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Where ambitious young professionals connect and grow
Blazing Boomers
A virtual community of 40 plus and up who wish to share information on creating new careers, travel ideas, wellness, empty (or near-empty)nest experiences - and anything else Boomers face as they transition in the workplace.
Network Leader: Jim Taggart
Jim Taggart
Hey folks, here's something for you to chew on. It's one of my recent e-books; this one focuses on Leadership and the Intergeneration Divide. Check it out.
http://changingwinds.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/intergenerational-ebook...
Gutsy Writer
I'm looking for some "Gutsy" 40 + people who have a story to tell about creating a new career, something exciting they've done, as a way to share with others on my "Gutsy/Writer" blog.
Cheryl Roshak:
Would love to see your blog, can you post a link to it? That might help people decide if they want to contribute or not, just a thought. :)
63 weeks ago
63 weeks ago
Gutsy Writer:
Cheryl, you are right. I just posted my blog URL: Gutsywriter.com
Thanks for reminding me. I got carried away with the exciting groups at Brazen.
63 weeks ago
63 weeks ago
Tom
A more specific follow-up to my first post - Has anyone actually connected with a stranger (on this or similar site) to the extent that they received a job referral that lead to their initial position after a lay-off? I'd like to hear some successes - most of my reading tells me this is rare, most of the successes I've read about are due to live networking and most of those are via friends, family or associates (of course this is predicated upon one being qualified for the position).
Patrick Madarang:
I did get a referral not on this site but through networking and volunteering with a solar company. I used linkedin (a networking site) to get ...MoreI did get a referral not on this site but through networking and volunteering with a solar company. I used linkedin (a networking site) to get information on a possible employer. I used a combination of volunteering, Linkedin and now I have a potential job offer from the solar company that I volunteered with to get my foot in the door. I sent the solar company my Linkedin resume and got a response in 24 hours! I think Linkedin is a powerful business/social networking site for those of us looking for work.
66 weeks ago
66 weeks ago
Tom:
I actually found a group on Linkedin in Maine that is organizing unemployed professionals for limited time-frame volunteer projects. Unfortunately ...MoreI actually found a group on Linkedin in Maine that is organizing unemployed professionals for limited time-frame volunteer projects. Unfortunately it is located over 100 miles from me so I was not able to attend any meetings. Maybe when I return from Norway, we'll be able to setup a skype connection. I think it may be my best hope.
I volunteer in my town - I'm on the ecdev committee and I am the webmaster - I recently rebuilt the town site including a great deal of the written material ( http://www.searsportme.net ). I am not a web pro so it is not the most incredible site ever produced, but it is far better than the old school static site they originally had. I also wrote the business planning guidebook for the town which has become a model for several other, and larger, towns in the area. I just have not been able to find other ecdev volunteer opportunities.
I started looking for some other types of suitable volunteer opportunities in my area - being a chem eng, I figured environmental groups might be a good choice. But, the temp move to Norway has put me in limbo for a while.
66 weeks ago
I volunteer in my town - I'm on the ecdev committee and I am the webmaster - I recently rebuilt the town site including a great deal of the written material ( http://www.searsportme.net ). I am not a web pro so it is not the most incredible site ever produced, but it is far better than the old school static site they originally had. I also wrote the business planning guidebook for the town which has become a model for several other, and larger, towns in the area. I just have not been able to find other ecdev volunteer opportunities.
I started looking for some other types of suitable volunteer opportunities in my area - being a chem eng, I figured environmental groups might be a good choice. But, the temp move to Norway has put me in limbo for a while.
66 weeks ago
Cheryl Roshak
Oh my, I started a discussion on Blazing Boomers and where are they on here and what are they doing now, transitioning, semi-retired, contemplating their futures and the like and are they intimidated by this site and the whole thing disappeared. JC and Jim responded but I have no clue what happened. Would you guys like to repost again? There are so many of us Boomers. Why so silent? We have a lot to offer....
Scrollwork recommended this
JRandom42:
Here it is:
MoreHere it is:
http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/2009/04/13/i-hate-david-dellifield-the-one...
66 weeks ago
MoreHere it is:
http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/2009/04/13/i-hate-david-dellifield-the-one...
66 weeks ago
Tom:
Like JR I was actually fairly mobile and relocated as I needed... from MA to KY in the 70's, then NY for better job, then to VT after '86 layoff ...MoreLike JR I was actually fairly mobile and relocated as I needed... from MA to KY in the 70's, then NY for better job, then to VT after '86 layoff to run my own biz, finally to ME in '88 due to poor biz. Was tough on the kids a couple of times but for the most part we stayed put in ME for their formative yrs. My ex was in insurance and always found an okay job, but I was clearly the prime earner at 3x her salary. I am sure I'd have no problem landing a good chem eng job if I were able to relocate. I had a recruiter who thought I'd be ideal for a project mgmt position she was trying to fill in NJ. But, I remarried a while back and over the yrs my wife has progressed to where she is now earning more than I was when I was laid-off. She has a great job at a great company that appreciates her. In fact we are presently living in Oslo while she is on temp assignment at her corp headqtrs. So I stepped back since at this point with only 8 yrs until official retirement age, it makes little sense to relocate and for both of us to start a new job and take on the resultant expenses and a big mortgage or huge rent pmt. Our home is modest but my pmt is under $500/mo and it is nearly paid off and we have no other debt. Financially we are not great but okay. Retirement saving have taken a bit of hit without my contributions to a 401k, but we do max out my wife's. Plus my finance courses definitely sunk in and have me on the right track for our investments... gained back everything lost in '08, plus... just so happened I was taking finance in fall of '07 and risk mgmt in summer of '08!
@Cheryl - I thought I could step into a low to mid level associate position leading to a management position, same as any other MBA grad - pretty much anything other than retail, PR or sales... tech support, commercial banking, fuels/energy... my experience is chem eng'g but a great deal of my work was project management - I designed and built several new facilities from site work to on-going operation support. As for my resume, it is pretty much all about accomplishments... kind of hard to hide what I've done... otherwise it would be blank. Over the last 5 yrs in my job, I designed and built processes and plants more than anything else. I took over IT/IS mgmt as well - did some work myself, hired out and managed the rest - again, a good deal was project oriented. My project mgmt background got me the MBA internship via a connection to the company, it lead to a temp consulting job for an aquaculture business feasibility study. I was later on the short list at the University for a mechanical R&D/engineering assoc program mgmt position, but a major contract fell through and they canceled the job. On the brightside, unemployment allowed us to go to Oslo which is going to be a good thing for my wife in the long run.
66 weeks ago
@Cheryl - I thought I could step into a low to mid level associate position leading to a management position, same as any other MBA grad - pretty much anything other than retail, PR or sales... tech support, commercial banking, fuels/energy... my experience is chem eng'g but a great deal of my work was project management - I designed and built several new facilities from site work to on-going operation support. As for my resume, it is pretty much all about accomplishments... kind of hard to hide what I've done... otherwise it would be blank. Over the last 5 yrs in my job, I designed and built processes and plants more than anything else. I took over IT/IS mgmt as well - did some work myself, hired out and managed the rest - again, a good deal was project oriented. My project mgmt background got me the MBA internship via a connection to the company, it lead to a temp consulting job for an aquaculture business feasibility study. I was later on the short list at the University for a mechanical R&D/engineering assoc program mgmt position, but a major contract fell through and they canceled the job. On the brightside, unemployment allowed us to go to Oslo which is going to be a good thing for my wife in the long run.
66 weeks ago
Tom
It has been a week since I last visited here due to real life activities that consume priority time... and I am not even working! But as I look back, I see last week as rather normal. This leads me to wonder if part of the issue is that as we get older we have more of our real lives to deal with and have less time to spend sitting in front of a computer socializing. Younger people generally do not yet have children, aging parents, our aging selves, or even an aging house...
Andrew Hill:
As one ages roles in society tend to change. With that said I would hesitate to state that you must be older to be in your position. Many younger ...MoreAs one ages roles in society tend to change. With that said I would hesitate to state that you must be older to be in your position. Many younger people have ailing relatives, mothers, fathers and are taking care of them at young ages. I do agree with the random people on here and the lack of depth. I've had an account on here since it started up and only come here every month or two to use it a little. I find that frequently people here are just complaining or too close minded to be able to look at different perspectives besides their own. I feel that many posters here are a bit out of touch with reality, especially all that are in their 20s and already claiming the ability to be a "life coach"...
With that said, I tend to joke I'm on the computer 26 hours a day, I'm an entrepreneur who does online business so having the computer around is pretty important.
67 weeks ago
With that said, I tend to joke I'm on the computer 26 hours a day, I'm an entrepreneur who does online business so having the computer around is pretty important.
67 weeks ago
Edward Antrobus:
@Tom, I hear you. Sometimes I feel like I must be doing something wrong to be busy and out of time when I don't even have a job.
@Cheryl, Brazen, ...More@Tom, I hear you. Sometimes I feel like I must be doing something wrong to be busy and out of time when I don't even have a job.
@Cheryl, Brazen, like any other platform, seems to go in phases. Last week it was bustling on here, as it was in the u30pro group on facebook. This week, both places are rather inactive.
67 weeks ago
@Cheryl, Brazen, ...More@Tom, I hear you. Sometimes I feel like I must be doing something wrong to be busy and out of time when I don't even have a job.
@Cheryl, Brazen, like any other platform, seems to go in phases. Last week it was bustling on here, as it was in the u30pro group on facebook. This week, both places are rather inactive.
67 weeks ago
Tom
I just joined the group and am wondering... is anybody here? I see 3 posts by the leader and a few replies by only one other. So tell me, is social networking for boomers a fruitless effort?
Jonathan S. Ross:
@Tom: I think that by simply joining this site and looking for ways to become active, at least you are ahead of the curve. Brazen Careerist seems ...More@Tom: I think that by simply joining this site and looking for ways to become active, at least you are ahead of the curve. Brazen Careerist seems to me, at least, to have initially been focused largely on the 30 years old and under crowd, but I'm actually Gen X and a few years older, and there are also definitely some people ages 50+ on the site too.
BC has a different feel than either LinkedIn or Facebook; to me, it feels more like a "niche" site, and I've noticed that many of us are self-employed or otherwise very entrepreneurial. Truthfully, with social media, it seems that one has to spend a fairly substantial amount of time and energy to establish a presence and build credibility before any real ROI can be analyzed, and that ROI may not necessarily directly translate into financial revenue.
For me, juggling the time that I can afford to spend in front of a computer "networking" when I have a life outside of this is the challenge; I've actually spent over 4 years on LinkedIn and built a fairly solid presence and credibility there; now I'm trying to do the same on Facebook (which I initially resisted because I wasn't interested in sharing my personal life to any large degree), making occasional use of Twitter (I'm still struggling to figure out the best use for me, despite the fact I've attracted some "followers"), and interjecting myself into these BC threads...
68 weeks ago
BC has a different feel than either LinkedIn or Facebook; to me, it feels more like a "niche" site, and I've noticed that many of us are self-employed or otherwise very entrepreneurial. Truthfully, with social media, it seems that one has to spend a fairly substantial amount of time and energy to establish a presence and build credibility before any real ROI can be analyzed, and that ROI may not necessarily directly translate into financial revenue.
For me, juggling the time that I can afford to spend in front of a computer "networking" when I have a life outside of this is the challenge; I've actually spent over 4 years on LinkedIn and built a fairly solid presence and credibility there; now I'm trying to do the same on Facebook (which I initially resisted because I wasn't interested in sharing my personal life to any large degree), making occasional use of Twitter (I'm still struggling to figure out the best use for me, despite the fact I've attracted some "followers"), and interjecting myself into these BC threads...
68 weeks ago
Blay Whitby:
I'm here Tom - and geographically a long way off. Net savvy? Some of us are. I had a homepage on the Internet before there was web. Those who ...MoreI'm here Tom - and geographically a long way off. Net savvy? Some of us are. I had a homepage on the Internet before there was web. Those who waited for the web made a good choice. I built a home computer from a kit in 1979 - before IBM thought of the PC - and I was a postgrad student back then, not a teenager. Those who bought the Apple II instead made a good choice. I sent my first email in 1981 and joined Facebook in 2006. Brazen is very good but all this technology doesn't work miracles. If my previous experience is anything to go by, it will get better.
68 weeks ago
68 weeks ago
Jim Taggart
Hi folks,
Every day we read negative news about the economy and the labor market. How are people coping? How are you dealing with Boomerang kids (been there, done that -- twice). What's your next gig?
Rebecca Thorman and Bryon Ownby recommended this
Jim Taggart
As a long-practicing economist who follows the business news very closely, and one who's retiring in two months but hoping to continue working in some form, I pose the question to my fellow Boomers:
Because of the horrendous impact on Gen Y from the Great Recession and the likely drawn out very modest recovery, should we be exiting the labor force sooner than later in order to mitigate the effects on young people?
Jim Taggart:
Indeed. Pass the Alka Seltzer. Seems that flameouts can do comebacks, though if I were a politician I'd keep my distance from Fiorina.
87 weeks ago
87 weeks ago
JRandom42:
Back when I was working with and for H-P, they were still the giant of Silicon Valley that everyone looked to for leadership. Even if their ...MoreBack when I was working with and for H-P, they were still the giant of Silicon Valley that everyone looked to for leadership. Even if their management was slow in deciding, and sometimes they missed important trends, there was a seriousness and a look to the long view that you didn't see very much, even in companies like Oracle, Sun, Cisco, and the internet startups. You got the sense that they were in it for the long haul and that, by treating their people right, and making sure there was a consensus in decision making, that they wanted to make sure they got things right, not just for now, but for the next 20 or 50 years.
One thing that almost everyone seems to forget, is that both Bill and Dave were hard-nosed, clear-eyed, businessmen-engineers. The "H-P Way" was a method of doing business that put their faith in the smart people they hired, and making sure any decisions that were made, were the right ones for the right reasons.
H-P was special, and I'll never forgive Carly for turning it into "just another company."
87 weeks ago
One thing that almost everyone seems to forget, is that both Bill and Dave were hard-nosed, clear-eyed, businessmen-engineers. The "H-P Way" was a method of doing business that put their faith in the smart people they hired, and making sure any decisions that were made, were the right ones for the right reasons.
H-P was special, and I'll never forgive Carly for turning it into "just another company."
87 weeks ago
Jim Taggart
I just completed 2 weeks of volunteer work at the Ottawa Bluesfest, ranked as the 7th largest music festival worldwide. In contrast to the Ottawa Folk and Jazz Festivals where I also volunteer, the Bluesfest covers a wide age range. Depending on the headliner act each day (eg, Santana, Drake, Great Big Sea, Weezer or Iron Maiden), it was intriguing to see how the hair color changed. I also enjoyed working with many Gen Yers, who don't attend the other festivals to the same degree.
Jim Taggart
Recently back from almost two weeks away during Christmas, where we spent time with our two granddaughters in New Brunswick and also visited the outlaws. Now that was an example of Zooming around. Think I'll stay put next Christmas.
Jim Taggart:
Everyone's welcome, Becky :-)
I suppose we should be calling ourselves "Zoomers" now, which is the term popularized for those early-mid forties ...MoreEveryone's welcome, Becky :-)
I suppose we should be calling ourselves "Zoomers" now, which is the term popularized for those early-mid forties to seniors. Some days I don't feel like zooming around!
124 weeks ago
I suppose we should be calling ourselves "Zoomers" now, which is the term popularized for those early-mid forties ...MoreEveryone's welcome, Becky :-)
I suppose we should be calling ourselves "Zoomers" now, which is the term popularized for those early-mid forties to seniors. Some days I don't feel like zooming around!
124 weeks ago
Jim Taggart
Back home after 3 great weeks of vacation in New England and New Brunswick. Now to figure out where I'm going with all of this cyber stuff.
Jim Taggart
Hey folks. Coming to you today from beautiful North Conway, New Hamshire-85F. White Mountains gorgeous. Tomorrow Bangor, Maine.
GenerationXpert Suzanne Kart
I'm curious how many actual Boomers are in this Boom Boom Room?
Tom Guarriello:
This is an excellent question. You left this comment in the Blazing Boomers group, not the Boom Boom Room but it's relevant just the same.
142 weeks ago
142 weeks ago
Jim Taggart
We can all collectively whine, but those who lived through the Depression and WWII were the ones who sacrificed fir us. Thanks JRandom42.
Jim Taggart
I hear ya, Angelo. My dad was a Scottish immigrant to Canada. He was a hard-ass, and being the oldest of two sons didn't make it any easier.
Jim Taggart
Angelo,
Not sure your age or your issue, but if all's well, great. If not, try having a Scottish immigrant father. Check out the forum.
:
My dad was from Italy. My point is Boomers are the strictest parents to me but they raised to great generations. X & Y.
142 weeks ago
142 weeks ago
JRandom42:
You think it's rough, try having my parents who went through WW2 in the interment camps.
142 weeks ago
142 weeks ago
Jim Taggart
For some clarity and an attempted objective perspective, check out my new post on Gen X and Y: http://ChangingWinds.wordpress.com
GenerationXpert Suzanne Kart:
I'm assuming you mean you have Boomer parents. So do I ....
142 weeks ago
142 weeks ago
GenerationXpert Suzanne Kart:
I actually get along great with Boomers. More so now that I'm a parent. Once you're a parent, you bond with other parents - whatever age.
142 weeks ago
142 weeks ago
GenerationXpert Suzanne Kart
Question: Do you think Boomers understand Xers better now - and have more empathy for them?
I do.
Jim Taggart:
Do you mean in the context of the past two years of economic and financial turmoil? Not sure. Do Xers appreciate Boomers more? Doubt it.
142 weeks ago
142 weeks ago
:
I believe Boomers and Xers have cooled down with each other.
They may never be as comfortable but I'm sure Xers and Boomers found ground.
142 weeks ago
142 weeks ago
Jim Taggart
Regarding the photo for this group, it's of Campobello Island (Canada)in the Bay of Fundy (beside Maine). Summer home of FDR.
Jim Taggart
Question: was hitting age 40 or 50 more traumatic for you? For me it was when I reached 40. I got into adventure stuff for a while.
GenerationXpert Suzanne Kart:
I'm not a Boomer, but some of my best friends are :) I'll be 40 in 1.5 years. I just want to get it over with. I hear it's great.
142 weeks ago
142 weeks ago
Recent Network Activity
Cheryl Lynn Morris said Back in the late 70s/early 80s, I read in Psychology Today about Dr. Ira Progoff's Intensive ...Cheryl Lynn Morris said Back in the late 70s/early 80s, I read in Psychology Today about Dr. Ira Progoff's Intensive ...Cheryl Lynn Morris said Back in the late 70s/early 80s, I read in Psychology Today about Dr. Ira Progoff's Intensive ...