American
author Elizabeth White had it all - advanced degrees from Harvard and Johns
Hopkins University, an outstanding employment history and she'd started a
business.
But the business
failed and in her mid 50s White struggled to re-enter the workforce. She decided
to write about her experience in an essay entitled "You Know Her''. The
essay was posted on a Facebook page and within three days attracted 11,000
likes and over 1000 comments by many sharing similar experiences.
People wrote to
her about their experiences too, many of which feature in this book 55,
Underemployed and Faking Normal.
The book talks
about the retirement schemes in the United States but it also shares a lot of
tips about how to downsize, how to make the most of what you have and to make
sacrifices so you can have the things that matter most. It talks a lot about
the importance of not harking back to what you had or trying to impress others
but to be content with how life is now.
White emphasizes
the importance of forming friendships with others in the same boat and meeting
regularly to look at ways to help each other in the latter years of working
life when it can be tough to find work. The book lists a
number of websites baby boomers can use to help them find work.
She talks about
a woman she met called Zoe who was 62 and had $31 to her name. Zoe had never
been so happy or grounded. She paid money to keep her possessions in a storage
unit and after a year she couldn't remember what was in the unit and sold or
gave all her possessions away. There are many
powerful stories in this book about people like Zoe who have learnt to be happy
with much less.
Couldn't put
this book down. A great read!
