Gen Plus » Careers for Women

Cities where the odds of finding a job are a bit….better? Maybe?

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 00:29:12 +0000

CNN Money’s Fortune has a great columnist, Anne Fisher. In answering questions, she finds ways to pass along some great tidbits of helpful advice. Today’s column was a winner. A reader asked about the pros and cons of moving to find work in a different city. Her response was good and even-handed, but what caught MY eye were the stats she posted on how many other job seekers you are up against, on average, based upon the city you are in. Juju, a job-search engine (job aggregrator), did a study based on its own database of jobs and applicants and here is what they found (the number of applicants per opening):

The ten most promising cities for job hunters:

1. Washington, D.C. – 2.0
2. Baltimore – 2.7
3. San Jose – 3.1
4. Salt Lake City – 3.2
5. New York City – 3.4
6. Hartford, Conn. – 3.6
7. Denver – 4.4
8. Boston – 4.5
In a three-way tie for ninth place:
9. San Antonio – 5.0
9. Austin – 5.0
9. Indianapolis – 5.0
10. Pittsburgh – 5.1

The cities with the most applicants per job opening:

40. Orlando – 9.0
41. Memphis – 9.4
42. Birmingham, Ala. – 9.5
Tied for 43rd place:
43. Providence, R.I. – 9.6
43. Portland, Ore. – 9.6
44. Sacramento – 11.2
45. Los Angeles – 11.9
46. Riverside, Calif. – 13.4
47. Las Vegas – 14.4
48. Miami – 15.8
49. St. Louis – 19.9
50. Detroit – 21.6

So, basically, if you live in Washington, DC, or Baltimore….good! Los Angeles or Detroit (no surprise, with the disasters in the auto industry)? … bad! I’m not saying to move, but this sure gives you the picture of what the economy is telling us, right? More info in the article, but certainly an interesting look at where the 10% unemployment is giving jobseekers a real run for jobs.

Great question from a reader…where the heck do I look for a job?

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 20:12:30 +0000

Every few weeks I get a very good question from a reader that gives me pause. This came in today:

Last year you very generously took the time to reply to a response I had …[which]… contained the following advice, “The industries that seem to be more open to 50 plussers are: education (private and public), finance (banks, mortgage companies…but they are in a bit of trouble themselves), retail, customer service, engineering, healthcare (and any business that is somehow connected with healthcare), security (like homeland security), transportation and freight. Most important is to focus on small businesses (less than $100 million revenue annually) who will be more likely to want to invest in their workers and hope to retain them.”
Have the dramatic events in the past year changed that advice excluding finance and mortgage companies of course ?”

Not only is this a great question, but speaks to shifts that are taking place around the world — in the US, China, Canada, Europe. Almost all economies have been adversely affected by the economic meltdown that started in the US. Yes. The dramatic events of the past year have severely impacted all industry. What we are seeing is massive layoffs in industry across the board with obvious areas (finance, auto, construction) being hard hit. This past holiday season, in the US, retailers held off hiring for any Christmas rush until final moments, not knowing whether or not this would be their last holiday season.

I’ve spoken with my network of friends, relatives, associates, business colleagues and the word is the same. Everyone is cutting back, regardless of industry. Consultant contracts are not being renewed unless there is a specific project on the line. Manufacturing is deadly slow, with designers, sellers and buyers hoping to hold jobs in the New Year. Inflation is on the horizon and people are worried about the price of eggs, milk, sugar, flour and rice…our staples.

So where can one look for work? Those of you that follow me regularly, know that I’ve put the Gen Plus job bank on hiatus, because in this market, no employer is going to be specifically searching for the 50 plus worker. In fact, competition will be even fiercer, requiring every job seeker to be as creative as possible in job search. Doom and gloom aside, there are still jobs out there. The question is how to find them. If you think like an employer, will you be investing dollars in advertising for open positions on job boards right now? Not likely (except for Craig’s List and corporate account holders with Monster or Careerbuilder). But even if you find an advertised job on a job board, you’ll have a ton of competition to get your resume noticed.

Tough times call for tough measures, which means going back to basics. People that are finding employment right now are doing so through their network, their connections, relatives, friends, old business associates, community organizations. And that is what you have to do. The industry itself is not as important right now as who you know in which company. I still vote for small business, because a small business owner is more nimble and if they need someone to fill a position, they will happily meet with someone who knows someone who knows someone.

That means making use of all networking tools — old and new. Attend Chamber of Commerce meetings, connect with groups through your churches and synagogues, join trade associations. Go to free events and meet new people. Online, make sure you are using LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter to stay connected and in touch with friends and business associates.

According to the November 2008 Labor Statistics report there was not any particular field or industry that had a positive report. December’s report comes out next Friday, so it will be painfully interesting to see how December finished out the year. I’m always one to find a silver lining — my hope is that years of networking will pay off for the 50 plus demographic, that those of you with a good business idea or service to offer will be able to create your own work, that Obama’s call for 3 million jobs will create place for 50 plussers who desperately need the employment.

A bit of hope on the horizon?

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 04:30:35 +0000

It’s been such a bleak week and it is impossible to put a good spin on anything economic right now. I’m personally disgusted at the collapse of the world economy…kind of fall of the Roman Empire on steroids, really. I was always brought up to believe that money was worthless in itself…that it was how you used that money and what you did with it to enhance or secure the wellbeing of your family is what it was about. Not about getting the newest, best car and the biggest plasma, the most sought-after shoes or purses, or pursuing that unique thingee that would ensure you stood out from the rest. It was about having a good, happy life, with good values, caring for one’s neighbor and community and working together to better the world.

Over the past 4 or 5 years I’ve received SO many emails from unemployed Boomers and beyond who just can’t find work and don’t know what to do. With the current crisis, that despair has, of course, escalated. As I was thinking about what I wanted to write about today, I got a question from a jobseeker, who after over 8 months of search without so much as a nod, ended up getting TWO job offers within a few weeks of each other. It’s not the norm in this market…in fact many jobseekers will be looking for 2 years or more in order to find employment, however, it gave me a glimmer of hope. This particular jobseeker got connected.

When I think back to how I got my first real job (sales girl for a retail clothing boutique), it was after days and days of walking from store to store to store in every mall I could find, filling out endless applications and finally showing up in one boutique on the very day that someone had just quit. I was hired the next day. Good timing.

Do you remember how you got that first job? I’ll bet you either pounded the pavement or someone you knew passed your name along to someone they knew. THAT is going to be the hope for the coming years. Going back to the human connection. Rebuilding the working community. Helping each other find work.

Anyway, that reader’s email gave me MY lift for the day.

Online Interview…the New Book Tour Concept

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 05:59:00 +0000

Looking for something to do on Wednesday…around 11 PST or 2 EST? Then you might want to take part in the new form of online book touring — the online interview. Yours truly will be interviewing Gail Rentsch, author of Smart Women Don’t Retire—They Break Free: From Working Full-Time to Living Full-Time, live and online through my very popular and active group on Eons, Careers for Boomers and 50 Plus. To observe, simply head over to the group at: http://www.eons.com/groups/group/careers-for-boomers-and-50-plus

If you want to want to take part in the interactive component and ask a few of your own questions, make sure to head over to Eons in advance and sign up as a member (you can only post messages and replies, or to join groups if you are an Eons member.)

Gail’s book take a candid, fact-filled look at the challenging transitions women face in their 50′s and 60′s and how that translates into real life. This promises to be a fun and lively exchange, so don’t miss it.

So, how will it work online?

When you head over to the group on Wednesday., you’ll see a message with the title “Janet (Gen Plus) interviews Gail (Smart Women) HERE!” You’ll see my questions and Gail’s responses within THAT message stream. At the same time, you can post your own question to Gail by starting a new message and she’ll respond in real time, or if you are shy, just send me a “private message” and I’ll ask your question for you through my message stream. We’ve only got a tight 30 minutes with Gail on her busy book tour schedule, but don’t worry — if you have questions that don’t get answered in time, Gail will come back and answer them later that day.

What if I can’t join you?

If you can’t join us live, but have questions about your own transition that you’d like to have answered, feel free to send me your questions in advance (through private message on Eons or at wspiegel@genplususa.com ) and I’ll do my best to get them included in our discussion.Should be fun! Looking forward to having you join us. Great book, great author, great group. Nuff said. Hope to see you on Wednesday at 11 PST, 2pm EST.

So Much to Share…So Little Time!

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 02:03:00 +0000

I’ve got some book reviews coming your way, but in case you want to get a head start on your mid-summer line up, here’s one for the boys…

Bob Morris’ ASSISTED LOVING True Tales of Double Dating With My Dad (HarperCollins June 2008)

What would you do if your eighty-year-old father dragged you into his hell-bent hunt for new love? Bob Morris, a seriously single son, tells you all about it in this warm, witty, and wacky chronicle of a year of dating dangerously.

This father-son memoir has received some wonderful reviews:

“But it’s the journey, not the destination, so the saying goes, and in pursuit of romance, this father and son get a second chance at finding each other; theirs is the resounding love affair at the center of the book… And by way of good manners, let me thank you, Bob Morris, for your heartfelt contribution to the canon of father-son memoir; an expression of civility, a grace note unto itself.”- Dinah Lenney, for the LA Times

“Never losing sight of the complex relationship between aging parents and adult children… the inspirational memoir captures all the needed laughs and emotions that go with love and life in the waning years of parent-child bonding..”- Publishers Weekly

You can check out Bob’s website at www.assistedloving.com for videos of him and his dad!

AND one for the gals…

How do women retire nowadays? Well according to this book, they don’t!

What will you do when you retire? Wave that “red flag” question in front of a woman who fought for any scrap of work success she now claims, and then watch anticipation angst kick in as she thinks about the “what next” stage of her life – the one that comes after her kids are grown, her career has plateau-ed, her spouse is getting antsy, and her friends are primarily work-related.

The Transition Network (TTN), a nation-wide community of women who are re-imagining retirement, have written Smart Women Don’t Retire—They Break Free: From Working Full-Time to Living Full-Time to help women deal with the “what next” question.

Smart Women Don’t Retire—They Break Free is a blueprint for women redefining retirement. It’s a practical guide showing how to choose what to do next, whether it’s pursuing a new career, volunteering, or becoming an entrepreneur. This book shows you how to create your own whole new set of life choices.

Praise for Smart Women Don’t Retire – They Break Free

“This book compiles concrete evidence that the angst of friends and colleagues is, in fact, part of a flood of concern across the nation. The good news is, we are not alone. The better news is, there are some answers here, or at least signposts that point the way to new possibilities.” —Lynn Sherr, Correspondent, ABC TV

“In the next decade a huge number of women will be making a work-related transition from a lifetime career to whatever comes next . . . This book provides a valuable orientation to this process; it is rich in practical advice and inspiration.” —Jennie Chin Hansen, President, AARP
“Every woman 50+ should read this book . . . regardless of where they are on their retirement journey!” —Jeri Sedlar, coauthor of Don’t Retire, REWIRE! senior advisor to the Conference Board on the Mature Workforce

More Information: http://www.thetransitionnetwork.org/
http://www.smartwomendontretire.com/

A great re-brand

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 10:17:00 +0000

Nothing like an excellent re-brand to get my attention. As you may know from my earlier posts, we suffered a family tragedy. It is really hard to function in the normal day-to-day sense as your mind tries to comprehend and process the information, emotions and necessities of moving forward.

In the spirit of moving forward, one of the unavoidable facts of life for a 40/50/60-something woman is that your hair grays. It doesn’t matter that I didn’t want to pay any focus to my graying roots, but they seemed to take on a life of their own and screamed for a quick home dye-job. So, in an effort at a return to normalcy, I tackled my hair. For those of you with graying tresses, you’ll understand what I mean by tackled.

Gray is stubborn. Gray is coarse. Gray would prefer to remain gray. And I would prefer that it beats a hasty retreat. If you have ever home-dyed, then you, like me, will also have tried just about every brand there is on the market. Feria, Preference, Nutrisse, Nice’n'Easy…and on and on. And, if your gray is like mine, within days of torturing your hair, the gray brazenly peeks through, daring you to last three weeks until your next dye job.

I was very curious when Clairol came out with Gray Solutions and promises of 100% gray coverage (and skeptical, of course), but I decided to try it. The product was very good. My coverage was solid. The gray didn’t peek through. But the packaging and the experience of the product? Not as good. The packaging looked old. What can I say? I realize I’m covering the gray, but I’m an almost 50-something. I’m not yet my mom’s age of 72. But the packaging made me feel old. The pre-treatment worked, but made me look like some sort of a drowned rat after application. Good end result, but not a feel-good experience. It worked, so this became my reluctant brand of choice.

So imagine my surprise when I opened the package to start the process just the other day. I’d noticed the exterior branding had changed a bit — skewed to a bit younger demographic — but the entire interior packaging had been reinvented. Instead of boring foil packets, the packaging had changed to a gorgeous new age blue (think paint job on all the new car models now). The pre-treatment gloppy paste had been reformulated to a lighter gel that could be used all over the head rather than just the ends (easier usage) and the conditioner had been lightened up. Oh joy, oh bliss…I WAS the TARGET MARKET. They had rebranded for ME! So now, a great product, intended to cover the gray, had been rejuvenated (literally).

Why all the waxing on hair dye? Because it was a perfect example of taking a great product (like you, the 50 plus jobseeker) and finding a way to re-package, re-tool, chunk, and retrofit your external presentation in a way that the buyer (HR recruiter) would find not only your product solid (your skill set), but how you were packaged (how you’d fit into a younger company culture, for example) and what you brought to the mix.

So my hair may have great coverage, but the re-brand reinvigorated me. Good job, Clairol. Good job.

PS. Incidentally, I have not been solicited by Clairol or paid by them to review their product. But it sure would be nice to get a lifetime supply of the product…my hair will only get grayer.

Over 50 and Want a Job with NASA? Yes…THAT NASA!

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 17:13:00 +0000

#1 — Login to your Gen Plus account http://genplususa.com/login.aspx
#2 — Search for jobs and look for keyword “NASA”
#3 — Apply to the coolest job opportunity for all — INCLUDING Boomers, 50 Plussers and retirees…

Huh? That’s right. Our good friends at Kelly Services have passed along a spectacular opportunity and I’m spreading the word. Here is the job posting:

NASA (yes, that NASA, the National Association of Space and Aeronautics) is looking for a few good people for an amazing job opportunity! Are you up to the challenge? Kelly Services®, in partnership with NASA Space Camp®, is now recruiting camp counselors! This is a long-term opportunity to work on the NASA campus and be a part of Space Camp, Space Academy®, and the Aviation Challenge®.

What you’ll do as a camp counselor:

You’ll be supervising, motivating, and teaching young people (ages 9 – 18) as well as adults in a highly educational, exciting, and fun-filled camp environment!
You’ll lead a team of trainees through their weeklong camp experience.
When assigned to the simulations area, you will train the students in Space Shuttle mission simulators or jet fighter operations. What you’ll get out of it (aside from a really cool job):
Enhance your teamwork, leadership, and interpersonal skills.
Receive valuable experience in the areas of education, space science, and military science toward a future teaching, engineering, science, or military/aviation career. • Free room and board (dorm style) for out-of-town counselors.
$8 – $9/hour bi-weekly pay with direct deposit.
Supplemental insurance is available with prescription discount card.
Intensive paid training and NASA Space History lessons.
Paid time off.
Free meals.

What you’ll need to apply:

Be available beginning in January/February through August (preferred).
Completion of 30 college credit hours (as a minimum) in any major! Or if you have related life experience (e.g., being in the military), that will work too!
A real desire to work with trainees ranging from ages 9 – 50 and over.
You must be at least 20 years of age. Retirees are also welcome!
Some experience working with children or young adults.
Two letters of recommendation.
Your most recent school transcript. [ed. note: your most recent may be from 1962...but that is OK!]
An interest in space and aviation, and the ability to learn fast and retain information.
Successful completion of four-week counselor training program (provided by NASA), and completion of required testing.
Must be able to walk long distances.
Must be able to handle the demands and rigors of long days and responsibility”

This is a GREAT opportunity. If you currently have NO job, or are looking for a meaningful change, are looking to have an incredible career experience, give back to others, save a bit of money AND have one of the coolest job histories ever, don’t delay and apply today. Your life experience has a great deal of value. Go for it. And let me know if you become a NASA counsellor. I’ll want to shout it out to the world!

What do Halloween, Love Search and Job Search All Have in Common?

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 16:33:00 +0000

Boo! They are all scary. So it seems most appropriate to make some parallels between a search for “Mr. or Mrs. Right” and the search for “The Ultimate Job” on this scariest day of the year…Halloween!

On one of my other blogs, Love for Boomers and 50 Plus, I posted on online dating and the sheer terror that many of us feel putting ourselves on the market for love.

“One of my ventures, Gen Plus Singles, is an online dating service, niched to 50 plus. Interestingly, women (who, incidentally, men are TRYING to find) will happily put up their profiles and browse amongst the men, but are incredibly tentative about actually signing up so they can email a fella. Men, on the other hand, are bold. They know what they want, they see it, they sign up, they email. If the woman doesn’t write back, they move on to the next woman. So I always wonder, what is it about women (and, yes, I’m one) that makes us so fearful of putting OUR best foot forward? “

Well this got me thinking about the parallels between online dating and job search. About 1/2 of all jobseekers search for work online. (I wonder if 1/2 of loveseekers also search online.) And just as with online dating, it can often be a numbers game. The more resumes you send out, the more jobs you apply for, the better the odds of getting a call. Just as great jobs attract hundreds of resumes, great online profiles also attract many interested potential daters.

So, from my own experience, here is my approach to becoming less fearful in both online dating and online job search.

1) Have a great resume. Just as your online dating profile needs a good photo, a great smile and some compelling description of who you are, your resume needs to function as a good photo, great smile and a compelling description of your career accomplishments.

2) No one wants a fuddy-duddy. Take a look at online dating profiles. Haircut from the ’80′s? Pass. Glasses from the ’70′s? Pass. If your resume is simply an updated version of your jobs since 1982, then you are on the wrong track. The new format includes:

punchy, active, dynamic descriptors
results of accomplishments (not just responsibilities)
impactful action words
bullet points

3) You need quantity to get quality. If you only email once potential love match, your odds of getting a reply are very, very low. If you email 25 interesting candidates, someone will likely write you back and you may end up on a date!

Ditto for job search. If you are on a targeted job search (i.e. you need a new job…now), then you must apply for as many jobs as fit your talents. Look above the box, under the box, beside the box…but look out of the box. Just as you can’t really tell the quality of the person from a picture, you can’t tell a company from its job description. If you think there might be a fit?….well….there might be.

Again, from my previous post:

“Anytime I’ve online dated, the only true successes I’ve had is when I’ve paid for a membership, searched for the men I liked, and then emailed and emailed until I heard back from the ones I was interested in. Just as men prefer to choose, I prefer to choose. So, if you’ve been sitting on the fence (and this is for the men, too!), getting bored on your Saturday nights, take a gamble. Put your money where your mouth is, and start emailing. You won’t know if you don’t try. “

The scariest part of job search or love search is getting started. So get cracking. Fix up your profiles, show the world the best of yourself and say “Boo!” to the ghosts of Halloween!

Pure Prevention, Breast Cancer Fund and Luna Bar — a Powerful Combination

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 03:23:00 +0000

What do you get when you bring together some of the best and brightest bloggers for a web news conference with a couple of powerful, grass roots movers and shakers?

An hour of exciting, dynamic conversation supported by a wealth of experience and expertise. That is what happened earlier this week when top notch moderator Cindy Samuels brought together a group of influential bloggers to conference with Breast Cancer Fund’s Executive Director Jeanne Rizzo, RN, a nationally acknowledged leader in the field, and environmental health expert Dr. Janet Gray, editor of the Breast Cancer Fund’s newest State of the Evidence report and Professor of Psychology and Director of the Program in Science, Technology and Society at Vassar College. The Breast Cancer Fund published the landmark report State of the Evidence: What is the Connection between the Environment and Breast Cancer?, a ground-breaking report now in its fourth edition.

Pure Prevention is a joint effort of LUNA Bar and the Breast Cancer Fund, focused on bringing awareness and education about cancer prevention and treatment to women and men who want to (and need to) understand more about how what they eat, do and experience in their daily environment impacts their health and more importantly, the health of their children.

To listen to the full interview, visit the web podcast of the live conference (and you’ll hear some of the questions and answers that specifically are directed to the 50 plus market.)

Here are a few areas that engendered LOTS of discussion — environmental factors that are causing our young women to enter puberty at earlier ages than ever before; the types of environmental factors that ingested over a lifetime are causes for concern for the 50 plusser; discussions on the pill and Hormone Replacement Therapy on breast cancer; cosmetic ingredients and the type of advocacy role the Breast Cancer Fund undertakes…and much, much more.

This is an eye-opening, exciting discussion. I urge you to take a listen and also to visit and pass along the Pure Prevention website to others. An exceptional resource and one that we all need to support. Hats off to LUNA Bar and The Breast Cancer Fund for putting together a fantastic program.

How Many Villages Does it Really Take?

Janet Wendy Spiegel — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 06:47:00 +0000

Due to some requests over the past year, I’m putting together a Town Hall meeting in Los Angeles, CA in the next couple of months. An interesting concept (more on this later) and some exciting experts are planning on joining us to share their thoughts and concerns about employment challenges for 50 plus.

I’m soliciting a venue that will enable us to have a “no charge” or nominal charge event, however, food or drinks will be on you.

If you are like me, you are always hungry and always in search of interesting, thought-provoking conversation. So, please let me know if this interests you by adding your comment to this post or emailing me directly at wspiegel@genplususa.com

I’ve already started a wait list and will let you know date(s) and time as soon as they are set in stone. But, there will only be about 20 – 25 spaces available, so reservations are first-come, first-served.

If you are interested in participating in a Town Hall in another city or acting as host, please let me know and if there seems to be a compelling interest…you may see an event pop up a city near you, too!