For most mature employed people, work was considered having a job with one or two companies in a working lifetime. Now retired, many may still have debt; few have the savings to take them through their remaining years.

Countless mature workers believe that just one more job, perhaps much like the one they just left, is all they need to secure their futures.

Unfortunately, those jobs may no longer exist or they may have been completely re-framed so that they are no longer a possibility for most mature workers. However, key pieces of the job they once held are likely to be important to employers and/or clients as organizations struggle to do more with less in order to remain competitive and successful.

The boomer dilemma is realizing that the previous slow march to the future is now a race to understand and adapt to meeting unprecedented problems with a new game plan. The boomer proposition: New strategies and new options — not old tactics and old jobs — that are the order of this new day. Adaptation is the key.

Instead of thinking of work as your next job, think of work as your contribution to both your community and your wallet!

Here are a few ways to reach for viable, near term income through work that matters.

Work from home. Almost 2 million Americans (including many thousand in our beautiful islands) have embraced the idea of working from the comfort of their home office or couch. It is a strong recommendation for people seeking to increase their work-life balance. Google the term and be amazed at how many opportunities are presented.

Consider freelancing. Up to 40 percent of new opportunities within today’s organizations will not be full-time. These flexible opportunities are often perfect for mature, independent workers who market and deliver their own unique services when and as needed at their own choice.

Create a portfolio. Some have success by putting together short-term contract or part-time work in order to develop and ensure a balanced flow of income from multiple sources.

Note that nowhere in our suggestions is the word “consultant”— an old word that has become synonymous with someone offering high-priced advice. Instead, refer to yourself according to what you do.

And no matter what you end up doing, there are a lot of options for life after retirement. A great place to start is asking family and friends. There are a lot of jobs and opportunities, once you realize there’s a new way to work.

 


NEW WORKFORCE HAWAII
Carleen MacKay
916-316-0143 | carleenmackayhi@gmail.com
www.newworkforcehawaii.com
Contact Carleen via her website and receive a free PDF book called New Ways to Work, co-written with Phyllis Horner.