Warren Buffett, at 81 years old, is the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway and still going strong. He is planning on working until 100 years old. What is his secret to longevity? According to Buffett, “All in all, I’ve enjoyed remarkably good health — largely because of genes, of course—but also, I think, because I enjoy life so much every day.”
This trend is continuing to break the traditional notion of retirement at age 65. Many entrepreneurs work well into their 80’s and 90’s. Sidney Harman bought Newsweek Magazine at age 92 and this is not uncommon today.
What is the secret to their success?
Longevity experts are beginning to discover a correlation between higher education and higher incomes. They are also finding that the people in this category experience great physical and emotional health. According to Laura Carstensen, researcher on aging and director of the Stanford Center on Longevity, people with more knowledge tend to live in better neighborhoods and have jobs that aren’t mentally or physically taxing. “This group of people has very little in the way of functional disabilities,” Carstensen says when referring to Buffett and other older business leaders. “What we know about them is that they’re doing incredibly well, physically and emotionally.”
The latest Gallup poll suggests that education may be a strong predictor of emotional health as a person ages. The survey was performed over an 18 month period and targeted a random sampling of 520,267 adults covering all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. The data is classified according to gender, age, race, Hispanic ethnicity, education, region, household number of adults and type of phone.
After polling numerous age groups and ethnicities, the results showed that older Americans, aged 65 and older who had a college education, were more likely to experience healthier emotional states than people of the same age group who had less education. These results were consistent across gender, marital status, employment and satisfaction with living and location.
How is emotional health identified?
According to the Gallup poll, people who are emotionally “well-off” had scores above 90 on the Gallup-Healthways Emotional Health Index. The scale is based on 100 points and targeted the emotional well-being of participants by asking them questions about their lives and emotional state the day before the survey. The emotions used on the survey were: smiling/laughing, learning/doing something interesting, being treated with respect, enjoyment, happiness, worry, sadness, anger, and stress.
According to the results, only 30% of the participants aged 65 and older with a high school education or less scored above 90 on the Emotional Health Index scale. In contrast, 46% of the participants who had a post-graduate degree scored higher than 90.
The Bottom Line
The Gallup poll summarized the results of the study by stating that older Americans with higher education have higher Emotional Health Index scores than people in the same age group with less education. However, the results do not suggest whether people who have more education evolve into a healthier emotional state or people who start out emotionally positive gravitate towards higher learning.
The study may suggest, however, that the benefits of a college degree could possibly reach beyond the enhancement of one’s professional career and income level. Additionally, the Gallup poll indicates that education may give people enhanced skills to manage emotions later in life.
]]>College graduates struggle to find jobs in a tough economy.
According to a study released by the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University, in May 2011, only 56% of college graduates in 2010 were able to find a job after graduation, as compared to the 90% of graduates from the 2006/2007 class. This statistic alone shows the sign of how hard economic times adversely affect the new college graduates that are entering the type of job market where even experienced workers are having a hard time finding a job—causing some white collar professionals to turn to bartending and waitressing to make ends meet.
Get Your Foot in the Door before Graduation
One of the key elements to make sure that you have a job in your career field is to plan ahead of time. One or even two years before you graduate, look for internship opportunities and part-time work with firms, businesses, organizations and companies in your field of study, or in the line of work you are interested in pursuing. When you intern or work with a company while you are finishing your studies, and you show what a great asset you can be to the company, you are likely to receive an offer for full-time work as you near graduation.
In other words, do not wait until you are about to graduate or after you have already graduated to scramble to look for work. Especially in a tough economy, the longer lead-time you have to start preparing for your post-graduation work, the better your chances are of setting up the process you need to go through to land a full-time position when graduation time does come.
Go Back to School
It may sound ironic or as if it is a procrastination tactic, but some careers truly require a higher education degree, such as a master’s degree or Ph.D., to find a job. For example, psychology majors are finding that an undergraduate degree in this field is simply not enough to land them a job in their career field. Not only does going back to school, or continuing your education, allow you to obtain the degree you need to start working in your field, but it also puts you back in the job market in what is hopefully a better economy and as a more marketable job candidate.
Be Persistent
Finding a job is, well, a full-time job. Even if you have to take on a job that’s not what you expected to be able to pay your bills, continue to look for a job. In other words, do not just take a job to make enough money to make ends meet, get stuck in a rut and expect the job of your dreams to just land in your lap. If it means working full-time, 40 hours a week at a job, but coming home each night and spending two hours looking for jobs in your field, sending out resumes and contacting companies that you want to work for (even if they don’t have jobs posted) to market yourself as a possible candidate, then do it.
While you will receive rejection emails, letters and no’s on the telephone, do not allow this to discourage you. Persistence does pay off.
Follow Your Entrepreneurial Spirit
When you cannot find a job in your career path, you can create a job in your career path. You can go through the process of officially opening your own business. You can also work side gigs while working a full-time job. Many part-time gigs turn into full-time gigs, depending on what the line of work is and how hard you work at turning the side gig into full-time work.
For example, a journalism or marketing graduate may aspire to become a full-time writer. Scour websites, such as Craigslist.org, Guru.com and eLance.com, to find and bid on writing gigs. First, landing some of these gigs helps you to bring in extra money. More importantly, however, it also helps you to build up a pipeline of work and even land regular clients to the point where one day your side gigs turn into your full-time gig—and doing what you set out to do in the first place.
Go Where the Jobs Are
While the entire country is affected by the downturn in the economy, there are states, cities and regions that have tons of jobs, but don’t have enough candidates to fill the positions. Do your homework to find out where the jobs are and go after them. Landing a job in a different city doesn’t mean you have to stay there forever, but it does provide you with the opportunity to start your career and apply for positions in the places where you want to live in the meantime.
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It is the time of year when student loan and grant refunds are issued. Most students will receive refunds worth hundreds of dollars. Here are 10 suggestions on how to responsibly spend yours.
- Keep it in your college. Student refunds are automatically mailed out to the student. But you don’t have to have it this way. Call up your financial aid office or college business office and ask that your refund stay there. By doing this you have a head start on paying for next semester’s classes and course materials.
- Pay on your student loans. You can use your refund towards paying on your student loans. This is a pain free way to keep down the interest rates.
- Donate it to your college or university. Show your school spirit while helping others. Don’t forget, charitable donations are a tax write off.
- Help someone less fortunate. Donate you refund to your favorite charity. You will be rewarded with that great feeling that you have helped someone in need.
- Adopt a pet from a shelter. Now that school is out, you will have extra time on your hands. Why not make a new friend to share that time with you? Shelter animals are often healthier (in the long run) than those brought from animal farms where they suffer conditions caused by too much inbreeding.
- Plant a vegetable garden. You will get plenty of exercise, fresh air and sunshine. You’ll save hundreds on your grocery bill by eating the vegetables you grew yourself. An added bonus: homegrown vegetables are healthier than those you buy in supermarkets.
- Tune up your car. Regular tune ups keep your car running in optimal condition. Finely tuned cars take less gas, resulting in higher gas mileage. This adds up to lower gas bills for you and a healthier ozone layer.
- Buy U.S. Savings Bonds. Bonds mature at a slower rate than some other investments but, they are safe investments. You don’t need a financial adviser or be investment savvy to buy bonds.
- Buy career essentials. Invest your refund on the necessities you will need to be successful in business. Things to invest in include: professional wardrobe, iphones, computer software and business cards.
- Get some rest and relaxation. The proper balance of mind, spirit and body is essential for success. Don’t feel guilty about a day at a spa, a massage, or a day at the beach.
To find your local aspca to adopt a pet:
To find our more about student loans visit salliemae.org.