Second Act CEO Brings Sunnier Days To Sesame Street
At the annual Halloween bash last year, Jeffrey Dunn, the 63-year-old CEO of Sesame Workshop, didn’t dress up as Bert or Ernie but as the Statue of Liberty. “I was distraught by the divisiveness and the toxicity in this country,” he says. “I wanted to make a statement to our employees of what we at […]
Best Retirement Plans for Small Business Owners
My dad was a small business owner whose engineering and consulting firm provided a solid income for him and supported our family. When he realized none of his four children were going to take over the business, he sold it at age 70. Dad didn’t have a retirement savings plan per se — the sale […]
Second Act: Therapist Squeezes Extra Income Out of Smoothies
In the beginning, Ginny Corbett says, she just wanted to help people heal. While working as a licensed psychotherapist, it puzzled her that many of her clients relied on pills to battle depression and anxiety, doing nothing to change their lifestyles. “They weren’t thinking about what they were eating, or exercise,” she says. “They were […]
Money Magazine: How an Unemployed Construction Worker Became a Craft Beer Entrepreneur
Until 2008, Kenny Thacker had spent his career working in construction around the tiny town of Stanardsville, Va. But when the homebuilding business came crashing down that year, he found himself without a job. After two frustrating years looking for a new one, he decided to build something other than homes—his own beermaking business. An […]
Peter Drucker’s Smart Advice for Second-Acters
When Peter F. Drucker, the political economist and author, passed away in 2005 at the age of 95, he was legendary in business circles and often called the “father of modern management.” His future-oriented writings were required reading for business school students nationwide. But I knew very little about him. And I certainly never considered […]
Kerry Takes a Second Look at Midlifers’ Second Acts
On Sunday, I stopped by La Cappella, a Pittsburgh restaurant, with my mom, who I was visiting. As I pushed open the door, I was delighted to see Colleen Sheerer, the bustling bistro’s co-owner (with her husband, Tim) and her big smile. I’d featured Tim’s second-act story in a 2006 article — he previously worked […]
The Pitfalls of Franchising
Many boomers eyeing a second career fancy the idea of running their own business. Yet the risk and work involved in starting a business from scratch can be daunting. One way to ease into entrepreneurship is to purchase a franchise. Many franchises provide a full range of services, including site selection, training, product supply, marketing plans and […]
For Many Older Americans, an Entrepreneurial Path
When Marilyn Arnold was 9 years old, her mother, a skilled seamstress, patiently taught her to sew on a vintage Singer treadle sewing machine. As her feet pumped away at the machine in her family’s farmhouse near Paris, Mo., she was smitten. “I was in love with sewing, even when I stuck my finger and […]
Jane Pauley looks at reinventing life after 50
Jane Pauley gets it — the real fear that so many people over age 50 face about what they are going to do for the next 30 or 40 years. In her compelling new book, Your Life Calling: Reimagining the Rest of Your Life (Simon & Schuster, 253 pages, $26.00), Pauley, the formerToday show and Dateline NBC co-host, delivers a […]
Software Salesman Revs Up Scooter Sales
Rows of colorful electric scooters line the Carolina Fun Machines show room. As owner Tim Juntgen rolls one of those two-wheelers into the lot for a customer, his smile says it all. This guy loves his job. “I’ve never met anyone who has walked in that door I couldn’t make friends with,” he says. Once […]
