Becoming a Life Change Artist

08/26/2010 - 05:17:16pm

Career books often tell us that we should learn from successful leaders in business, the nonprofit sector or government. But in their new book, Becoming a Life Change Artist, Fred Mandell and Kathleen Jordan argue that we could all benefit from studying the processes used by visionary artists like Picasso and Leonardo da Vinci – sound advice for anyone preparing for an encore career.

Experience an Asset for Social Innovators

08/24/2010 - 12:11:33pm

Last week I wrote an OpEd for Reuters.com on why age and experience can be advantageous for social entrepreneurs. It's part of a series on social entrepreneurship on the Reuters "Entrepreneurial: Grow Your Own" blog, and it includes examples of several individuals in encore careers:

Have a look.

Wellness Coaches Use Experience to Advantage

08/21/2010 - 02:24:54am

As people age and continue to live active lives, their interest in living well becomes more important than living longer. After all, no one is too excited about longevity if all that it means is a couple of extra decades of decline. Meanwhile, as employers try to keep a lid on health care costs, they look to ways to support employees in remaining healthy and to help those who have chronic disease improve their well-being.

Expert Offers Tips on Financing Your Encore

06/10/2010 - 12:51:47am

For those of us trying to plan financially for the life stage formerly known as retirement, Mark Miller’s new book, The Hard Times Guide to Retirement Security, is required reading. My eyes tend to glaze over when I read about concepts like 401(k)s or annuities, but Miller has a gift for sifting through the available information and distilling it into clear, easy-to-understand advice. Here are some of his insights during a recent conversation.

Shirley Sagawa: What National Service Could Do

05/17/2010 - 02:06:39pm

Imagine a nation that serves. A nation where every year a million citizens serve in full-time national service and a hundred million more volunteer a hundred hours a year in their own communities. Every town has well-trained disaster response volunteers, and every student can succeed because of extra help from a team of AmeriCorps members or committed community tutors.

Whole regions are organized to reduce their energy consumption and improve their environment. Whole communities are engaged in healthy behaviors. Older adults live at home rather than in institutions because they have the help they need. Young children enter school ready to learn. Every immigrant is able to become integrated into the community and become economically successful, is able to speak English and is on the road to citizenship. --The American Way of Change

9 Tips for Preparing for the Jobs of the Future

03/21/2010 - 07:54:56pm

It might be hard to believe in the midst of this enduring recession, but once the economy stabilizes, we will likely be moving from a job crisis to a talent shortage. A new research report sponsored by Civic Ventures and MetLife Foundation predicts that in less than 10 years, there will be more jobs than people to fill them. And nearly half of them – roughly 2.4 million – will be in social sector jobs. At the same time, according to companion reports on health care, green jobs and education, new kinds of jobs – such as energy auditors, chronic illness coaches and sustainability consultants – will become increasingly common.

Could You Live With Half - of Anything?

03/18/2010 - 02:16:23pm

"We didn't set out to be obnoxious consuming yuppies," said Kevin Salwen, as he opened the discussion of the book he wrote with his daughter, Hannah, The Power of Half at a New York City bookstore one snowy night in February. The room was filled with people who had come to hear about how Salwen and his family decided to sell their Atlanta mansion, move to a home half the size, and donate half the sales price - about $800,000 - to The Hunger Project to help villagers in Ghana.

Chris Farrell: Living Frugally Frees You to Live Better

02/10/2010 - 05:19:33pm

Chris Farrell is drawing big crowds as he tours the U.S. to promote his new book, The New Frugality, which paints a picture of a seismic shift in our society away from unfettered spending, toward healthier financial habits. In a conversation with Civic Ventures Senior Fellow Marci Alboher, he explains why changing your attitude toward money can also help you live a good life that reflects your personal values and may help you find your true calling - in, perhaps, your encore career.

Marc Freedman, founder of Civic Ventures, calls Farrell's book "a roadmap to a better life and a better future." Freedman recently heard Farrell address a crowd in Northern California. "Speaking in front of a roaring fire," says Freedman, "Farrell laid out his vision for the great changes, already under way, that will produce a more sustainable lifestyle in America over the coming decades.

A Conversation With Dan Pink

01/19/2010 - 05:05:47pm

Dan Pink's latest book, Drive, turns traditional thinking about how organizations motivate people (and how we try to motivate ourselves) on its head. After studying the scientific research on motivation, Pink came to the conclusion that what science knows about how to motivate people is entirely different than what organizations do.

If more of the world starts paying attention to Pink's ideas, we should be seeing fewer carrots and sticks, and a lot more recognition that people are motivated by intrinsic forces like the desire for autonomy and mastery, as well as the quest to be part of something bigger than themselves, which Pink calls purpose. Sound familiar?

Test Drive Our New Get Started Guide

12/01/2009 - 09:58:41am

It's clear that lots of people have warmed to the idea of encore careers and have an interest in getting started. But as Civic Ventures founder Marc Freedman always says, finding work that provides both money and meaning is still a do-it-yourself project without many established pathways. That's why I recently joined Civic Ventures -- to help figure out new ways to help people as they move into encore careers.

As I settled into my new position here, I was thrilled to get my hands on the new Get Started Guide, which is loaded with useful information and resources for anyone eager to create an encore career. The Guide begins with some basics on how to think about mid-career transitions as well as specifically transitioning to the nonprofit sector. It continues with solid job-hunting tips and targeted advice for those over 50.