Editor’s note: Dr. Frank Benest is the retired city manager of Palo Alto, Calif. Read about his own encore journey here.

More than 50 active and recently retired city managers and their partners participated in a workshop called “Crafting Your Next Life Phase: Strategies for Self-Renewal,” a first effort to develop an encore manager initiative for city government managers.

The workshop was conducted by the California City Management Foundation (CCMF) last month at its convening in Carlsbad, Calif., and was cosponsored by the California chapter of the International City/County Management Association (Cal-ICMA).

There are plenty of chances to learn more about encore careers in coming weeks, whether it's listening to a speaker or diving into the nitty-gritty of what's involved in finding your own purpose-driven job.

Here are some upcoming events that offer an opportunity to learn more. You can also visit Encore.org's Events Calendar. See our Midlife Transition Groups blog to learn more about organizations that help members find encore careers. If you want to start your own group, see our Encore Careers Meeting Toolkit.

CALIFORNIA

San Francisco

Tuesday-Wednesday, February 23-24, and Tuesday, March 23, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., 881 Turk St., San Francisco. Coming Of Age: Bay Area, an initiative to help people 50+ explore their future, promote their connection and contribution, and build stronger nonprofits, will hold its first Learning Lab in San Francisco. Called "Capturing the Energy and Expertise of People Age 50+," this three-day intensive training offers staff development to nonprofit professionals, culminating in a doable, outcomes-drive action plan. Individualized follow-up consultation is provided. Participation in all three sessions is required. Space is limited. For information about pricing and registration, contact Janet Oh at joh@ncphs.org or (415) 474-7787, ext. 19.

The Encore Careers Telebriefing held March 3 is available to download for free here.

The 45-minute session offers practical tips on finding an encore career that combines continued income doing work that has personal meaning and social impact. It features Marci Alboher, our in-house encore careers specialist; Erin O’Connor Jones, an expert on transitions to the nonprofit sector with the Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group; and Mark Noonan, whose encore career involves working at Elders in Action in Portland, Ore.

By Guest Blogger and Purpose Prize fellow, Ellen Silber

Encore careers are motivated by passion! Look closely at your immediate world and the larger one around you, and you’re almost sure to find a problem, a cause, a group of people that need the kind of help that you can give. Take stock of your lifetime of experience and the skills you have developed. Then comes the most difficult part: taking action! Find some like-minded people or begin on your own; others will follow.

Prior to my encore career as the founder of Mentoring Latinas, a support program for local Latina students, I was teaching women’s studies, doing gender equity research and running a leadership workshop for adolescent girls.

Cinde Dolphin of Sacramento thought it would be easy to get another job after she took a buyout from her marketing position with Coors. After months of searching, she started her own marketing and public relations firm. Norberto Bogard created a Spanish entertainment guide to New York City after he lost his job as a reporter for a Spanish-language financial news program.

Both are among the fast-growing group of entrepreneurs over age 55 that are the focus of a March 4 report in The New York Times by Steven Greenhouse. According to the Small Business Administration, the number of self-employed people ages 55 to 64 rose 52 percent between 2000 and 2007.

Marc Freedman, founder of Civic Ventures, told Greenhouse that would-be entrepreneurs shouldn’t be deceived by money magazines that make it look as though “all you need is a new idea, that you wander out there, you run your own B&B, you start your nonprofit and all the birds are singing.”

They aren’t household terms yet, says Phyllis Segal, vice president at Civic Ventures, but many jobs are emerging that are a natural fit for people seeking careers in midlife that combine continued income with social impact.

“Many of today’s new encore careers build on multiple work and life experiences, so they are a good match for older adults who’ve spent decades in the workplace,” Segal told Elizabeth Pope of The New York Times. She urges individuals to get up to speed for coming job opportunities through community colleges, online courses and workshops.

One person who did just that is Mark Davis, 51, of Washington, D.C., a former title company owner. When he found out there weren’t many solar installation companies in his city, Pope writes, he decided to start one. He attended the Green Encore solar training at Ohlone College in Fremont, Calif., this year, then launched WDC Solar in his encore career.

Is your two-year institution preparing boomers for encore careers in education and health care? It could be one of six community colleges nationwide to be awarded a 2010 Encore Career Community College grant. Apply online. The deadline is April 12, 2010.

Each $25,000 grant supports programs that match the skills and interests of experienced adults with high-need careers in education and health.

Coming of Age will launch in the San Francisco Bay Area on Thursday, March 4, with a grand opening party that is open to the public. Coming of Age: Bay Area joins a national movement that is capturing and utilizing the expertise and energy of people 50+ as a force for social good.

Community colleges are creating new and more flexible pathways to becoming second-career teachers. That’s good news for prospective encore teachers who balk at the requirements of traditional teaching colleges, many of which require four years of full-time study even for those who already have a college degree.

Four-year teaching institutions are still the norm for most, but more alternative pathways to teacher certification are popping up around the country. Many are run by community colleges. These alternative programs often move candidates into their own classrooms after a shorter period of training while continuing studies on nights and weekends. Many pack other benefits as well, such as increased flexibility.

A web site that lists 97 nonprofit job boards, fellowships for “education entrepreneurs” and a scholarship program for women over age 40 seeking new job skills and training are among the new opportunities and resources available to individuals seeking encore careers.

• “The Ultimate Nonprofit Job Guide” is featured on GuidetoOnlineSchools.com, whose goal is “to be the most comprehensive authority on distance learning and online education.” The Nonprofit Job Guide lists 97 job boards specializing in nonprofit positions, with the top 10 highlighted at the top.
  by: Terry Nagel | Read more >>