Hello {!firstname}:

Yesterday I turned sixty, or as my friend Sue says, I've joined the sexty club. :-)

I tried every which way but Sunday to join Richard on his latest trip to Europe this week to celebrate, but his schedule was so up in the air, we just couldn't make it happen.

So, you know me. No grass grows under my feet! I decided what I would love most is a personal retreat to reflect on my life -- past, present, and future -- with plenty of pampering built in. I booked myself into Kripalu for the week, and I'm having the most joyous, relaxing, self-indulgent week, and loving every minute of it.

I'll share this year's annual birthday ritual with you in the next issue. And, as the year progresses, I'll keep you posted on all the many ways I plan to celebrate.

To your endless possibilities (and many, many, many more birthdays)!

Lin Schreiber, Retirement Revolutionary
 

Retire Retirement Boot Camp: Basic Training for the Rest of Your Life has been confirmed at Kripalu Yoga & Health Center the weekend of November 13 - 15. Mark your calendars.

This is not to be confused with the upcoming Revolutionize Retirement: Design a Remarkable Rest of Your Life (formerly Boomer Boot Camp), also at Kripalu, the weekend of June 19 - 21. This is a highly creative, personal growth workshop that (as you can see from last year's participants) is fun, fun, fun!

The response to the Costa Rica retreat, Older, Bolder & Better, has been really encouraging. So many of you loved the trip Hibiscus Tours put together, thought the pricing was excellent, and would have loved to be there in March.

But alas, the timing has understandably caused a lot of you to invest your money in other areas of your life right now. Not to worry! Costa Rica has been rescheduled to 2010. We'll firm up dates by the end of summer, early fall at the latest, and you can start putting some money away now. :-)

Meanwhile, to those of you who were signed up and raring to go, take a look at the quote of the week, and accept my sincere apology for disappointing you.
 

Retired Before Your Time? Three Hot Job Search Tips in a Down Economy

by Lin Schreiber, Retirement Coach

You've been told you're "retiring", and while you certainly don't want to stop working, with the state of the economy, you now have to work.

Your confidence is badly shaken, the job market is shrinking, and you’re at an age where conventional wisdom says you're unemployable.

Make you want to give up? Don’t!

While you can't do anything about the diminishing number of jobs out there, you can confidently fly in the face of conventional wisdom. Throw out all those boring, conventional ways to go about getting a job. The expression "If you never stick your neck out, they'll never see you above the crowd" was never truer.

So, get your creative juices going and have some fun with these recession-busting job hunting tips:

1. Be Ageless. If you think your age is going to be a problem, I guarantee you it will be. If you can focus on all that you have to offer and be confident in that, you'll be golden.
   
   When I first moved to Boston, I decided an internship was my best entre into local TV. I was in my early forties, and yes, anyone I would be interning with would be at least half my age, but it never occurred to me that my age would be a road block.
   
   Being interviewed by a cocky 20-something male at the new Fox station, I was floored when he asked me if I wasn't "a little long in the tooth" to be going for an internship. I calmly told him that I had sat on his side of the desk, and if I had my choice between a 20-something whose primary concern was who she was going out with on Saturday night, or someone like me who had 20 years of solid business experience to bring to the table, I'd hire me in a heart beat.
   
   On my way out, he told me he'd like me to meet his boss, because I was so "fantastic". I told him, I was going to Channel 5 where they appreciated "age"!
    
2. Get Rid of the Box. In my 30s, I was living in New York City, running my own marketing and public relations firm, and getting a little bored.
   
   My life-long dream of acting was bubbling to the surface again, so I signed up for some classes, and plunked down $300 for an AFTRA card (in those days, the only requirement for eligibility.) To be eligible for my SAG and Equity cards, I needed three days of extra work or one principle role in an AFTRA production. I figured getting a principle role was a long shot, so I decided to go for extra work on one of the 9 soap operas being produced in the city.
   
   Now, "the" way of doing that was to send your headshot and resume to the casting directors, and then follow that up with a weekly postcard with your head shot for the rest of your life, or a hundred and twelve years, whichever came last.
   
   I figured I had nothing to lose by being totally outrageous. I had custom fortune cookies made that said "For extra work, call Lin at 555-1212." I filled Chinese food cartons with the fortune cookies, placed each box in a brown paper bag, and stapled each bag with a sheet from my local Chinese delivery place, and spent two days hand-delivering them around town.
   
   At the end of the first day, I arrived home to this message from the casting director of All My Children: "Lin, you are totally insane, and I just have to meet you. Call me ASAP." Within two months, I had my SAG and Equity cards.
    
3. Be Bold. My TV internship led to work at the local ABC affiliate. I really wanted to work at the PBS station, and everyone "knew" that it was impossible to break in.
   
   Once a week, I'd go through their job book. I applied for some Production Assistant jobs, and was convinced after my first interview that it would take years to work my way up to Producer there. I turned down the offer.
   
   Then, one week, there it was -- a producer slot on a national quiz show that had never been done there before. I, however, had done the EXACT job at Channel 5.
   
   I interviewed. I interviewed a second time. After a week when I hadn't heard back, I called to find out that I was still in the running. Instead of sitting back and nervously waiting, I got pro-active.
   
   I bought a mannequin leg and outfitted it with a black and white striped thigh-high sock, tied with a big red bow at the top. I added a card that said: "Let me get my foot in the door. You won't be sorry" and hand-delivered it to the station. The next day, I got the job!
   
   Later, my boss confessed that she really wanted a producer from New York or Los Angeles. When she received my package, she realized she had someone who could do the job and wanted to be in Boston, and she’d be crazy not to hire me.

Remember, this is the perfect time to create work that you love, work that is aligned with your values, working with people you enjoy. It’s possible. You just have to keep your eye on the prize, and step out of your comfort zone!
 

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you keep it intact and include this blurb with it:  Certified Retirement Coach Lin Schreiber, author of the popular ABC's of Revolutionizing Retirement, helps self-reliant women reinvent themselves in the next stage of life, formerly known as "retirement."  To claim your copy of her free popular Revolutionize Retirement Starter Kit, visit her site at http://www.RevolutionizeRetirement.com.

Lin Schreiber is a Retirement Revolutionary who loves helping self-reliant women reinvent themselves in the next stage of life, formerly known as "retirement."  Like Lin, her clients have a positive vision for the future, and the idea of riding off into the sunset for the next 30-40 years isn't in the picture.

She is a sought after speaker, Professional Certified Coach and Certified Retirement Coach.  Through her business, Revolutionize Retirement^(TM), she delivers her comprehensive coaching programs to individuals over the phone, and to groups at her Boot Camp live events.  Combining her contagious enthusiasm, non-stop energy, and passion for her subject, Lin creates a fun, dynamic learning environment that energizes and inspires her audiences.

Lin is featured on the PBS series Boomers^(TM): Redefining Life After Fifty, and is the author of The ABC's of Revolutionizing Retirement.

Contact her at  www.RevolutionizeRetirement.com.

The Art of Doing Nothing: Simple Ways to Make Time for Yourself by Véronique Vienne is one of my favorite books that always reminds me to slow down and be in the present. I took a look at it last week before I left on my birthday retreat, and I highly recommend it to those of you who have trouble slowing down.

From "The Art of Lounging" and "The Art of Napping" to "The Art of Tasting" and "The Art of Waiting" this gem of a book will help you relax from a human doing to a human being.

Enjoy!

"Whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should."
~Max Ehrmann, Desiderata


 

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