# Career Thoughts for Women over 50?



## AVR1962 (May 30, 2012)

Hey ladies, please brain storm with me! I am soon to be divorced and while I will get alimony and a cash settlement I will also need to work to make ends meet. I have taught piano lessons from our home for the past 35 years and that is how I have been able to stay at home with the kids and raise my family while taking an edge off finances. However, that is along time without a job history! Last job I worked outside the house was '92-'94.

I am planning on continuing to teach piano but that is basically part-time. Have any of you had to recreate yourself job-wise?


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## CuddleBug (Nov 26, 2012)

AVR1962 said:


> Hey ladies, please brain storm with me! I am soon to be divorced and while I will get alimony and a cash settlement I will also need to work to make ends meet. I have taught piano lessons from our home for the past 35 years and that is how I have been able to stay at home with the kids and raise my family while taking an edge off finances. However, that is along time without a job history! Last job I worked outside the house was '92-'94.
> 
> I am planning on continuing to teach piano but that is basically part-time. Have any of you had to recreate yourself job-wise?




I'm not a lady here but this is what one of the women in our complex did.

She worked and got let go. Went on EI and got a job participating and managing tennis lessons at our local recreational facility. That's a seasonal part time job. Then she got a renter to help pay the bills. After that she got a part time job at the hospital doing charity work.

She can now pay the bills, enjoys what she does and since she has a renter, doesn't have to work full time anymore. Sometimes she only works 3 days week.

She is single, in her early 60's I'd say and also separated.


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## Mr.StrongMan (Feb 10, 2016)

How about Public Relations?


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## AVR1962 (May 30, 2012)

kindMe77 said:


> How about Public Relations?


As in what?


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## kristin2349 (Sep 12, 2013)

What is your skillset? I have a friend that started her own personal organization company. She was always helping friends (like me) clean out and organize my closet and home. I fronted her the start up money to go in to business for herself when she lost her job, that was 12 years ago. She has a few people working for her now. I also have another friend that started pet and house sitting, she does pretty well and has 7 people working for her. My dog groomer has a six month waiting list and only works the hours they choose now, by appt. only.


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## Diana7 (Apr 19, 2016)

Can you advertise for more pupils to learn the piano?


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## AVR1962 (May 30, 2012)

kristin2349 said:


> What is your skillset? I have a friend that started her own personal organization company. She was always helping friends (like me) clean out and organize my closet and home. I fronted her the start up money to go in to business for herself when she lost her job, that was 12 years ago. She has a few people working for her now. I also have another friend that started pet and house sitting, she does pretty well and has 7 people working for her. My dog groomer has a six month waiting list and only works the hours they choose now, by appt. only.


Wow, nice! I bar tendered for 2 years....don't really care to do that again......worked in automotive dept in a chain store for awhile, worked as dishwasher and back-up cook as a teenager, cleaned houses as a self employed housekeeper for 20 years and piano lessons for 35 years.


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## AVR1962 (May 30, 2012)

Diana7 said:


> Can you advertise for more pupils to learn the piano?


That is something that I am giving alot of thought to....how to increase my student load. This is what I would rather do. I enjoy working with the students.


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## NextTimeAround (Dec 15, 2011)

Find some relevant networking groups, they may help generate some ideas.

Depending on the city, some may exist on meetup.com; Facebook, at universities, community colleges or centers.


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## heartsbeating (May 2, 2011)

AVR1962 said:


> That is something that I am giving alot of thought to....how to increase my student load. This is what I would rather do. I enjoy working with the students.


Could you teach music in schools? Work within a performing arts center or play for children's dance lessons? Play piano as an entertainer - community centers, assisted living facilities?

You have wonderful skills at your finger tips! Pun absolutely intended. The teaching, music, playing piano. Perhaps consider what other attributes you may have that would combine with this... but I'd say keep it creative.


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## AVR1962 (May 30, 2012)

heartsbeating said:


> Could you teach music in schools? Work within a performing arts center or play for children's dance lessons? Play piano as an entertainer - community centers, assisted living facilities?
> 
> You have wonderful skills at your finger tips! Pun absolutely intended. The teaching, music, playing piano. Perhaps consider what other attributes you may have that would combine with this... but I'd say keep it creative.


Thanks for those ideas! I just sent my resume off to a music school and have another one interested. Also have contacted a home school group that indicated they could put an ad in their newsletter. I used to teach voice so I might consider that again. Also designed a pre-school music program years ago much like kindermusik so I might look at trying to recreate that. I am not keen on performing however would consider something small. I am also looking into the possibility of online piano lessons and trying to figure out how I would do that....there is so much hands-on involved in teaching piano but I think that I could actually do skype lessons....if I could figure that out I could keep my current 22 students and add more in home students once I move, that would be awesome!!!!!


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## TheTruthHurts (Oct 1, 2015)

Pick a subject and become a tutor. Your instructing background makes you a natural particularly if you have math or science or writing skills.

People pay huge $$$$$ for tutoring for the SAT or ACT, and also pay to review college essays and scholarship applications.


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## soccermom2three (Jan 4, 2013)

I don't know where you live but if you're in the U.S. can you become a Notary Public? The guy we use probably makes a couple of grand a month or more just signing up our Buyer's with their loan documents. I think he charges $150 for a signup. You have to be willing to travel, have evening appointments and be ready to go when you get a call. We do have a woman we use too and she kind of makes her schedule. The National Notary Assn. has a one day class where at the end of day you take the test. They also have other classes that instruct Notaries on how to sign up loan documents, etc.


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## AVR1962 (May 30, 2012)

soccermom2three said:


> I don't know where you live but if you're in the U.S. can you become a Notary Public? The guy we use probably makes a couple of grand a month or more just signing up our Buyer's with their loan documents. I think he charges $150 for a signup. You have to be willing to travel, have evening appointments and be ready to go when you get a call. We do have a woman we use too and she kind of makes her schedule. The National Notary Assn. has a one day class where at the end of day you take the test. They also have other classes that instruct Notaries on how to sign up loan documents, etc.


Wonderful idea, thanks!


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## RainbowBrite (Dec 30, 2015)

Anything where you can be your own boss is the way I would go. I hope you can earn enough teaching music; that would be awesome. It's not glamorous, but I estimate that my cleaning lady and her husband bring in > $100,000 per year with cleaning year round and helping older folks tend their gardens in the summer (weed pulling, planting veggies, etc.)


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