Instead of a traditional career ladder, modern professionals may wish to consider switching to a "career river" as a guide to advancement. The ultimate goal of a career river, as described by career consultant Bridget Thoreson, is the ocean: "a thriving, wide-open ecosystem fed by other rivers to explore." Corporate trainer Zanzibar Vermiglio said professionals with a career river mindset view themselves as a value center, who provides value to the people and organizations they touch.
The judges of this year's Marie Claire Future Shapers Awards say finding a champion, setting boundaries and seeing failure as an opportunity help pave the road to professional success. AllBright co-founder Anna Jones says it's important to celebrate your achievements and those of your colleagues, and Marie Claire Editor-in-Chief Andrea Thompson suggests defining your values and aligning your career with them as closely as possible.
The number of Americans who quit their job in September hit a record 4.4 million and there were 10.4 million open jobs during that month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Labor now has the initiative," said RSM US' Joseph Brusuelas, adding, "This strongly suggests that rising wages are going to be part and parcel of the economic landscape going forward."
People 65 and older who are still working should consider the drawbacks to enrolling in Medicare rather than keeping their employer health insurance, writes Mary Beth Franklin. Among them are the inability to continue contributing to health savings accounts and surcharges on high earners, she writes.
In this study, researchers developed an algorithm based on data gleaned from 11- and 12-year-olds in Australia to develop a tool that parents and children can use to find their "Goldilocks Zone" -- the optimal amount of time that should be spent on exercise, studying and sleep each day. Maybe it will help employees find that "just right" spot, too.
A nurse, who wants to remain anonymous, took a shot on a $10 scratch-off on her first day of retirement and hit a $200,000 jackpot. She cleared a cool $142,000 after taxes. "I saw this as a sign it was meant to be for me to quit working," said the nurse, who spent 36 years in the profession and served on the front lines amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
