Thursday, October 15, 2009

Lifestyle Newsletter 15 October 2009

Hello - I'm Bernard Kelly. I have something unique to offer, I have
exceptional life experiences, and many people need that expertise
and experience, right at this very moment.




PROFITABLE HOBBY – WRITE AN E-BOOK

Most of us will never have enough, however if we harness new forms of income … well, that could make a difference.

One of the easiest ways to make money on-line is to write a “how to” book on what you have an intimate knowledge of – possibly a hobby – and then load it up to Clickbank and let others sell it for you.

You could find that your book is selling 24X7 and sprinkling you with money.

I’m not kidding. It really is that easy.

Just develop a skeleton of your “how-to” book, and write a chapter each day.

You don’t need to write too much, because e-books should be easily read on-line, so use a 14 point font and limit your book to say 90 pages.

If you would like me to help you explore your options for 20-25 years of comfortable retirement, feel free to contact me – Bernard Kelly - anytime. My email is admin@retirelaughing.com

WHAT IS THE BEST AGE TO RETIRE?

The best age to retire shouldn’t be dictated to you by the government, your employer, your health or your financial position.

To me it appears that the most important consideration is your Attitude - and in particular your own feelings about the future.

Do you think the government will be able to boost the pension and provide you with financial security?

Or are you more conservative and think the burden of the pension on the national purse and rising hospital and health care costs are too difficult for politicians to deal with?

Alternatively, if you are in good health and your financial position is OK, do you wonder how anyone can fill in 25 years of retirement when there is no purpose?

So the “perfect” age for retirement is what you personally feel it will be.

WHAT EXACTLY IS RETIREMENT?

As there doesn’t appear to be one all embracing definition of retirement, perhaps we need to think about how to describe the last one third of our lives.

Few of us will want to go from “working at full tilt one day [to] twiddling their thumbs the next” so we need to ask ourselves what we value.

Maybe it’s about working 20-30 hours a week between ages 68 -73, and then 15 hours a week until we’re 76. Who knows?

7 KEYS TO A HAPPY RETIREMENT

By Robert Powell in the Chicago Tribune

Dead is the new retirement.

OK, that doesn't sound appealing, but working till you drop is a heck of a lot better than playing bad golf, eating chicken-salad sandwiches for lunch and complaining about your gall bladder.

That is, if you can find a job in retirement that brings meaning and happiness.

So says Marshall Goldsmith, an executive coach and author of "Succession: Are You Ready?"

His "Ask the Coach" blog appears at blogs.harvardbusiness.org/goldsmith.Retirement in the traditional sense is no longer the ideal, according to Goldsmith, who writes in his blog about lessons learned from professional athletes who have a particularly hard time retiring.

The
NFL's Brett Favre famously retired and returned to the game, as have former Bulls star Michael Jordan -- first to try baseball, then back to the NBA, first as a player, then as an owner -- and Lance Armstrong, who came out of retirement to race in this year's Tour de France.

"You think [retirement] sounds good until you do it," Goldsmith said.

"It's a disaster. [Spouses] and adult children aren't waiting around for you to grace them with your presence."

Rather than sitting around doing nothing in retirement, Goldsmith said, would-be retirees should scope out what they want to do long before starting to draw on their superannuation.

Yes, you will need some bare-minimum requirements in place before seeking out the next new thing in life.

You'll need good health and healthy relationships with family and friends.

Also, it would be nice to be wealthy enough to pursue your new career free from worry about money.

But that's not essential. What is essential is this:

1 Make a contribution.

Whatever you do next, it should be meaningful. It should make you happy. It should make you feel as if you're making a contribution. And whatever you do, don't let your age be the limiting factor.

Consider, for instance, the life of management guru Peter Drucker. "Many of his greatest contributions came after he turned 60," Goldsmith said. "Imagine if he had retired at that age."

2 Do more of the same, or not.

Doing nothing isn't an option. In fact, it's a bad plan. Experts don't disagree about that. They do, however, debate whether you should do what you know in retirement or do something entirely different.

For his part, Goldsmith said you should simply do what you love to do, be it the same-old, same-old or something entirely different. "If you love what you do, it's a non-issue," he said. If you aren't doing what you love in retirement, then you might want to do some soul-searching.

Of course, that's sometimes easier said than done.

3 It takes work to find work in retirement.

With the exception of Jack Welch and perhaps Favre, the world isn't holding its collective breath waiting for you to retire so that you can grace this or that entity with your skills, knowledge and experience.

No, you will have to work hard at finding the next thing to do, according to Goldsmith.

"It requires work," he said. "You need to set your ego aside, show some humility and be open-minded."

In addition, Goldsmith said, you may have to set aside any notions about working only for a non-profit organization. In some cases, you may enjoy working more for a for-profit company.

But whether you work for a non-profit or a for-profit, remember: "You are there to serve them," he said. It's not the other way around.

Also, Goldsmith said, it could take a great deal of soul-searching to figure out what you want to do with the rest of your life.

So don't wait until the first day of retirement to think about what could be the most important part of your life.

That doesn't mean you should know exactly what it is that you want to do. You could have a "vague idea," he said, but you should also be open to the possibilities.

4 Wait before you leap.

Given the current economy, it's quite possible there aren't a lot of jobs out there at the moment for retirees.

Indeed, a recent Urban Institute report finds that the recession has increased joblessness among older Americans. (Read the report here: urban.org/ publications/411904.html)

In other words, you might want to wait before quitting impulsively. "You don't want to cut off your nose to spite your face," Goldsmith said. If you get angry with your employer and you don't have a place to go, you should take a deep breath and ask yourself this question: "Is what I am about to do in the best interest of myself and my family?" If not, hold your tongue until you have alternatives in place.

5 Get real offers.

It's one thing to say you want to work in retirement. But it's a whole other thing to do so.

According to Goldsmith, all is fiction and fantasy until real offers cross your desk. With a real offer, you can evaluate whether the next new thing is in your wheelhouse or not.

"With a real offer, you can make a real decision," he said.

6 Promote yourself.

"You will have to learn how to promote yourself in a positive way," Goldsmith said. In the absence of such self-promotion, someone else is likely to end up with the job you covet.

7 Working, out of want or need.

Whether you work in retirement because you need the money or because you want to work, Goldsmith said the end game is the same.

"Even for those who have to work, this doesn't change anything," he said. "You have to find meaning and happiness in your life."

20 HOT JOBS FOR OLDER WORKERS

The Urban Institute in the USA has published a study “Will Employers want aging boomers?”
The answer is “maybe”.


However the most welcoming careers – at least in the United States (but possibly across any developed economy) - are expected to be in these fields:


Personal and home-care aides

Personal financial advisers

Veterinarians

Social and community service managers

Miscellaneous entertainment attendants

Surveyors, cartographers, and photogrammetrists

Environmental scientists and geoscientists

Registered nurses

Animal trainers

Instructional coordinators

Locksmiths and safe repairers

Postsecondary teachers

Archivists, curators, and museum technicians

Social workers

Management analysts

Pharmacists

Counselors

Business operation specialists

Brokerage clerks

Religious workers


If you would like me to help you explore your options for 20-25 years of comfortable retirement, feel free to contact me – Bernard Kelly - anytime. My email is admin@retirelaughing.com

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