Reader Mailbag - Retiring but... and Adjacent Industries - Career Pivot

Reader Mailbag - Retiring but... and Adjacent Industries - Career Pivot Retiring but Now What? Copyright: studiostoks / 123RF Stock Photo This is the first of series where I will respond to readers’ questions. Look for this monthly feature. Sally asks: I’ll be retiring at the end of June, at 68 years of age, due to a company mergerâ€" which means layoffs. I have a college education and experience in several professional fields (journalism, info technology, and pharmacy tech. I’d like to continue working at least part-time, and/or to start a business, but am trying to think of ways to get around mobility problems. I’m a big person (200+ pounds, 5’6?) and have had knee surgery, so walking is not always the best for me. Also, our severe climate is part of the reason I’m retiring. My commute was no fun in deep snow and ice for most of the winter. I’d like to stay indoors for my own safety during blizzards and ice storms, instead of trying to drive to work. On the other hand, I don’t want to be tied to a desk for 8 solid hours as I was before, unable to get up except for scheduled breaks because that’s not good for my health either. Any ideas? Sally, I have a couple of ideas for you. The first thing I want you to do is to focus on your health. I have to admit that I am putting extra focus on my own health since I passed the age of sixty (more on that in a future post). The first thing I would do is look into some freelance writing. For this, I want you to explore Upwork.com. Upwork came about from the merger of elance.com and ODesk.com. Listen to the most recent episode Before you get work, I suggest you build a portfolio of work by writing guest blogs. I get 5-10 inquiries a week from people who want to write for this blog. Find 5-10 blogs that you would like to write for and start soliciting them. Offer to write for them for free. The whole purpose in this is to build a portfoliothat demonstrates your skill. Once you have a portfolio of work, ask one or more of the websites to hire you at a very low cost on Upwork. Upwork is similar to Airbnb or Uber in that everyone is rated. It is best to get some successful projects with good ratings from people you already know. Once you have these successful gigs with excellent reviewsunder your belt, you can start looking for higher paying assignments. The second idea is to subscribe to FlexJobs.com. I regularly partner with Flexjobs on this blog. Through this site, you will findflexible and remote positions within a variety of disciplines. Flexjobs has a monthly fee for their service, but it is well worth the cost and effort. You will find writing and IT positions that can be done remotely. Getting Hired in an Adjacent Industry I received an e-mail from someone who wants to transfer her skills to an adjacent industry, but no one will hire her. Carey writes: I wanted to transition my skills to a new industry but was unable to effectively convey the benefit my knowledge from my former jobs brought to the position. I spoke with Carey, and she told me she worked for over 20 years in the talent management arena, where her company had a government state contract. She was laid off when her company lost the contract. Currently, she is trying to make a career pivot into working with Chambers of Commerce regarding their talent management needs. Unfortunately, she has had difficulty convincing them that her skills are directly transferable. Whether you want to transfer into an adjacent or completely new industry, hiring managers will focus on your industry expertise over any other skills you may have. Previously, I wrote about howDaniel Elizaldetransitioned into the smart grid industry. Please readChanging Industries to Smart Grid. Carey needs to brand herself as knowledgeable about Chambers of Commerce talent management issues. In the old world, you could convince a hiring manager that you can do the job and then learn on the job. Those days are over. Carey needs to demonstrate that she can do the job. Don’t tell the hiring manager that you can do the job, show him/her you can do the job! The easiest way is to write a series of LinkedIn Publisher posts that propose solutions to typical problems youknowChambers of Commerce talent management organizations face. You will need to have some serious discussions with Chamber management in order to discover what are the real issues. Write three or more posts before you publish any to LinkedIn. You should then publish them on a regular basis. This could be weekly, every other week, or monthly. Whatever schedule you choose, be consistent. After you publish, please share them on LinkedIn with any potential hiring managers. Share these posts with anyone else who could influence getting you hired. These posts are now attached directly to your LinkedIn profile. Anyone who looks at your LinkedIn profile will easily find these posts and, therefore, discover that you are knowledgeable within this new industry. What Issues Are You Encountering? If you are having issues that you would like me to address in this monthly feature, please do one of the following: Respond to any e-mail that you have received from Career Pivot. Fill out my contact form. I look forward to hearing from the Career Pivot community. Marc Miller Like what you just read? Share it with your friends using the buttons above. Like What You Read? Get Career Pivot Insights! Check out the Repurpose Your Career Podcast Do You Need Help With ...