An article by Michael Bogdanow says the answer is “Yes.” In a blog post, “One Person/Two Careers: Does It Reduce Professional Stress” (posted Nov 30 2011),
he points out that career “slashers” (Marci Alboher’s term) are not new. The artist Kandinsky had graduated from a Moscow law school.

Bogdanow suggests several reasons why multiple careers reduce stress.

First, he says, “maintaining two careers permits you to tap into skills, interests and talents that may come out more strongly in one or the other, such as the visual and creative skills of painting, and the social and verbal skills of law.” I would add, “When you use more of your skills, you become more confident and more in touch with your own identity.”

Second, he observes that a second career is a great way to reduce stress. However, you don’t need a whole second career to reduce stress. You can identify activities such as swimming, hiking, playing an instrument or engaging in a creative challenge. Personally I enjoy pottery classes and improv, though I’m not very good at either activity. I would encourage everyone to start as early as possible because you need time to gain mastery, when you gain true joy and confidence from these activities.

Of course, stress can be debilitating. If your life is seriously affected – your relationships, career, and/or health – you may need to work with a professional therapist. Stress actually contributes to many physical problems, mostly acute but sometimes long-term. It’s not always a question of, “Take a painting class and call me in the morning.”

That was the title of a recent New York Times article. You can read it here.

The gist of the article is this: In today’s tight job market, companies can attract talent they’d ordinarily never see. And despite conventional wisdom, many of these overqualified hires are working out.

Here’s what I think (and please add your own comments below):

First, these jobs seem to work out when the company feels pleased and excited to get this talent bonus. If a company has reservations about the new hire, these feelings will carry over.

Second, you have to be honest with yourself. Some people have no problem working in downsized jobs. Others won’t. If you’re in the latter category, you may have to find a way to earn a living, perhaps by starting your own business.

Many people find it easier to take a step back when they are either self-employed or moving to a new career field. That’s why many qualified professionals begin an online career as Virtual Assistants: they’re actually running a business and they can fire their bosses anytime.

The New York TImes posted an op ed piece suggesting that a tough recession will be harder on younger workers than older workers. You can read the article here. The Times ask you to register but they don’t bombard you with all kinds of junk email. I’ve subscribed for years and never had a problem.

There is some truth to this idea. I recommend Malcolm Gladwell’s book, Outliers, which offers a popular version of some theories of life course theory, a field of social psychology. The year you were born can make a huge difference in your opportunities. The person who graduates into a world of opportunity gets a foot in the door at a good company. She doesn’t have to be outstanding to enjoy rewards. Her entire career can be influenced by her very first job out of school.

But at the same time, this fortunate young person can be caught in the crossfire when she turns 50 or even 60. No matter how carefully she’s planned, she might find herself out of work at a challenging time, with fewer opportunities and age discrmination.

A younger person can seek alternative opportunities. If I were in my twenties today,  I would look at the military and the Peace Corps. I would consider law enforcement.

But mostly I would consider starting my own business - a good option at any age.

• Right now in Seattle, my dog walker has no shortage of clients. Some dog walkers in major cities earn over $100,000 a yearm according to a recent book about dogs.
• If you’re a cat groomer who will go into people’s homes, you’ll do very well. I tried to find a mobile cat grooming service in Seattle and gave up.
• Are you willing to clean houses? Provide lawn care? Develop a concierge business? There’s no shortage of opportunity.

The nice thing about owning your business is that you can grow as you learn. You can start out cleaning houses and then use your business acumen to grow into an organizing service or even set up shop as a business consultant. Christine Kloser began her million-dollar-a-year business with a yoga studio.

Government seems to be looking to the WPA of the 1940s as a model for helping the unemployed. I’d like to see a whole new model of employement support: a nationally supported incubator for new businesses, with qualified advisors and coaches, along with tax incentives.

In the 21st century, that’s a far more realistic option than pounding away at corporate doors.

The Wall Street Journal ran an article about the new style of telecommuting. Companies can install spyware on their employees’ computers. They randomly take screen shots. They count keystrokes.

The very idea sends chills down my spine. I’ve always been the kind of worker who works in spurts. I take lots of breaks. I take detours. I focus on meeting deadlines. And if I finish my work early, I want to take time off.

The hourly system penalizes efficiency and speed. It rewards those who are slow and methodical. I don’t quote hourly rates to my clients. And I don’t like paying anyone by the hour. It’s rarely necessary, although sometimes I am forced to follow convention.

What next…drug tests for online workers?

That’s why I like RentaCoder when I hire freelance designers. I get a quote for a job. Who cares if it takes an hour or 5 hours? All I care about are my results, delivered on time, with correctness and creativity.

You’re interviewing for a job and the interviewer wants to pick your brain. You sense they want your expertise without paying for it.

“Real” consultants run into this challenge all the time. Most of us learn to charge for “diagnostic” or “test-drive” challenges.

When interviewing, you may feel more constrained, especially if you need or really want the job. Here are some suggestions – but it’s always a judgment call. You’re on the scene. Use your intuition and your judgment.

(1) Are these requirements common in your field and at your level? If not, recognize a red flag. For example, a senior manager normally would not be asked for a writing sample. You have to decide if the company is coming from left field… or if the HR people are incompetent or bored, but your own manager will be just fine.

(2)Did you initiate the contact through a back-door or informational interview approach? You may be selling the employer on creating a job, not just filling one. Some experts recommend using the opportunity to demonstrate your problem-solving skills by presenting yourself as a consultant, not a candidate.

(3) Are you being asked to disclose information about specific programs and processes from your current career or business? I’d view these requests as a danger signal. Your manager may be testing your loyalty and ethics…or displaying some peculiar value systems of her own.

(4) Are you asked to prepare a written report? Be sure to write your name and identifying information on every page.

Frankly, I would take a risk and ask, “If you implement my recommendations, what will my compensation look like?” I can’t imagine an ethical company that couldn’t come up with a response. But I get surprised all the time and I would love to hear from readers on this one.

(5) Are you asked for on-the-spot recommendations to a specific, complex challenge?

This one is tough. You may be evaluated on how you approach the problem, such as the kinds of questions you ask. Or you might do better to say something like, “We had a similar problem in my last job. And here’s what I did…”

Let me hear from you: reply to this message and share your own thoughts. Do you have a whole different take on these questions? Let’s share!

Prime your intuitive pump: Your Intuitive Move http://www.midlifecareerstrategy.com/intuitionbook.html

Irreverent Job Search Guide http://www.midlifecareerstrategy.com/searchbk.html

Q. I joined Blue Company three months ago. Since then my department has experienced a 40% turnover. I can see why. It’s disorganized and outdated. Our boss expects us to put in long hours to do meaningless work. Time to leave?

A. Maybe.

Here the key question seems to be: Are these departing employees reacting to a situation that (a) has happened recently, (b) is unlikely to change and (c) will affect you personally?

If circumstances changed a few months before you were hired (e.g., a merger or new CEO), you may be part of a new wave. You actually will benefit from these events.

Or maybe these departures have nothing to do with the company. Suddenly your field has opened up and recruiters have raided your group. If that’s the case, you may be in a position to raise questions about your compensation – always a judgment call.

Or you may be seeing the beginning of the end.

For example: I once worked for an organization with a truly incompetent department head. Unfortunately for him, employees in his department were highly marketable. One by one, they took off. They were hard to replace.

We thought the situation would go on forever.

But following the departure of 2 particularly valuable employees, management asked the department head to accept a lateral transfer. They promoted a well-respected employee to be the new manager until an outside search could be completed.

Bottom Line: We’ve all heard the saying about rats deserting a sinking shop. But is the ship really sinking? Has a new path to dry land just opened up? And can you find a safe corner that’s well-stocked with cheese — and nobody else is around to demand a share?

To fine-tune your intuition, I recommend my very own
Intuition Ebook.

and clients tell me they like my
Job Search Guide.

We forget that good events cause stress as much as negative experiences. Today’s paper had an article about promotions. Lots of executives find themselves in positions that call for a whole new way of viewing their careers. They spend more time in meetings. They supervise others instead of doing what they love to do.

The same principle holds in starting a business. Success comes from creating repeatable processes and marketing- not doing what you love.

Taking a step backward is rarely the answer. I find my clients get even more stressed when they take a step back. You have to get used to moving up…or consider jumping ship.