org is one of the first websites that advocated the concept of the Encore Career.  The site has lots of resources and interesting articles like this one, What's Holding Us Back From Encore Careers?

So what is the roadblock for some many people? An outdate idea of what retirement should be?  A fear of leaving what you know and starting again?

If you are procrastinating on starting an Encore Hustle what is your excuse?  Mmm?

Cheers,
Mr. EH

The Hustle High Five - Hustler News of the Week - April 13

Hello EncoreHustlers.

As promised in my last post I am posting again this week to make up for missing last week.

Before I start with the High Five I would like to give you an update on a previous post on the Job Seeker app.

So far this year I have earned over $210 in Amazon cash using the app to take photos of Help Wanted signs on local businesses.  This has been a nice little micro side hustle but this week Indeed the job search engine that created the app has updated it.  For the better, the app now has a map that shows all the locations that you have snapped photos of in the last 90 days.  The map also shows which locations are eligible for resubmission, which is a handy tool for maximizing your time spent using the app.  On the downside of the update, it appears that the Verify feature of Job Spotter has been removed.  This feature allowed you to earn extra money by verifying the veracity of other users Help Wanted submissions.  If you have any experience using the updated Job Spotter app I would appreciate hearing your comments if the changes have been an improvement.

Now for the High Five.

1)   There are many reasons for making the decision to postpone retirement.  The one most often cited is economic, but read this story that makes the case of continuing to work being a factor can also contribute to continued happiness and a longer, healthier life.  Also read this article about a study from Germany that shows that a lower pension can reduce your lifespan by as much a five years.

2)   If you do make the commitment to work past 65 a common method is a phased retirement that allows you to work fewer hours.  However, as you can see in the article, not all companies will accommodate this plan.  Also you need to read this story about Medicare and working past 65, missing applications deadlines can be costly.  Many licensed professionals such as lawyers also have to consider at what point should they give up their license when they give up their practice.  Read this piece what might be worth considering when making in this decision.

3)   Has it always been your dream to pursue your artistic interests as a second career?  If so, then read these pieces of a retired Sioux City psychotherapist whose art work has been featured in over 40 shows and the former Massachusetts state attorney who has published the first of a planned series of YA (Young Adult) novels.

4)   Another encore career path can be starting a new business.  It is not uncommon for fledging entrepreneurs to launch their business in an incubator environment.  But often these incubators are not designed for encore careers.  However Israel recognized this and has launched an incubator for people 60+.  Read all about it in this piece from NextAvenue.

5)   I would like to end with a sweet story of two sisters who retired with a cool encore career of opening a frozen yogurt store in the Chicago suburb of Elgin.

Well, that wraps up this weeks High Five.

So until next week, enjoy your hustle.

Mr.  EH

The Hustle High Five - Hustler News of the Week - February 1

Much of the country is indoors taking shelter from the polar vortex.  It's a good time to read this selection of curated stories related to Encore Hustles.

1)   Chris Farrell has written extensively on retirement and encore careers.  He has a new book Purpose and a Paycheck coming out on February 5th.  Here is an exert from his first chapter.  I highly recommend picking up a copy of this book.








2)   In Australia seniors are turning to Airtasker, which is similar to the American TaskRabbit, to earn extra money by performing a variety of tasks that others want outsourced: gardening, baking, handyman work and IT help.  Check out this story from Yahoo Finance of an Australian senior who has made $20K over three years by being an Airtasker.

3)   Read and watch this story of a 71 year old Nashville retiree who funds his bucket list goal of visiting every National Park by working 4 months of the year Amazon.

4)   It is a big decision when to retire, assuming you are not forced into it by layoffs or poor health.  Read this article from Canada, where 1 in 4 retirees regret retiring and want to go back to work.

5)   One of the reasons people consider an encore career is to pursue a passion.  Here is a story from NextAvenue of an aerospace executive, who at age 60, left corporate life to become a high school tennis coach in Chicago.

The Hustle High Five - Hustler News of the Week - January 25

Hello Encore Hustlers.  It has been a busy week for Mr. EH, with a lot going on in the real world, but I still managed to find a couple of hours to cobble together the weekly High Five.

1)   Retirement is not just taking long vacations and visiting the grandkids.  Part-time work is a way of providing additional structure to your day.  Read one man's story in the Forbes article A Lyft Driver Reveals 3 Surprises About Life in Retirement.

2)   I work in an industry with an aging workforce with senior employees who have a vast amount of critical knowledge.  One option is prevent this knowledge being lost is a phased retirement.  Learn more about phased retirement in these articles from The Next Avenue Boomer Brain Drain: The Big Mistake Employers Are Making and the Real Daily Pros and Cons of Trying a Phased Retirement Program.

3)   If you are nearing or in retirement, continuing your education to learn new skills and remain engaged is an excellent idea.  This article from Study International discusses doing this from a global perspective Online Courses: Why Working Adults and 67 Year-Olds are Signing Up.

4)   There are tons of resources available from universities and policy centers on how government and companies need to be assisting the aging workforce.  Check out this page from the Brookings Institute Proposals To Keep Older People In The Labor Force which provides a link to the full report that includes the following proposals:

• establishing that age 70 is the nation’s full retirement age;
• restating 401(k) balances as flows of retirement income; and
• instituting workplace seminars for employees in their 50s about the advantages of working longer.

5)   To end this post here is an international story from Croatia about labor shortages and a government proposal to allow retirees to work part-time and still draw a pension to support the booming tourist industry.