TransformingYourCareerTransformingYourself

  The succession competition is taking place at Disney. If this were happening just a few years down the road about who would follow Bob Iger as CEO one of the contenders might be AI. Some AI watchers don't frame that possibility as far-fetched. The Wall Street Journal has published an earnest article on AI running an entire company. After all, eventually that technology will exceed human intelligence. And it has been human intelligence - those smartest kids in the room - which produced such failures as New Coke, the AOL - Time Warner merger and putting on contract at Vanity Fair Olivia Nuzzi. It was also human intelligence, like that of Jeff Skilling, which destroyed corporations such as Enron, putting thousands out of work and wiping out investments. Actually, what could put sand in these technological gears is the issue of the rank and file workforce. There are decisions to be made about what percentage should be and can legally be robots. Good luck lobbying Congress and govern...

Yes, futures are up. At least now at 3:15 AM New York time. And there could be lots more positive in store for our Boomer nest eggs. Yahoo Finance reports:  "US stock futures rose Monday morning as Wall Street heads into a pivotal week dominated by the Federal Reserve's final policy meeting of 2025." Among those best positioned in this strange economy are we Boomers who don't have to make a living. Sure, we still might be deriving income from our labor but it isn't a must to pay our bills and indulge in a few non-essentials. 

America, a young nation that worships youth, now struggles with the aging who can't find work. About 33% of those in America are 50 years of age or older. They're the fastest growing group among the homeless.  Part of that is because, as ProPublica documented, once you hit 50: The odds are you'll be forced out of your job, and Only one in 10 who lands another job in their field will earn the same money. In contrast, as the New York Post brings back the infamous 1975 Murder in Greenwich, Connecticut story, the victim Martha Moxley will always be 15 years of age.  So young, so open a future.  Given the she was from a privileged family in an old-money WASPY town she would not have to chase a career. But if she did the first few doors would likely have been easy to enter. No question, blonde and attractive, she would have met a suitable life mate and married in a high-profile wedding as did Ethel Skakel to the dashing Robert F. Kennedy. The photos of that moment at Gr...

  Transactional work can be so lucrative for law firms because some of it - for example, M&A assignments - require government approval. The law firms which bag those assignments can be in for the long term. Billing. Well, things look especially good for the legal players in the loop for the Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery proposed merger. For the  legal issues , Skadden is representing Netflix. Wachtell and Debevoise are representing Warner Bros Discovery. They have certainly lucked out. The Wall Street Journal reports: "There is a long road ahead. A senior Trump administration official said Friday that Trump advisers, including White House officials, are concerned about Netflix’s deal ... The companies said they expect the  regulatory review  process to take at least a year." In the process, brandnames can be made or enhanced among the partners managing the strategy. The scope of the transaction boosts the firms' M&A credibility. Also, there's ...

  What's pushing out average performers in knowledge work is the double whammy of cost-efficiency and AI. Only the stars are surviving.  Forbes just cut out the contributing writers who weren't attracting and growing large audiences. In coverage of this development  New York Post  reported that those terminated were shocked. They shouldn't have been. After all they were hardly stars. Likely they were only pulling down 50 bucks an article. Had they sensed they were star material they would have bellowed for much more. CBS is in the process of reviewing who has high wattage and who has been fading. Being laid off or fired at a tech company is classified as being a "low performer." That's code for not having star quality. This bifurcation of knowledge work into stars and those on the way out has become a dominant trend in knowledge work. But it's not new.  Way back in 2021, the chair of elite law firm Paul, Weiss Brad Karp explained in a  Bloomberg Law ...

  M&A is big business. That is, for the lawyers and financial players who help put the deals together. For the legal issues , Skadden is representing Netflix. Wachtell and Debevoise are representing Warner Bros Discovery. For the financial arrangements Moelis is representing Netflix. Allen, JP Morgan and Evercore are representing WBD. Those firms which didn't get the work are likely pretty glum. Having high-profile business brings in more business. In coaching I hammer to keep in the loop, no matter what. Don't take a time-out. Don't hide. Once invisible it's difficult becoming influential again. An old-time Hollywood producer I coached maintained his game by hanging in there even after flops. You just keep moving, they said.  Thrown off your game, maybe the first time since you started working? You made all the right moves and then the world moved in another direction. Intuitive Coaching. Special expertise with transitions, reskilling and aging. Psychic/tarot rea...