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Status Repair: Avoid Defensive Moves (no one cares who you used to be)

With job and actual career loss becoming so standard, everything from identity to a sense of belonging goes kaput. The human tendency is to rush into modes of what is known as "status repair." Most are not only ineffective. They can also label you as stuck in the past, out of touch, even a nuisance. Therefore, not employable. The leap into repair usually is defensive. For example, there's an obsession in presenting who you used to be and how successful you were at all that. In the past. Often that narrative includes great detail. There was the crisis (boy was it in the news) that you and your team pulled all-nighters resolving. Obvious to listeners and to those who could hire you or guide you into another line of work is that you're defending yourself against the current professional nowhere abyss you're stuck in. Another defensive move is gushing how much happier you are now that you're out of that toxic situation. The current reality is that a job, no matter...

Paul, Weiss: So, Who's the Bad Guy, Scott Barshay or Brad Karp?

  Maybe the 1950s medium of television, by popularizing Westerns, did it to the American mind: Dividing life into the bad guys and the good guys. With some exceptions - like Tonto who assisted the Lone Ranger - the Native Americans were in the former category and the heroic cowboys and adventurous pioneers were in the latter. So, it's predictable the still-sticky global story of the Epstein files and the fallout have hardened into that simplification. Much of what's popping up online has entered such a divide. The specific subject is elite law firm Paul, Weiss. In that chatty force field are David Lat on Bloomberg Law , Ankush Khardori on Politico  and the many posters and responders on Reddit Big Law (one snippet). The reality is this: The culture of Paul, Weiss, as a result of the end of the Brad Karp leadership era, is accelerating its change. That's from a litigation-proud progressive firm to a more conservative one focused on transactional practices. But, ironically...

BloomerVille - Incredible, Futures Up (even with some lousy earnings reports)

Ford, Lyft and Astera are among those having disappointing financial performance. For more details on earnings reports go to CNBC . But, here it is 8:30 PM ET and futures are up. I stopped asking my financial advisor for what's what. No one really knows, do they. Dow Futures 50,391.00 Fair Value 50,266.10 Change + 118.00   0.23%   Implied Open + 124.90 Success is a mental game. Failure comes from being done in by the “committee” in your head. Together, we liberate your thinking. Then we change your story. And, unleash success. Meanwhile, we focus on bringing in income. That puts you in a position of strength. Intuitive Coaching. Special expertise with transitions, becoming a solopreneur and aging. Psychic/tarot readings, upon request. Complimentary consultation with Jane Genova (Text 203-468-8579,  janegenova374@gmail.com ). Yes, test out the chemistry. Zero risk. Don’t give up before the miracle.

BoomerVille: Okay, No Threat of Homeless, But Still Can't Live Where We Want

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 My, my. Another nice opening for the Dow. Dow Jones Industrial Average Index Index: DJI Compare 50,342.24 USD ▲  +206.37 (+0.41%) today February 10, 9:31 AM EST  ·  Market Open But, so many Boomers still can't choose where we want to live. Okay, given the direction of the Dow, we're not going to be homeless - as "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" Robert Kiyosaki has been predicting for the Boomer generation. Still, the reality is that we have to cope building a life in a location that's not our first choice. Affordability is everything. When that collapses we might even have to pull up roots and relocate, maybe several times, to a no version of Paradise. In 2014, I "had" to leave the New York Metro area. Everything from car insurance to rent was getting scary. Also I had aged out of that market. Tucson, Arizona provided financial relief, along with a surge in business. Until it didn't. Ohio was where I then headed. Most parts remain the best deal in the nation fo...

Gifts Impose Obligation - Shouldn't Bard's Leon Botstein, Lawyer Kathy Ruemmler and More Have Known That ...

 Ranging from journalists to public officials there's a restriction on gifts. If they are allowed at all, the monetary amount has to be minimal. That's because, of course, implied in gift-giving is obligation. Early in romances we tend to discourage lavish gifts. It's obvious to us those probably don't come string-free. We're not ready to move the relationship to where the other party seems to want it. So, Leon Botstein, long-time president of Bard College, as well as other academic leaders, should have been aware that donations to the institutions by Jeffrey Epstein weren't without expectations. The New York Times documents: " ... previously unreported messages show how the college president gave the convicted felon access to Bard’s orbit, suggesting deeper ties than Dr. Botstein has so far acknowledged." That seems also the situation at universities such as Harvard which allowed Epstein in. Essentially he was not a passive donor. As for now-top lawy...

Good at Going to School: Let's Stop Praising This and Get Youth Back Working

Maybe the solution to re-directing youth from college/advanced degrees is this: Stop praising them for stand-alone academic performance. Those who have gotten good at going to school could then get it that such a know-how is in less and less in demand.  Despite unemployment/underemployment rising among degree-holders and it's projected to get worse, higher education remains the path more traveled. An op-ed by Allysia Finley in The Wall Street Journal documents: "U.S. colleges awarded 2.2 million bachelor’s degrees last year, about twice as many as in 1990 … 860,000 Americans last year received a master’s degree, nearly triple the 1990 figure. Nearly 40% of Americans with a bachelor’s now have an advanced degree." Meanwhile, unemployment among college grads 22 to 27 is at 5.6%.  A headline on subreddit r/careeradvice reads: "41% of college grads are underemployed ..."  InsideHigherEducation puts that at 52% For those with advanced degrees the percentage? On p...

Celebrity Business Leaders Like Brad Karp - Probably Necessary

The tsk-tsking has started about the risk of having a leader being the brand - and a blockbuster one - for the business. Specifically Law.com runs an earnest article headlined: "Lessons from Paul Weiss: Can Law Firms Afford a Star Culture?"    And, sure, research such as by Jeffrey Lovelance in the Academy of Management documents that a celebrity leader can result in negative results for the organization. That is especially the situation when there are internal and/or external changes. Most who follow the history of business know that. When competition entered the auto market Henry Ford's rigidities almost collapsed the company. When returning to the CEO job at Disney celebrity player Bob Iger stuck to being an old-line media guy. The stock plummeted. The world had changed. In addition, the charm offensive was falling flat. Eventually Iger changed with the times. As AI becomes a crowded playing field Sam Altman's dominant presence at OpenAI could become a liability. S...