Monthly Archives: February 2012

Are Baby Boomers Mentally Prepared to Retire?

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As baby boomers begin to enter retirement, we will be confronted with a new lifestyle with different demands than what we are accustomed to in the working world we have come to know so well.

Where our mornings used to be driven by the clock and getting to work on time, we now have the option to get up when we want. The new challenge is what will we do with our newly found free time? It is important to learn early to chase what is important and what really matters and not waste precious time.

Baby boomers entering retirement may find it hard to accept the impact aging is having on what they are capable of doing. It is easy to become angry and frustrated at diminishing physical abilities but we must learn to deal with the reality.

Retirement is also a time of new possibilities, a time to try something that we were not able to during our working days. If we are curious and willing to look, excitement is still out there but each is responsible for finding inspiration in our retirement life.

In retirement, baring major financial or health concerns, baby boomers hope to be in control of their retired lifestyle. With a little planning ahead and realization of the inevitable changes aging will bring, we can mentally prepare ourselves to make the best of our retirement.

See this weeks US News & World blog Can Baby Boomers Cope with Retirement Realities which talks more about issues impacting retirement preparation.

 

Older Workers are Better Performers

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With experience learned over years of employment, older workers in general have as much or more to offer than their younger counterparts. According to Peter Cappelli, director of Wharton’s Center for Human Resources, if you look at job performance data related to age, it turns out that older workers perform better on every dimension of job performance.

While employees new to the working world spend time and effort striving  to figure out what they want to do for their career (something that takes many of us a lifetime), older workers are comfortable with what is expected of them. Careers have evolved into what they will be and the focus can be on doing well the job at hand.

Younger workers tend to need guidance, encouragement, and patient hand-holding as they learn how to navigate a corporate world that older workers are familiar with and know the ropes.

And as those omnipresent start-ups begin to get traction and grow, they are starting to look to older workers who have done it before and are aware of the pitfalls to avoid.

Additional benefits older workers bring to the table include mentoring, espousing the company culture, low absenteeism, self-motivation and self-managing. As a nice side effect most experienced workers have also learned how to balance work and life and focus on what really matters.

For more corroborating evidence, have a look at this week’s US News & World blog Why Older Workers are Better Workers.

 

 

 

 

Avoiding Scams for Senior Citizens

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Guest Post by Elise Brown

Each year thousands of senior citizens fall victim to financial scams. Because they usually have retirement money set aside, they are much less likely to report fraud due to embarrassment. This is very unsettling because it is completely avoidable. We can’t be as trusting as our parents and grandparents used to be, and we all need to take responsibility and educate ourselves about these scams.

Types of Scams

  • Phishing – This term refers to a phone call or email that attempts to trick the victim into giving out important personal and/or financial information, which the thief then uses to access bank and credit card accounts.
  • Rebate Scams – The only way you can receive an economic stimulus rebate is with your tax return, but some thieves contact seniors and tell them they can receive another rebate if they give the caller their bank information or send it via email.
  • Product Scams – In this type of scam, the thief will call a home and offer fake products, free travel, or other prizes. They usually target older women, and they typically use pressure tactics to scare the victim into giving away their information.
  • Advance Fee Scams – A fake investment opportunity or a lottery win is the draw for this scam. The thief gets the victim to believe that they will receive large amounts of money with the thief’s help, and then they pretend to help the victim to gain their trust. They ask for an advance fee, usually in the amount of thousands of dollars, before the victim can get their money, and then the thief disappears.
  • Reverse Mortgage Scams – Fake banks or other lenders contact seniors with an offer for a reverse mortgage. Then they pressure the victim to convince them to sign a contract and give all of their information to the fake company.

How to Avoid Them

  • Don’t respond to advertisements you did not ask for through the mail, by phone, or through email.
  • Always read through everything you have to sign very thoroughly.
  • NEVER give out your credit card information, social security number, or any other personal or financial information over the phone unless you know for sure that you are contacting someone trustworthy.
  • Double check any emails you receive requesting financial information. Even if it looks like it is coming from a legitimate place, but scammers can easily copy logos and text to make their email seem legitimate.
  • Pay attention to your personal finances. Look over all of your bank records and other financial documents to make sure you know where your money is going.
  • Ask your bank to contact you when they see suspicious withdrawals.
  • Block the numbers of suspicious callers if possible.
  • Above all, remember that if it sounds too good to be true, it very well may be.

Elise Brown is an author who writes guest posts on the topics of business, marketing, credit cards, and personal finance. Additionally, she works for a website that focuses on educating readers about understanding payday loans at Payday Loans Resource