TruMantra Schools

Baby Boomers Take New Career Risks, Open Small Businesses

More retirees opt to launch small businesses

 

Clarkdale, AZ -- (SBWIRE) -- 03/13/2014 -- Generation Y are more financially literate than Baby Boomers, according to a study. Northwestern Mutual’s 2013 Planning and Progress Study discovered that almost a quarter (24 percent) of Gen Y respondents described themselves as “highly disciplined” financial planners. The group stated they exactly have specific plans to meet their target financial goals, and rarely veer away from those plans. About 14 percent of Boomers and 16 percent of all respondents tagged themselves highly disciplined.

Baby Boomers are naturally more motivated to focus on ensuring their financial futures, since they are near their retirement years. Even though many of the millenials are still focused on paying off student loan debts, the study shows that at least some of youngsters may be more determined on taking financial planning seriously, compared to those people near retirement age. Although the older generation may not be financially adept as the younger ones, still there are those who pick a new career upon reaching the retirement age.

The New York Times recently featured Christine Henck, a 62 year old licensed massage therapist. Ms. Henck runs a small private practice massage right at her Bethesda, Maryland home. She plays New Age music, with a heated massage table right inside what was once her children’s playroom. She started her massage therapy business seven years ago, and her clientele’s ages range from 60s to 80s. She earns $70 for an hour and $100 for an hour and a half massage. Ms. Henck earns $125 per hour for house calls.

She considers her new stint as more of a calling rather than a career. Having this as her third act, she explained, “I don’t see my clients as old… I am in my last third of life now, too. It’s making this moment better for me. I am experiencing for myself, for the first time, what 60 to 90 is going to be like.” Her first career was in commercial property management, and has been a stay-at-home mother for more than a decade.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, massage therapists employment is projected to increase 23 percent by 2022. The growth is more rapid compared to the average for all occupations, as per said bureau. Professions like massage therapists and others, such as senior fitness trainers, dietitians and nutritionists, personal assistants, handymen, drivers and caterers who prepare meals for the sick are in boom as the population gets old.

Kevin E. Cahill, an economist with the Sloan Center on Aging and Work at Boston College, mentioned, “it’s no secret that retirement is a very diverse process for older Americans, with some combination of phased retirement and bridge jobs being the norm among older career workers.” He believes that many older Americans do not only switch careers, but also change from wage-and-salary employment into self-employment. A lot of these jobs require some skills boost, but not a full degree program. There are several cost and time effective certificate programs available.

About TruMantra
The TruMantra Family of Schools was created as a way to genuinely preserve an integrative approach to massage therapy education. For over 20 years the schools in this family have honed and refined their curriculum, teaching styles, classroom dynamics and culture, all in the name of serving students and creating an atmosphere of learning excellence. In this education, transpersonal training dedicated to the whole person is offered. In an inclusive environment, students are invited to take the time and space needed for deep learning to occur. The institution explores human anatomy and physiology, hydrotherapy, and a wide variety of massage modalities, all while heightening our sensitivity to the human soul. In a safe, supportive, yet evocative setting, students are prepared to meet the challenges they will face as contributing members of the health care system.