Work, Careers, and Callings

Good Reading on Meaningful Work

Don Iannone — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:21:05 +0000

Mindfulness & Meaningful Work:
Explorations in Right Livelihood
Edited by Claude Whitmyer, Foreword by Ernest Callenbach
Published by Parallax Press, Berkeley, California, 1994, 289 pages

This very good anthology explores the integration of mindfulness and ethics in the workplace. In these pages some of the leading thinkers and doers of our time — Thich Nhat Hanh, Joanna Macy, Sam Keen, E.E Schumacher, Gary Snyder, Shakti Gawain, Shunryu Suzuki, Robert Aitken, Tarthang Tulku, Marsha Sinetar, Rick Fields, Ellen Langer, and many others — share their insights on the practice and value of working and of finding work that is meaningful, life-affirming, and non-exploitative.

Mindfulness and Meaningful Work deepens our understanding of the concept of “right livelihood;” shows us how to go about overcoming the obstacles in our path so that we can find and maintain meaningful, satisfying work; and encourages us to live in a way that increases our inner peace, self-worth, and purpose.

Claude Whitmyer, the editor of this volume, is co-founder and president of the University of the Future. He is also director of FutureU ‘s Center for Good Work in San Francisco, where he serves as a business and livelihood coach. Mr. Whitmyer is also co-author of Running a One-Person Business (Ten Speed Press, 1994, 2nd edition) and editor of In the Company of Others: Making Community in the Modern World (Tarcher/Putnam, 1993).

Ways to Earn Extra Money

Don Iannone — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 10:52:37 +0000

Looking for extra cash to keep your household afloat in this storm-tossed economy? Maybe it’s time to turn your hobby into a business.

Click here to read a really useful article by an expert. It’s not high-tech, but there are other ways to make money without being a technology guru. Learn more about Barbara Brabec here.

Best Part-Time Jobs for Boomers

Don Iannone — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 01:01:32 +0000

Deferring Retirement? Best Part-Time Gigs for Baby Boomers
By Selena Dehne, JIST Publishing

At a time when the majority of men and women expect to work beyond their retirement, many baby boomers will use this time to shift gears in their careers. In fact, 80 percent of today’s 76 million baby boomers plan to keep working in the future and more than half of them are interested in pursuing new careers, according to a Merrill Lynch survey.

When it comes to seeking a new career or continuing to work for the same employer, many boomers will opt for part-time employment. This option is particularly appealing for boomers who want flexibility in their schedules or cannot find full-time employment.

“A part-time job can keep you physically, mentally and socially active and perhaps allow you to experiment with a new work role without the commitment and energy drain of a 40-hour workweek,” says Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D., co-author of “225 Best Jobs for Baby Boomers” (JIST © 2007).

Working part-time is also a great solution for boomers who want to retire, but can’t because they’re financially unprepared to leave the work force.

“For the first time since you were a teenager, part-time work may be financially feasible even though you will be paid for fewer hours and probably at a lower hourly rate,” Shatkin says. “Social Security, a pension, a 401(k) or some combination of these may cover a major fraction of your income needs. Plus, Medicare or a retirement medical plan may provide health-care benefits that previously had been affordable only through a full-time job.”

The following are 20 of the best jobs for baby boomers working part-time, based on information from the U.S. Department of Labor.

Teachers, Post-secondary
Annual Earnings: $54,406
Annual Openings: 216,000

Registered Nurses
Annual Earnings: $53,640
Annual Openings: 215,000

Pharmacists
Annual Earnings: $87,160
Annual Openings: 23,000

Clinical Psychologists*
Annual Earnings: $56,360
Annual Openings: 17,000

Counseling Psychologists*
Annual Earnings: $56,360
Annual Openings: 17,000

School Psychologists*
Annual Earnings: $56,360
Annual Openings: 17,000

Instructional Coordinators
Annual Earnings: $50,060
Annual Openings: 18,000

Security Guards
Annual Earnings: $20,520
Annual Openings: 228,000

Self-Enrichment Education Teachers
Annual Earnings: $31,530
Annual Openings: 39,000

Speech Language Pathologists
Annual Earnings: $53,790
Annual Openings: 10,000

Truck Drivers, Light or Delivery Services
Annual Earnings: $24,420
Annual Openings: 219,000

Personal and Home Care Aides
Annual Earnings: $17,020
Annual Openings: 154,000

Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses
Annual Earnings: $34,650
Annual Openings: 105,000

Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists
Annual Earnings: $46,710
Annual Openings: 21,000

Teacher Assistants
Annual Earnings: $19,760
Annual Openings: 259,000

Legal Secretaries
Annual Earnings: $37,390
Annual Openings: 39,000

Chiropractors
Annual Earnings: $67,940
Annual Openings: 3,000

Audiologists
Annual Earnings: $53,040
Annual Openings: 1,000

Janitors and Cleaners, Except for Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners
Annual Earnings: $19,110
Annual Openings: 454,000

Caption Writers
Annual Earnings: $45,460
Annual Openings: 23,000
Annual Openings: 17,000 openings.

Myths about Older Workers

Don Iannone — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 11:22:44 +0000

Here are some of those myths — along with the reality.

Myth: Older workers can’t or won’t learn new skills.
Reality: Those over 50 are proving their ability to learn new skills by becoming the fastest growing group of Internet users. And career-changers in their 40s and 50s are taking courses to enhance their skills.
Myth: Older workers don’t stay on the job long.
Reality: Workers between 45 and 54 stayed on the job twice as long as those 25 to 34, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Myth: Older workers take more sick days than younger workers.
Reality: Attendance records are actually better for older workers than for younger ones.
Myth: Older workers aren’t flexible or adaptable.
Reality: Because they’ve seen many approaches fail in the workplace, they are more likely to question change. But they can accept new approaches as well as younger workers can as long as the rationale is explained.
Myth: Older workers are more expensive.
Reality: The costs of more vacation time and pensions are often outweighed by low turnover among older workers and the fact that higher turnover among other groups translates into recruiting, hiring, and training expenses.

Source: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers-USA

Most Economists Say Recession is Here

Don Iannone — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 15:52:56 +0000

Article by Phil Izzo, Wall Street Journal
Thursday, March 13, 2008

The U.S. has finally slid into recession, according to the majority of economists in the latest Wall Street Journal economic-forecasting survey, a view that was reinforced by new data showing a sharp drop in retail sales last month.”The evidence is now beyond a reasonable doubt,” said Scott Anderson of Wells Fargo & Co., who was among the 71% of 51 respondents to say that the economy is now in a recession.The Commerce Department said Thursday that retail sales tumbled 0.6% in February; sales excluding volatile auto and parts decreased 0.2%. The decline reflected a sharp slowdown in consumer spending, the primary driver of U.S. economic growth, as Americans grapple with high gasoline prices and the credit crunch, as well as drops in home values and other asset prices.The survey, conducted March 7 through March 11, marked a precipitous shift to the negative from the previous survey conducted five weeks earlier. For example, the economists now expect nonfarm payrolls to grow by an average of only 9,000 jobs a month for the next 12 months — down from an expected 48,500 in the previous survey. Twenty economists now expect payrolls to shrink outright. And the average forecast for the unemployment rate was raised to 5.5% by December from 4.8% in the previous survey.

Much of the gloom stemmed from last Friday’s employment report, which showed a loss of 63,000 jobs in February, the second consecutive monthly decline. “My recession call comes from the employment data,” said Stephen Stanley of RBS Greenwich Capital. “It struck me as a recessionary number.”

Twenty-nine of 55 respondents said they expect the economy to contract in the current quarter and 25 expect it to do so in the second. The average of all the forecasts is for meager growth — just 0.1% at an annual rate in the current quarter and 0.4% in the second.

Although the classic definition of recession is two consecutive quarters of declines in the gross domestic product, Mr. Stanley pointed out that the National Bureau of Economic Research, the nonpartisan organization that is the official arbiter of when recessions begin and end, doesn’t necessarily follow that definition. “If you go back to the 2001 recession, there was only one negative GDP quarter, and there might not even be one negative quarter in this recession,” he said.

The economists also expressed growing concerns that a 2008 recession could be worse than both the 2001 and 1990-91 downturns. They put the odds of a deeper downturn at an average 48%, up from 39% in the previous survey. Mark Nielson of MacroEcon Global Advisors said that “we recognize the previous two recessions were mild and, if a recession does occur, it is likely to be slightly worse than the previous two.”

Amid the concerns about the economy, respondents expect more action from the government and the Federal Reserve. Some 63% said the use of public money to deal with the housing crisis is now likely or certain, while on average they expect the Fed to lower its benchmark federal-funds rate to 2% by June from the current 3%.

Futures markets Thursday priced in certainty of at least a 0.5 percentage point cut in the Fed’s rate target and up to 90% probability of a 0.75 point cut. Officials had, prior to this week, appeared unconvinced a 0.75 point cut was needed, given signs that inflation psychology is worsening. But those views may have been affected by continued upheaval in credit markets and the weak retail sales and employment data. Market participants say this would be a risky time to cut less than investors expect. The Fed will have to weigh the urgency of addressing the continued credit crunch against the risk of appearing unconcerned about inflation.

However, the Fed’s job may be complicated by inflation concerns. The economists raised their average forecast for consumer-price increases to 3.5% by June, up from 2.7% in the prior survey. The change reflects persistently high oil prices and a 4.3% jump in prices last month from the year before. February’s CPI data will be released Friday, and economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expect a 4.5% increase from a year ago.

Even as the Fed has made clear that it is most focused at the moment on threats to economic growth, some central bank policy makers have continued to voice concerns about the possibility of resurgent inflation. The central bank has used unconventional methods to boost liquidity in the market; its goal is to limit the use of its bluntest weapon, interest-rate reductions, which can fuel price pressures.

Meanwhile, most forecasters expect a recovery to begin in the second half of this year, as the government’s stimulus package and the Fed’s interest-rate cuts begin to spur the economy. By the end of the year, the economists expect inflation still to be hovering at an uncomfortably high 2.7%, raising the question of when the Fed will start raising rates.

Some 84% of economists in the survey said the Fed was too slow to raise interest rates in 2003, and policy makers don’t want to repeat that mistake. But “it’s going to take some time even under the best of circumstances before the Fed can be comfortable that the economic situation has stabilized,” said Bruce Kasman of J.P. Morgan Chase.

One thing is clear: The darkening economic outlook has made Ben Bernanke‘s job less secure, especially with a new president about to enter the White House. The economists gave the Fed chairman just a 59% chance of being reappointed in 2010. “If a Democrat is elected he won’t be reappointed, and [presumptive Republican presidential nominee John] McCain may opt for another, too,” said David Resler of Nomura Securities. “The problems occurred on his watch,” added Ram Bhagavatula of Combinatorics Capital.

Hottest Places for Knowledge Jobs

Don Iannone — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 21:48:36 +0000

SAN ANTONIO, TX

2-year job-growth forecast: 8.9%

Low energy costs and a cheap but smart labor force are pulling in more Fortune 500 companies. Washington Mutual chose San Antonio for its new regional operations center, which will create 3,000 new jobs during the next five years. And Microsoft is building a $550 million data center here, set to open in 2009.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

2-year job-growth forecast: 7.6%

Though Congress is now trying to slow the growth of federal outlays, the nation’s capital is still home to the world’s biggest spender. Uncle Sam is stoking employment in fields from aerospace to medical research to IT services. Economists see 15,000 new high-tech jobs joining the local economy this year and next.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT

2-year job-growth forecast: 7.2%

Boasting one of the youngest big-city populations in the country, Salt Lake is luring more top employers with its affordable but highly educated labor pool. According to a survey by Manpower, more than half of Salt Lake businesses expect to add headcount this year, one of the highest rates among large U.S. metros.

PORTLAND, OR

2-year job-growth forecast: 5.1%

Intel has slashed about 1,000 jobs from its chip fab here since last fall, but that’s no knock on this Oregon city. Continued population growth–buoyed by a delayed real estate slowdown and bigger overseas demand for local goods–is helping to draw more manufacturers and tech startups. One hot niche: open-source software development.

SEATTLE, WA

2-year job-growth forecast: 5.0%

Newcomers are still moving here in droves: 34,000 in 2006 alone. Good thing the largest employers have plenty of work for them. A resurgent Boeing added about 5,000 folks to its Washington payrolls last year. Microsoft is expanding its Redmond campus and will continue a hiring spurt that brought in 7,000 new employees in 2006.

Source: CNN Money in cooperation with Fortune Magazine

Avoiding Job Burnout

Don Iannone — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 14:13:33 +0000

A recent article in PsychCentral provides useful practical advice on how to deal with job burnout–a common challenge to many workers. Article Source: Click here.

Virtually everyone will face the prospect of job burnout at one point. Whether you’re an office worker or a carpenter, a salesperson or a doctor, job burnout occurs when we become dissatisfied with and overwhelmed by our current job and can’t really identify what’s wrong. We’ve gathered together five tips to help identify possible problems and some quick solutions that may help you better bust job burnout.

1. Combat boredom

A lot of people get bored with their jobs, plain and simple. They no longer find the job challenging, or find that the job’s daily routine has become incredibly uninteresting. A job you once looked forward to starting at the beginning of the day now is something you dread.

You can combat job boredom a number of ways. Spice up your current position by asking for different assignments or tasks. Consider a job change within the same company, either by applying for a new position internally or talking to your boss about possible role rotations. If your current company offers you a dead-end to job excitement, consider a new job at a new company.

If you’re really feeling disillusioned with your job, consider changing careers altogether. People do it all the time, even going back to school if need be to pursue something they find more rewarding. Contrary to popular belief, jobs shouldn’t be something you just have to suffer through and not enjoy. The happier you are with your job, the happier you generally will be with life.

2. Avoid focusing too much on your job

Sometimes we end up making our lives about our job. That’s the wrong way around – it should be that our jobs help enhance our lives, either because we’re doing what we enjoy and feel good about, or because they bring us financial security (or a little of both). When your life becomes about your job for longer than a year, you’re at greater risk for job burnout.

There’s nothing wrong with needing to focus on your job and putting in long hours from time to time. Many people do that at some point in their lives. But if you find that you’re sacrificing other things in your life for your job – your social life, your family, or even your own sanity – it’s time to take a serious look at your life priorities.

Seek to “right-size” your working hours once again and put the job back in its proper place within your life. Reprioritize your family and social life, and talk to your boss about your need to find a better balance in your life. Most people understand that the company isn’t your life – and if it’s expected to be, maybe it’s time to find a new company!

3. Avoid office politics

Workplace politics can be exhausting. Trying to figure out how others trying to get ahead might misconstrue your behaviors or words can take up a lot of focus and energy, all at the expense of actual work. It’s best to steer clear of office politics as best you can and just focus on your own career goals and job.

Office gossip often inadvertently leads to office politics. Minimize engaging in office gossip and you’ll discover that office politics will fade into the background. While it’s okay to do occasionally, don’t make it the focus of your workday or always try to second- guess a colleague’s or boss’s behavior. Sometimes a stapler really is just a stapler.

4. Avoid overworking

Some people have a hard time saying “no” to virtually anything job-related. They believe they will be seen as a team player who helps everyone out. But you can also end up being the team doormat that everyone takes advantage of to reduce their own workload.

Don’t let yourself become the “go-to” person that everyone expects will pick up their slack or help them in a tight squeeze. While it’s fine to help your coworkers when the need arises, there’s a fine line before that becomes an expectation – and another workload added to your own.

If it’s not a one-time emergency, politely decline requests to help out on projects where others were expected to do the work. Or, if you need to accept something, ensure what you agree to do is in proportion to your own workload.

5. Better manage your time

Sometimes we feel burned out by our jobs because we feel as though we always have too much to do, and not enough time to do it. This can be a sign of poor time management, spending too much time on unimportant tasks (such as checking one’s email obsessively every five minutes) and too little time focused on the important ones.

Prioritizing your tasks is a key to better time management. Not everything has the same priority. A project your boss gave you until Friday to finish needs to get done while re-doing your organization of a spreadsheet or tool closet can wait.

If you’re in an office job, try setting aside only three or four times throughout the day that you will check and respond to emails. Email is one of the banes of personal productivity; research has shown that most people multitask very poorly. Reduce multitasking as much as your job allows and process tasks one at a time, in the order of their priority.

If your job requires paperwork to be done for many tasks, try to do it at the time of the task rather than saving it for later. When we face a pile of paperwork that needs to be filled out, we often keep letting it go and grow until it becomes unmanageable and overwhelming.

* * *

Job burnout happens to most of us at some point in our lives. The key is to recognize it before it becomes a major problem and work on resolving it, or reducing it, before it overwhelms your life.

U.S. Recession? (Reprint from Gallup Management Journal)

Don Iannone — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 12:27:00 +0000

In a rare unscheduled meeting on January 22, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) cut the federal funds rate from 4.25% to 3.5%, the largest rate cut in 24 years. The following week, at its regular meeting on January 30, the FOMC cut the federal funds rate a further one-half of one percent.

At the same time, House leaders and the White House announced agreement on a new emergency fiscal stimulus plan. Still, the financial markets remained unsettled while fears of recession grew with release of reports of slow GDP growth in the fourth quarter of 2007 and the first actual loss in jobs in January 2008.

This, says Dennis Jacobe, Gallup’s chief economist, reveals the new limits of the Fed’s power to affect the U.S. economy, given the globalization of the financial system. He asserts that the Fed’s greatest power right now is essentially the psychological impact it can assert on financial markets worldwide. At the same time, when the Fed takes drastic “emergency” action, it can cause dramatic psychological reactions both domestically and worldwide, leaving the economy highly vulnerable to the law of unintended consequences.

And that’s what’s happening now. Yes, we’re facing a recession, says Dr. Jacobe. And yes, it’s probably time to stock the bunkers. But he’s not sure that this will be “The Big One” — something approaching the scale of the recessions of the mid-1970s and the early 1980s. Much lower interest rates could help stabilize the financial markets, and a fiscal stimulus package might soften a major economic downturn. But they might not.

In this interview, Dr. Jacobe explains what’s going on with the Fed, how businesses can protect themselves if this turns out to be a major recession, and what managers — many of whom have never lived through a real economic slump — should know.

GMJ: Why did the Fed cut the federal funds rate instead of making it easier to get a cheap mortgage loan? Wouldn’t helping the flailing housing market have done more for the economy?

Dr. Jacobe: There are a couple of different things going on. The emergency cut in the Fed’s funds rate, followed by another cut a week later, has two effects. One effect is to change the psychology of the market. There’s been a lot of criticism of [Fed Chairman Ben] Bernanke and the Fed for not being ahead of what’s going on in the markets. There was significant instability in the world marketplace in January, so the Fed tried to settle things down with a dramatic, emergency, intermeeting move on January 22, followed by another cut shortly thereafter. Now the Fed has the markets believing it will do whatever is necessary to maintain financial stability and moderate a slowdown of the U.S. economy.

A second effect is that the sharp reduction in interest rates helps banking institutions and other big investment banks; it reduces their cost of funding and creates a more normal and steeper yield curve, where longer term interest rates are higher than shorter term interest rates. So the rate cut can help financial services firms as they work their way through their recent problems, thereby encouraging financial stability. A reduction in interest rates helps the housing and mortgage markets to some degree. So will a change in the Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA loan ceilings, allowing more home buyers access to federally backed loans.

Still, none of this really helps with the loan underwriting process. Unfortunately, the tightening of loan underwriting standards is something that needs to happen, and moderating its impact on consumers is not something the Fed can easily address.

GMJ: Will financial institutions pass the benefits they get from lower interest rates on to their consumer borrowers?

Jacobe: Yes. Highly qualified borrowers will find that they will get lower interest rates when they borrow. Small business and other borrowers who borrow at the prime rate probably are helped to some degree. On the other hand, older Americans who live on the interest generated by their investments will find that the interest rate banks will pay to them will be even lower than it has been.

The reality is that banks and financial services firms have been squeezed. They have faced what is called an “inverted yield curve,” meaning that short-term interest rates have been higher than long-term rates. This hurts banking institutions because they tend to make money by borrowing short-term at lower rates and lending longer term at higher rates.

In addition, financial services firms such as UBS and Citigroup have posted huge losses on their investments in things like subprime mortgages and some of the more exotic investment vehicles associated with them. As a result, banking institutions need to increase earning power to rebuild their reserves, because they need reserves if they are going to increase their ability to lend. So in that context, the Fed’s moves were positive, and they were probably necessary, but they are not necessarily sufficient to stabilize the U.S. economy and calm jittery investors worldwide.

GMJ: U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said that the rate cut shows that “our central bank is nimble and can move quickly in response to market conditions.” How do you feel about that?

Jacobe: Well, they’re able to move quickly. The question is, do they? And will they? I think the new and somewhat inexperienced Fed leadership simply didn’t understand the effect of what was happening in the housing market, along with the impact of other factors like high energy prices and increasing food prices, on consumers. Gallup’s polling shows that consumers were feeling more pain much sooner than the Fed, and many others perceived it. So I’ve thought the Fed has been “behind the curve” for a long time. Now the Fed has finally reacted, with two major rate cuts in a very short time. The problem is that its failure to act more aggressively earlier limits the benefits of its actions.

GMJ: Some people say that the recent rate cuts were the Fed’s way of hitting the panic button — that we’re facing some looming disaster that the Fed is scrambling to avert. What do you think?

Jacobe: Psychology has always been a problem for the Fed. If the Fed takes dramatic action, does it indicate that they see the problems and are willing to head them off, or do they just scare people unnecessarily? Are they building confidence, or are they indicating they see something the general public doesn’t, thereby making things worse even as they’re trying to make things better?

I think what the rate cut really showed, more than panic, is that the Fed decided they weren’t acting quickly enough to stabilize the financial markets. The psychology of the money markets was becoming very negative, and the Fed decided to do something to offset it that would have a significant psychological impact. I don’t think the Fed is panicking, but its actions certainly were dramatic.

GMJ: Do you think the market pays too much attention to the Fed?

Jacobe: There’s an old saying on Wall Street that “You can’t fight the Fed.” In other words, the Fed can influence investor psychology, so when the Fed is heading in a given direction, you need to invest based on where it is driving the market psychology, not against it — at least in the immediate term. So no, I don’t think the market pays too much attention to the Fed. On the other hand, I do think the Fed has lost some of its potency, and people have learned that over the years, because the Fed doesn’t seem to have as direct and as major an impact on the economy as it did in the past.

Globalization has made the actions of other central banks around the world more important. As a result, central banks tend to be much stronger when they act in concert around the world. But more importantly, when interest rates are higher, the Fed’s actions have more impact, because when interest rates are high enough to deter corporate and consumer borrowing, then the Fed can influence things by cutting rates. But when the system already has relatively low interest rates, the Fed’s ability to affect consumer and investor borrowing and spending is much more limited. Also, when banks are tightening underwriting standards, the availability of money gets tighter regardless of the interest rate level and regardless of what the Fed does.

GMJ: The dollar’s weak, and commodity prices are high. Will the rate cuts spur inflation?

Jacobe: It could later in 2008, perhaps early in 2009. I’m not sure that it will. In theory, more money creates more inflation, but there’s so much money floating around, there’s so much liquidity in the system, I’m just not sure that the current rate cuts will have a significant impact on inflation in the near term. Right now, the inflation situation — though worse than many policy makers seem to understand — is a lesser danger than the health of the economy, and I think many people have come to that viewpoint.

GMJ: So then, is this the start of a recession?Jacobe: Oh, probably. We may be in a recession now. The economy is very weak, and we’re in a very slow growth or negative growth period. Gallup’s polling suggests that most consumers feel that way, and so do most business people. But we haven’t had a recession in so long that I’m not sure people really know what it means.

GMJ: How bad do you think it will get?

Jacobe: I think the rate cuts and the government fiscal stimulus package will ameliorate it. The effects of sending out checks to consumers may not be long lasting, but they will help moderate the downfall.

It’s not clear to me how bad it will get. We haven’t had anything that comes close to a severe recession in the last twenty-five years, just some modest downturns. My guess is that we’ll see something more like the recession of the early 1990s than that of the mid-1970s or early 1980s. However, if we have a fairly significant recession — even if it is not of the 1980s proportions — it will challenge people who have not lived through one, which is everybody under the age of forty.

GMJ: How can consumers and businesses protect themselves?

Jacobe: A major consequence of a recession is that many people become unemployed or underemployed, and we saw the beginnings of this new trend in the most recent jobs report showing a loss of jobs during the month of January. When this happens, consumers become less confident about spending, and they pull back, and that further slows economic activity. It becomes more of a challenge for businesses to make money. There are already some layoffs in the services areas and in the auto industry. We might see more retailers closing stores in the near future.

My advice to consumers is to do everything they can do to strengthen their “personal balance sheet.” What I mean by that is that consumers should try to reduce their debts and increase their savings. They should also be very careful about buying big-ticket items that require payments over time.

Gallup surveys show that an amazingly small number of people could handle the financial stress of being out of work for six months or more. In a significant recession, that can happen to a lot of people. Although it may seem shocking, Americans should really think about building enough financial resources so they could make their monthly payments for a period of six months even if one or more household income earners is out of work.

It’s not good for the overall economy for consumers to pull back and reduce their spending while increasing their savings. But this is the prudent thing for consumers to do for their own financial well-being when the economy faces a recessionary environment.

GMJ: How would you recommend managers manage in a recession?

Jacobe: Managing during a recession is different than managing during a growth period, and most companies don’t have many managers experienced in how to do it effectively. And even for those with recession management experience, things will be more difficult. These days, there isn’t as much fat in companies as in the past, and that often was the first place managers used to look to cut costs. So cutting costs will be much harder this time around.

You also have to be much more careful about investing in future growth. In a growth environment, the successful manager anticipates opportunities for expansion, then expands in the expectation that consumers will respond. When facing a recessionary environment, the most successful managers will follow the growth; they will build after the consumer demand has already occurred. You get the sales first, then you respond. So in a sense, you give up the potential benefits of getting out ahead of a potential surge in sales growth, but you avoid the risk of getting out in front of the consumer, because the consumer may not follow along.

One of the best things managers can do is simply go back and look at the basic principles of how you conservatively manage your business. Be more careful about expansion, build cash resources, build your company’s balance sheet.

It is a lot less fun to manage in a very slow or recessionary environment. And it is not good for the overall economy if businesses pull back and become more cautious. Still, probably the best thing you can do is look carefully at your balance sheet and do everything you can to make it stronger. Then wait for things to get better. They always do, eventually.

Where Will the Jobs Be in 2012?

Don Iannone — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 17:11:56 +0000

This is from MSNBC. Many useful insights in here…

“The help wanted ads of 2012 will have a scant resemblance to today’s classifieds. Job titles more common in sci-fi novels such as space tour guide and molecular engineer will soon become common place.Tomorrow’s employers will put a premium on skilled and semi-skilled workers, especially in computers, health care, science and technology. And there will be job openings aplenty in the trades as baby boomers retire.

Are you ready for the brain race?

Opportunities abound as we become an information-rich society, said Marina Gorbis, executive director the Institute for the Future. With a growing number of video cameras, radio-frequency identification chips (RFID) and sensors gushing data, hot jobs will spring up, creating a demand for people who can cope and build new ways to comprehend it, she said. Your cell phone won’t be the only thing that vibrates.

“We’re entering an age where every object, every place, is surrounded by digital data. Massive amounts of data will be streaming in every direction,” Gorbis said. “The only way we’re going to be able to live in this world of massive information is to be able to access it in ways that are more sensory rich. They have to appeal to our senses.”

Paul Saffo, a technology forecaster, said lifelong learning will be the key to unlocking the future. People should expect to change careers six or seven times in their lifetime.

“This is a brain race,” said Saffo, who is on sabbatical from the Institute for the Future. “It’s no longer warm and fuzzy. Lifelong learning will be a forced march. If you stop learning, you will become unemployed and unemployable very quickly.”

Competitive innovation will produce hot jobs that are hard to imagine now. Synthetic biologists are learning to create organisms to perform specific tasks, said Leroy Hood, president and co-founder of the Seattle-based Institute for Systems Biology. In nanotechnology, systems engineers will fabricate new materials with ideal characteristics at the molecular level, said Frieder Seible, dean of the Jacobs School of Engineering at the University of California-San Diego, which opened a nanoengineering department in July. Engineers are building robots in new shapes and sizes.

Businesses should anticipate turbulent times, Saffo said.

“The upside is with uncertainty comes opportunity. If you’re nimble, surprises become opportunities,” Saffo said.

To get a hot job that makes big bucks, think health care or international business, said Lena Bottos, director of compensation at Salary.com. It could bump up your pay by 20 percent or more. It might even double your salary.

Highly skilled health-care professionals, like doctors and specialists, will be in demand because of aging baby boomers, which means big salaries, Bottos said. Health-care careers overall will likely enjoy job security. According to the U.S. Labor Department, 13 of the 20 fastest-growing occupations between 2004 and 2014 are related to health care. Home health aides, medical assistants and physician assistants are in the top five.

In business, professionals with international experience or knowledge — especially in finance or law — will be hot as the emphasis on global trade and business grows, Bottos said. Companies will navigate tax codes, laws, work regulations, environmental regulations and ethical questions worldwide.

“The borders are falling away,” Bottos said.

Governments must address immigration, citizenship and tax issues so workers can travel and collaborate freely, said Rusty Weston, chief blogger at myglobalcareer.com. He points to the rise of the “aerotropolis” — business complexes at airports where jet-setters can fly in, get down to business immediately and stay as long as needed.
“Governments and laws are behind the times,” Weston said. “There needs to be some strategy. Businesses need the talent. … The job hunters will become the hunted.”

Saffo goes a step further, saying everyone should anticipate living in different countries over their careers to succeed. Hot jobs are worldwide, and the ambitious must follow, especially this generation.

“What we have is global industries, where the center of gravity of industries is moving,” Saffo said. “Anyone who is not fluent in a second language will be at a huge disadvantage even if they never leave this country.”

Right now, the hardest jobs to fill can’t be outsourced or turned over to robots (at least not yet), and they’ll probably still be hot in 2012 because of retiring baby boomers, said Melanie Holmes, vice president of North American corporate affairs for Manpower, a worldwide employment services company. Sales representatives, teachers, mechanics, technicians, managers and truck drivers are the six hardest jobs to fill today, according to Manpower surveys.

The good news: Many of Manpower’s top 10 hardest jobs to fill don’t require a college degree, so they’re more accessible. But that’s part of the problem — the jobs are too ordinary, Holmes said. Delivery drivers, laborers and machine operators, which also made the top 10, are necessary, not glamorous.

“I’m not sure young people have thought of those occupations as attractive,” Holmes said. “Our country needs people who go to trade schools. We’re running out of people like machinists, mechanics and technicians because the people who are doing [those] jobs are retiring.”

In the fast-paced global market, the “clever guys” will command their own price until the talent gap is filled, said Michael Jackson, founder and chairman of Shaping Tomorrow, a British research and analysis service focused on the future. A college degree alone won’t be a free pass to employment anymore.

“Student should be staying ahead and learning about these things, being involved and being engaged,” Jackson said. “They have got to keep learning, keep experimenting and be a part of the team. Don’t be afraid to try something new.”

Major Trends That Will Affect Your Career Choices

Don Iannone — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 13:50:25 +0000

This article appeared on the WorldwideLearn website. I agree with its assessment of future trends. It is reprinted here for your benefit.

Aging Baby Boomers.

The largest demographic group in the United States is heading for retirement. Of course, this will mean something very different for many Baby Boomers than for older generations. Boomers have maintained their health and stayed in the job market longer than any other generation of citizens in our country’s history.As they grow older, Baby Boomers will require more frequent, specialized medical care. They will also want to maintain connections with careers and family for as long as possible. Therefore, expect to see continued growth in fields that cater to their wishes. The assisted living industry will continue to outpace other areas of healthcare, while growing teams of social workers will help care for less fortunate Baby Boomers.

Better Medicine.

The high output of the pharmaceutical industry, combined with constant innovation in the rest of the medical field, helps us live longer, more productive lives. New treatments for previously fatal diseases require new approaches for rehabilitation. Likewise, many adults expect to work far beyond the traditional retirement age. Therefore, patients demand a new generation of physical therapists and other specialists to help prolong their quality of life.

Increased
Costs of
Child Care.

As today’s parents demand higher quality from their child care providers, the marketplace has responded with a variety of programs to help meet parents’ needs. The explosive growth of pre-kindergarten educational programs call for highly trained educators who command more competitive salaries than their predecessors. Therefore, especially in major cities, the cost of caring for young children has skyrocketed. As a result, early childhood education has become a more lucrative and more stable profession than ever before. Though it has traditionally been a low-paying job, child care specialists today can expect to earn far more money today than peers who entered the field even a few years ago.On a related note, the rising cost of child care has encouraged many parents to seek opportunities to work from home. Taking advantage of distributed work options, professions that allow parents to spend time with young children have enjoyed rapid growth. Even when those positions pay less than office jobs, the savings created by avoiding paid child care adds tremendous value for families.

Rapid Technology Growth.

Despite fears that many American companies look overseas for development of new technology, the rapid advance of ideas and the need for constant upgrades assure U.S. technology professionals of consistent job security over the next ten years. Businesses of all kinds have found themselves locked into the equivalent of an arms race with their competitors. Companies must provide their teams with the best equipment and resources, or face defeat.Likewise, continual innovation assures technology workers that new machines, cables, and other equipment will have to be installed every few years. Even Internet infrastructure, which was designed to provide nearly limitless connections, is being overhauled to accommodate a previously unimaginable number of new devices. Therefore, IT professionals who specialize in networking, installation, and support will remain in demand as more businesses rely on new technology to help them compete.

Distributed Work.

The giant factories and smokestacks of a hundred years ago are fading into the pages of history books. Many of today’s workers report for duty at smaller offices or manufacturing plants, connected by information networks and sophisticated shipping infrastructure.A growing number of employees, especially specialized consultants and leaders, divide their time among multiple locations at companies or client organizations. This trend has led to the use of “hot desking,” where workers report to a different workstation at the start of each shift, instead of keeping their own desk or cubicle. Many workers telecommute, allowing them to reinvest time spent commuting into more productive work or family time.

As a side effect, more workers are relocating to larger homes, farther away from city centers. Whether they want to enjoy more peaceful surroundings or they simply want to reconnect with family or friends, these shifting workers create demand for home construction, renovation, and infrastructure development.