Last week, the Wall Street Journal's Sue Shellenbarger focused on three "relaunch success stories" - stories of women who had returned to work after long career breaks, in the midst of this difficult economy. She interviewed me on the topic as part of her research. One of the issues we discussed was whether managers still stereotype mid-career women returning from career break as technologically inept. Yes there still are some skeptical hiring managers out there. However, relaunchers are slowly proving that they can and do update their technology skills before presenting themselves as serious job candidates. Case in point: A 52 year old Rocklin, CA mom and relaunched librarian is embracing new technology in the classroom and at work.
Phyllis Zimbler Miller
Today we are pleased to have Phyllis Zimbler Miller guest blogging about how she became an internet marketing pro at age 60.....prepare to be inspired!
Even at 60 You Can Learn How to Market on the Internet
by Phyllis Zimbler Miller
As I approached my 60th birthday I decided that I couldn’t wait any longer for someone to say yes to me. I signed on with a print-on-demand publisher to self-publish my novel Mrs. Lieutenant based on my own experiences as a new Mrs. Lieutenant in May 1970 during the Vietnam War.
And just at this time my novel was named a semi-finalist in the 2008 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. Each one of the semi-finalists was given a page on Amazon, and I discovered that one semi-finalist had something on her page that I didn’t.
What that turned out to be was a blog – something that in January of 2008 I hadn’t even heard of.
This was an epiphany moment for me. In the months following I spent nearly 24/7 learning as much as I could about promoting a brand, book or business on the Internet.Also at that time I wanted control of my own websites instead of having to rely on a webmaster. So I hired my daughter Yael (she graduated the University of Pennsylvania in 2005 and had just finished a marketing internship after trying to break into being a TV writer). Yael learned how to do WordPress websites that people can manage themselves once the sites are set up.
That was the beginning of our building websites for clients, and along the way we answered so very many questions about how to market on the Internet. Meanwhile, in November 2008 I became co-host of the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com and in April of 2009 I became the LA Internet Business Examiner – and one month later switched to being a National Internet Business Examiner.
This led to Yael and me starting a monthly program to teach
people how to promote on the Internet and the release of my ebook
What You Should Know About the Launch of an Online
Information Product.
In a year and a half I went from the least technical person I know (I still don’t know how to program the DVR) to being able to converse on numerous Internet tech topics ranging from SEO (search engine optimization) to social bookmarking to Twitter promotion strategies.
And I’ve personally learned how valuable saying yes to learning about opportunities on the Internet can be to relaunching oneself back into the business world.
My most important advice for those of you interested in learning online techniques for your own relaunch – don’t try to learn all the major techniques at once. Choose one or two strategies to start with and build from there. This way you won’t be overwhelmed and risk becoming discouraged and giving up.
Trust me, if I can learn all this tech stuff at my age, you can definitely learn it!___
Phyllis Zimbler Miller earned an M.B.A. from The Wharton School
in 1980. Soon afterwards she had two children
and worked part-time for several years. Now
she’s head of MillerMosaicLLC.com. Follow her on
Twitter at http://twitter.com/ZimblerMiller
– and if you’re not on Twitter yet, read seven of Phyllis’
Examiner.com Twitter articles to help you get started – http://budurl.com/twitterroundup
She is also the author of the ebook What You Should Know About the Launch of an Online Information Product – http://www.millermosaicllc. com/product-launch-ebook/ – and of the novel Mrs. Lieutenant – www.MrsLieutenant.com . Her company has launched a monthly Internet marketing program at www.WeTeachWebMarketing.com and she’s a National Internet Business Examiner at http://www.InternetBizBlogger.com.
Carol Fishman Cohen
Vivian Steir Rabin
Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin are the co-authors of the acclaimed career reentry book Back on the Career Track: A Guide for Stay-at-Home Moms Who Want to Return to Work, and the co-founders of iRelaunch, a company that produces career reentry programs, events, and content for employers, universities, organizations and individuals. Download our webinar on LinkedInfor Beginners. If you’re on career break in the Tri-State area, register for our Career Relaunch Forum October 29, 2009 at Seton Hall University in South Orange , NJ . Carol and Vivian can be reached at info@iRelaunch.com or follow us on twitter www.twitter.com/iRelaunch.
