In my Inspired Employee blog there are so many issues that affect us as workers, older workers, communicators, and people from many generations. In this blog, age is one of the many factors that contribute to a diverse workforce, along with culture, location, background, education, outlook, experience and more. The challenge? I like this challenge from AARP, discuss what you love about your life and submit it for a chance to win the contest. The deadline has passed (Sept 5) but here is the information, look for something similar at the AARP shindig next year. By the way, many bloggers (example)have contributed and they paint a picture of vibrancy and happiness after 50. So our age group, is defying being shut away and retiring quietly. We will keep contributing because we are good at that!

Are you over 50 and loving your life? Are you passionate about community, travel and meeting people. Are you a regular blogger and big user of social media?
This is your chance to blog your way to AARP’s Orlando@50+ event, a gathering of 25,000 AARP members for three full days of exhibits, concerts, and wide ranging information sessions including health, fitness, travel, sex and relationships, volunteering, technology skills, and much more, along with three full nights of events and meet-ups. Orlando@50 runs from September 30-October 3 in, you guessed it, Orlando.
This is a chance to be the eyes and ears of AARPs membership, sharing news, information and stories with those unable to attend the event and to have a great time doing it! You will have a media pass to the event and the opportunity to meet and interview high profile speakers.

What is so good about being over 50?

I am enjoying life more and more each day because…. I have priorities, I know that health is a “gift” and my optimism from my youth is now a substantial part of my everyday life. I love my job as a writer and working with new ideas inspires me, my job needs curiosity, experience and relationship building. My skills have been built over the years, but everyday there is something new to learn. I love this  time we live in – full of innovations, new ideas, collaboration. As an “older working” I have the opportunity to learn and grow and offer my experience and capability to the newcomers in our company. We honor our experienced workers and we are called upon to contribute to the success of our company.  It takes a clear and conscious effort to eliminate the OLDER /YOUNGER generational divide in a company. Your efforts are rewarded, because US / THEM is replaced with WE. A place where everyone can contribute.

By the way, AARP has many articles published online about older workers, volunteer service, training for something new, and how to get your dream job. Check it out, it is a wealth of information. Like this…. Kick Start your Job Hunt.

• Do you have team members doing this now? Does your company support them?

What can your company do, and why? The answer is …when an employee is pulled in 10 directions and trying to handle this huge task alone, they are not effective at work. There are many ways a company can help:

• Aging Seminars
• Support Groups
• EAP – Employee assistance plans
• Flexible hours
• Work at home
• Reduced work load
• Time off, leave of absence for critical times and family support

History, more information  and opportunities  for employers, employees

Elder Services became more visible n in 1997 with research into how best to serve the 77 million baby boomers who would move into the over-60 population over the next three decades without incurring unnecessary levels of risk.

One surprise: In a recent survey of banking customers, they listed life-management issues—not financial needs—as four of their top five wealth priorities; these focused on:

• Elders wish to stay in their homes
• Elders wish to live independently

Many companies are developing  programs that addresses both wealth and life management issues at the same time. To meet the elder goals, there are several facets to explore and changes to put into motion to help the elders in our families. Top areas to consider are: making homes safe, updating homes with equipment and enhancements to make security and safety easy to monitor, providing nutrional counseling, getting financial forms in order, making sure that health / financial / legal forms are completed (updated) such as wills, trusts, medical orders, powers of attorney, planning. This process is a long one, and priorities do change. There are services to help family members deal with hospitals, long term care, home remodeling and financial / legal services.  Make sure to check out any services providers / contractors and get references, and set milestones and review work often.

“It’s obviously important that we address these issues because they are what matter to our clients and their life goals,” a local banker mentioned. “When we go to clients and try to discover what they are dealing with in their lives, we learn about a lot of different things. That’s where the cross-selling opportunities come in. It all starts with listening and better understanding their lives.”

We hope all our friends, clients and supporters can join us October 7, 2010 for an afternoon of good food, live music, a photo booth, children’s entertainment and campus tours–all free of charge.  Please plan to join us to help celebrate JobTrain’s success!

• Live music
• Barbecue
• Photo Booth
• JobTrain guided tours
• Kid zone
• Magician/Clown
• Balloon animals

Contact Rebecca for more details at (650) 330-6419 or rgourevitch@jobtrainworks.org.
 

• Move from passive learning (spoon-fed) to active learning.
• Translate materials into thought questions with your group (like the questions for reading groups at the back of books).
• Questions help build a frame of reference for people to organize the facts they learn, so try to make them positive and flexible.
• People are conditioned to think that materials do NOT mirror their interests. When you see that BORING! look on faces during a presentation, try to get participation and generate interest.
• You can play devil’s advocate. Get a discussion going.

More information – Critical Thinking in a Wiki

There are many examples of activities that MUST have clear rules (time-keeping, behavior, taking time off, this is an example of Records Retention which everyone has experienced while working at an office or at home). Lists are an important way to communicate a DO THIS / DON’T DO THIS. And that is your goal. Make it clear. Your team wants to do the right thing, and even if there are many parts to the communication — take the time to get it right!

Try out this Example: We have many requirements around records retention. MANY requirements. It is easy to get it wrong and the consequences to the company are very high. To ensure success:

• We have discussions
• Meetings that include questions and answuers
• Reviews to check that everyone got it right
• Presentations on this records retention, which have pictures and examples
• Sometimes we even take tests on our knowledge

Many companies don’t need this level of detail. It does need to be clear though and it should be written and posted if it is a core part of your business. Try looking at this list and see if you have a plan for these types of documents that
NEED TO BE SAVED:

1. Signed originals of contracts
2. Documents in loan files designated as official records
3. Data in systems of record designated as official records

DO NOT NEED TO BE SAVED:

1. Duplicate or “convenience” copies of official records
2. Document drafts that have been superseded by approved, official versions
3. Published literature
4. Catalogs
5. Trade journals
6. Correspondence
7. Externally created reference material

Bail was set at $2500, and Slater is being charged with 2nd- and 4th-degree criminal mischief, 1st- and 2nd-degree reckless endangerment and criminal trespass in the 3rd degree. Wow, that is an expensive way to blow off a ton of anger.

After he was bonked in the head by a bag, Steven Slater stunned passengers by spewing profanity and ranting about quitting as the flight from Pittsburgh pulled up to the gate about noon.

“it’s been a good 28 years…”

The steward activating the emergency exit, and after tossing his two carry-on bags on the slide, he followed them to the tarmac.

Slater walked to the AirTrain, stripped off his company uniform jacket and tie and flung it as passengers watched.

“I wish we could all quit our jobs like that,” said passenger Phil Catelinet, 36, of Brooklyn, who was on the flight and the AirTrain. “He seemed kind of happy about it. He was like, ‘I just quit my job.’ ”

Port Authority police said it took jetBlue 25 minutes to report the incident, allowing Slater time to leave the scene.

Read more

Dear Friends,
We at Operation: Care and Comfort were so excited to announce that we crossed the 600,000 pounds shipped mark last month! Over 300 TONS shipped! Our work is not done. Our troops are still deployed and they need our support. We have started to receive the donated items from the nationwide Old Navy stores drive. As of today, we have 80 HUGE pallets of donations delivered, with more to come. So, we are going to have the largest packing party we have ever held- over a 6 day period! Our Packing Palooza!

Starting Tuesday August 24th and ending Sunday August 29th, hundreds of volunteers will be needed to help move, stage, sort, pack, and prepare everything to ship! Because we will be using heavy equipment, volunteers must be aged 12 and older. This is a great team building opportunity for churches, schools, companies and organizations, as well as required community service hours.

Please help us get the word out! I have attached a simple flyer you can forward, print, and post. If your company pays you for volunteer hours, please come out and support the cause! If you want to help by bringing snacks, etc. to share, great! We need folks to help any way they can.

The 45-50 pound boxes we pack will be stored and we will address them over the next few months, by the hundreds! We may need a storage facility to house them, so that’s another way to help. Contributions towards mailing costs are also needed and appreciated. It is over $1 a pound to ship our care packages!

Please contact me if you wish to help, and to RSVP! Thanks, in advance, for your support! We will be posting this information on our Facebook page, too, so please join us and forward it on!

Julie
Operation: Care and Comfort
www.operationcareandcomfort.org
(408) 373-8635

Where:
CA National Guard Armory
251 W. Hedding Street, San Jose 95110
Tuesday: 12:00 pm
military volunteers and tough guys/gals needed to move/stage all pallets inside Armory building. Packing boxes will need to be picked up and brought to Armory from OCC storage.
Wednesday: 12:00 – 7:00 pm
Thursday: 7:30 am – 7:00 pm
Friday: 7:30 am – 7:00 pm
Saturday: 7:30 am – 7:00 pm
Sunday: 7:30 am – 7:00 pm (unless we are finished early – fingers crossed!)
–
Thank you for Supporting our Troops!
Operation: Care and Comfort (military care package program)
troopsupport@comcast.net
www.operationcareandcomfort.org
————————

The Daily News
c/o Unsung Heroes
255 Constituiontion Drive
Menlo Park, CA 94025-1108

OR email: unsungheroes@dailynewsgroup.com

The Daily News will print the names of nominees with the testimonials, then ask for readers to vote for choices. The results will be printed in a Pull-out section in the newspaper, with the profiles of the Peninsula’s unsung heroes.

What a great idea for community acknowledgement and recognition. Does your paper do this? It would be easy to start a tradition using the Daily News as a shinning example!!  Contact the Editor at baydailynews.com for more information.

Step 2: Create a list of career and job choices to explore
• Analyze
o Results from self-assessment
• Determine
o Possible career and job choices based on wants, needs, and results from self-assessment

Step 3: Research each potential job choice
• Review job description
• Identify required skills and competencies
• Identify gaps in skills and experience
• Consider tangible and intangible benefits
• Complete informational interviewing and networking around those positions

Step 4: Develop a Career Action Plan
• Set short term and long term goals based on career choices
o Identify potential pitfalls and what you can do to prevent them
• Create an action plan to meet career goals

CAUTION! >>THREE Warnings!

• Don’t make a career change in reaction to one or two negative experiences on the job
• Don’t make a career change solely based on money
• Don’t change careers without researching all options

 What makes you love coming to work is important. It is different for everyone. Start with this list and customize it to fit you.

• Make a list of what is making you happy at work.
• Indicate which items are related to the organization, your department, your specific job.
• Identify what is needed to change or improve your satisfaction, such as:

1. Additional/less responsibilities
2. Learning opportunities
3. Additional/less challenges
4. Working in a team or being an individual contributor
5. Starting on new projects or maintaining things you know
6. Traveling and going to different stores/branches
7. Being part of a  team that is cross-trained and multi-functional

To take charge of your career and move it in the direction YOU want to go, you can talk to your manager, find a mentor, get more training, apply for a different position and collaborate with others that are making and reaching their goals.