Working After Retirement For Dummies »

Lita Epstein, MBA, excels at translating complex financial topics critical to people’s everyday life. She enjoys helping people develop good financial, investing, and tax-planning skills. She designs and teaches online courses on topics such as investing for retirement, getting ready for tax time, and finance and investing for women.
Lita lives in a 55-plus community in Florida and works (and plays) with many people who moved there after retirement, but for various reasons have gone back to work. Some because they were bored, but many because their money just isn’t going as far as they thought. Others have gone back to work to get access to group health insurance, because it is just too expensive to buy on an individual basis.
Lita has over a dozen books on the market, including Streetwise Crash Course MBA, Streetwise Retirement Planning, and Alpha Teach Yourself Retirement Planning in 24 Hours, as well as books on Social Security and Medicare. Lita also is a faculty member in the College of Graduate Business and Management at the University of Phoenix.

The friendly guide for retirees who want to get back into the workforce

More than 76 million baby boomers will begin retiring in 2011. Eighty percent of boomers expect to continue working past the age of 65 due to financial and healthcare concerns (seniorcitizensguide.com, 1-06). Working After Retirement For Dummies shows retirees and workers approaching retirement age how to stay in the workforce and thrive after 65 or get back into the workforce after retirement. The book covers new job searching and resume writing; how to overcome employer myths about retirement age workers; and the flexibility of various career options from telecommuting to job sharing. In addition, it also covers nontraditional job search methods that work particularly well for seniors. Even retirement age workers who just want to volunteer their time will find helpful, straightforward advice on getting back to work at any age.

Introduction     1
About This Book     2
Foolish Assumptions     2
What You're Not to Read     3
How This Book Is Organized     3
Getting Ready to Retire...Not!     3
Your Wallet to Your Health: The 411 When You Re-Enter the Workforce     3
Finding Your Next Job     4
Revisiting Your Former Career or Starting Your Own Business     4
Knowledge to Philanthropy: Opportunities to Broaden the Mind and More     4
The Part of Tens     4
Icons Used in This Book     5
Where to Go from Here     5
Getting Ready to Retire...Not!     7
The World of Work After Retirement     9
Making that Critical Decision - Stay Retired or Go Back to Work     9
Needing or wanting to work     10
Assessing your talents     11
Figuring out what you want to do     11
Managing Your Money and Your Health     12
Taking inventory on what you have     12
Keeping yourself solvent     12
Sorting out the rules of Social Security and work     13
Staying healthy with and without Medicare     14
Going Job Hunting     14
Working Less Than FullTime     15
Revisiting Your Past or Starting Your Own Business     15
Working for your company - again     16
Following your dream of owning your own business     16
Expanding Your Horizons     17
Why You May Need or Want to Go Back to Work     19
Facing the Financial Facts     19
Lost nest egg     20
Reduced pension payments     23
Didn't save enough     24
Maintaining Your Lifestyle in Retirement     25
Budgeting for specific phases of retirement     25
Knowing what to budget for     26
Losing Professional Contact...or Just Getting Bored     28
Keeping your professional network alive     28
Finding a new network of retired professionals     29
Going back to school     29
Teaching others in your field     30
Assessing Your Talents for Your Next Job     31
Determining Your Strengths and Weaknesses     31
Assessing Your Last Job     32
Uncovering Your Worker Type     33
Determining your working type     33
Understanding your worker type     35
Using How You Like to Work to Find the Ideal Job     38
Working autonomously     38
Needing direction     38
Working in teams     39
Applying Your Skill Sets     39
Carving Out Your Creative Talents     40
Seeking Help to Determine What You'd Like to Do Next     41
Talking with Someone One on One     41
Seeing the need for a career counselor     41
Finding a career counselor     42
Determining what to talk about     44
Testing Your Values, Interests, Personality, and Skills     45
Exploring your values     45
Determining your interests     46
Taking personality tests     47
Taking skills assessments     48
Networking with others     48
How to build your network     49
Online job networks for seniors     50
Joining a Support Group     52
Uncovering how support groups work     52
Finding support groups near you     54
Your Wallet to Your Health: The 411 When you Re-Enter the Workforce     55
Getting a Grasp on Managing What You Saved for Retirement     57
Exploring Your Retirement Accounts     57
Defined contributions versus defined benefits     58
Pensions (defined-benefit plan)     58
Employer savings plans (defined-contribution plans)     62
IRAs     64
Taking Out Your Money - the Official Rules     66
When you must start to draw money     66
How much you must withdraw     68
Investing the Money You Have     71
Avoiding common mistakes     71
Allocating your investments     72
Changing your strategies as you age     75
Managing Your Money So It Doesn't Run Out     77
Determining Your Budget     77
Budgeting for each phase of retirement     78
Accounting for everything     78
Developing a retirement budget     82
Planning Your Withdrawal Strategies     82
Tracking everything     83
Exploring what you have     84
Allocating Your Assets and Withdrawing Safely     87
Checking out the chart     87
Following an example     89
Calculating Whether Your Income Is Enough     90
Dealing with Taxes     91
Taxation of your pensions     91
Taxation of your retirement savings     92
Collecting Social Security and Going Back to Work     93
Working and Collecting      93
Following the rules     93
Figuring benefits if you retire early     94
Impacting Your Current Benefits by Going Back to Work     96
Understanding the Retired Earnings Test (RET) basics     96
Reviewing the rules     97
Calculating how much you can lose     98
Getting special treatment in your first year of retirement     99
Increasing Benefits When You Go Back to Work     100
Starting Your Own Business and Social Security Benefits     101
Complicating Your Taxes     102
How Social Security benefits are taxed     102
Calculating your income     103
Taxes on pensions and retirement savings when collecting     106
What isn't taxed?     107
Delaying Social Security and Working     109
Taking a Look at Pension Legislation     109
Checking out the past on pensions     110
Looking to the future     111
Going the way of dinosaurs     112
Understanding the fate of your funds     113
Retiring Early - Not Eligible to Collect Social Security     115
Taking pensions while still working for your company     115
Withdrawing employer retirement savings      117
Continuing to save     117
Delaying Benefits - Deciding Not to Collect     119
Improving future Social Security benefits     119
Understanding the benefit of delaying benefits     120
Calculating your best time to start collecting Social Security     122
Deciding not to wait any longer     123
Trying to Stay Healthy - Before Age 65     125
Exploring Health Insurance Types     125
Group health plans     126
Losing a Group Plan     129
Cobra     131
Association health plans     132
AARP     132
Individual health plans     133
State guaranteed issue health insurance pools     133
Finding and Paying for Health Insurance...After You Retire but Before Medicare     134
Researching coverage exclusions     134
Finding insurance coverage     135
Uncovering hidden costs     136
Figuring Out When Your Health Coverage Will End     137
Exploring Medicare's Maze of Benefits     139
Getting Started with Medicare     139
Starting coverage     140
Missing Medicare deadlines     140
Facing penalties     141
Delaying coverage because you're covered at work     141
Traditional Medicare - Parts A and B     142
Part A     142
Part B     145
Medicare Advantage Plans - Part C     148
Examining the plans     148
Figuring out which plan is best for you     150
Prescription Coverage - Part D     150
Demystifying the basic drug benefit     151
Obtaining Plan D prescription coverage     152
Knowing what to do if you have drug coverage from another source     153
Ensuring the drugs you take are covered     155
Finding the right plan for you - it can happen!     156
Adding up the costs     156
Paying for Part D coverage     157
Paying for Things Medicare Doesn't Cover     158
Medicare Advantage Plans     158
Medigap     158
Long-term healthcare     160
Getting Medicare Coverage, If You Don't Qualify     161
Finding Your Next Job     163
Rebuilding Your Job Search Skills     165
Building Your Resume     165
Keeping up with change     166
Preparing your resume     167
Using the employer's needs      168
Emphasizing accomplishments     170
Avoiding dating yourself     170
Taking advantage of writing tips     171
Formatting Your Resume     171
Using Your Network     173
Tapping the Internet     174
Scouring job-listing sites     174
Checking in on company Web sites     175
Looking through the Classifieds     176
Newspapers     176
Grocery stores     177
Senior centers     177
Churches or synagogues     177
Counting on Your Support Groups     177
Senior centers     178
Health centers     178
Churches or synagogues     178
Surviving the Interview - Especially Those Tough Questions     179
Getting Ready for the Interview Mentally     179
Understanding the need to stay calm     180
Reducing stress before an interview     180
Reviewing the Basics for Answering Interview Questions     182
Answering Basic Questions     183
Getting to know you     184
Testing your knowledge of the company     184
Sizing up your longevity     184
Dealing with the Tough Questions      185
How to deal with qualification questions, like...     186
How to deal with longevity questions, like...     188
Preparing an Interview Checklist     190
Overcoming Myths About Older Workers During Your Job Search     193
Going Toe to Toe with Training Myths     193
Emphasizing your ability to learn     194
Leveraging your longevity     194
Poking Holes in Productivity Myths     195
Pointing out your increased productivity     195
Advertising your adaptability     196
Capitalizing on your creativity     197
Coping with Cost Myths     198
Keeping reality in check when it comes to your paycheck     198
Telling the truth about benefit costs     199
Accident costs are higher for older workers     200
Working 9 to 5 or Not! Exploring Your Hourly Options     201
Seeking Part-Time Work     201
Considering your needs and wants     202
Finding the best of the best for part-time work and flexible schedules     203
Finding Temporary Agencies that Specialize in 50+ workers     206
Working with the nation's largest senior placement and training service     207
Using online resources      208
Finding work if you're a scientist or engineer     210
Searching for jobs if you're a retired government expert     210
Telecommuting - Not Telemarketing!     210
Understanding telecommuting     211
Finding a telecommuting job     211
Most Popular Part-Time Jobs for Older Workers     212
Bank teller     212
Customer greeters     212
English instructor     213
College or university faculty member     213
Floral assistant     214
Home care aides     214
Mystery shopping     215
Teacher's assistant     215
Tour guide     216
Revisiting Former Career or Starting Your Own Business     217
Staying on the Job Part-Time     219
Switching to Part-Time     219
Developing a restructuring plan     220
Proposing the change     221
Sharing Your Job     221
Finding the right fit     222
Creating a winning job-sharing team     223
Telecommuting from Home     224
Convincing Your Boss     225
Taking steps in the right direction     225
Finding help online      226
Proposing an Independent Contractor Arrangement     226
Going Back to Work as a Temporary Worker     229
Using a Phased Retirement Arrangement     230
Consulting for Your Former Company     233
Understanding Consulting     233
Checking out the advantages     234
Reviewing the required skills     234
Seeing how consultants work     235
Learning how to listen     236
Starting to Talk with Your Employer About Consulting     237
Researching Compensation Issues     237
Researching fee structures     237
Setting your fees     238
Negotiating Contracts     240
Confidentiality     240
Expenses     243
Deadlines     243
Getting Paid     244
Activity log     244
Invoices     244
Consulting in Your Former Industry     245
Being Your Own Boss After Retiring - Try Consulting     245
Assessing Your Skills to Be a Consultant in Your Industry     246
Picking Your Niche     247
Building and Using Your Network     247
Finding contacts for your network     247
Getting to know your contacts      248
Becoming a known entity     248
Becoming someone to recommend     249
Understanding Your Non-Compete Clauses     249
Pricing Your Services     250
Networking with others to gather pricing details     250
Setting your price     250
Writing Your Contracts     251
Finding an attorney     251
Understanding contract parts     252
Designing your contracts     255
Writing Proposals     256
Setting Up a Successful Consulting Business     257
Developing a business plan     257
Networking effectively     257
Following-up regularly     258
Buying or Starting Your Own Business or Franchise     261
Starting Your Own Business     261
Supplementing your retirement     262
Funding your retirement     263
Getting started - developing a business plan     265
Marketing your business     266
Funding your business     267
Deciding your business location     269
Buying an Existing Business     269
Deciding what type of business to buy     270
Finding businesses for sale      271
Assessing the value of a business     272
Intending to buy, but...     278
Funding the purchase of a business     278
Finding a Franchise     279
What is franchising?     279
Finding franchise opportunities     282
Key things to consider before signing a contract     283
Funding requirements     285
Knowledge to Philanthropy: Opportunities to Broaden the Mind and More     287
Going Back to College: Expanding Your Knowledge and Skills     289
Popular Senior Learning Opportunities     290
Elderhostel     290
TraveLearn     291
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI)     292
SeniorNet     293
Local community colleges     294
Learning online     294
Learning Abroad     295
University of Strathclyde's Senior Studies Institute     295
Adult Residential Colleges Association (ARCA)     296
Archaeology Abroad     296
Adult cultural program - France     297
Taking art in Italy     298
Learning a language     298
Becoming a Teacher Yourself     298
Starting Your Own Learning Group      300
Forming a book club     300
Putting together a travel group     301
Starting an investment club     301
Volunteering in the Business and Community World     303
Understanding That You Have Something to Offer     303
Being a Volunteer in the Business World     304
Score     304
Volunteers in Medicine clinics     305
Small-business incubators     305
Helping Out in Your Community     306
Executive Service Corps Affiliate Network     306
AARP     307
Environmental Alliance for Senior Involvement     310
Experience Corps     311
Generations United     311
North Carolina Center for Creative Retirement     312
Oasis     313
Senior Corps     314
Volunteering Internationally     315
Earthwatch Institute     315
Global Citizens Network     316
Global Volunteers     317
Globe Aware     318
Landscope Expeditions     318
LiFeline     319
Orphanage Outreach     321
Volunteering Virtually     321
The Part of Tens     323
Top Ten Companies to Work for in Retirement     325
Business Services     325
Cars     325
Consulting Services     326
Education     326
Entertainment     327
Financial Services     328
Healthcare     328
Industrial Equipment     329
Pharmaceuticals     329
Retailing/Direct Selling     330
Top Ten Skills for Running Your Own Business     331
Administrative Skills     331
Decision Making     332
Financial Skills     332
Industry-Specific Skills     332
People Management     333
Physical and Emotional Stamina     333
Problem Solving     333
Self-Motivation     334
Sales and Marketing     334
Time Management     335
Ten (Almost) Great Volunteering Experiences to Take Advantage Of     337
Advocate     337
Business Executive     338
Caregiver     338
Environmentalist     339
Home-Based     339
Internationalist     339
Medical Professional     340
Park Enthusiast      340
Index     341