Making it work; Husband and wife keep positive spin on finances.

PositionNEWS

Byline: Lisa Eckelbecker

COLUMN: COPING IN THIS ECONOMY

An occasional series

TEMPLETON - Eight. That's how many jobs Kathleen M. Bennett has held over the last 18 years.

There was the bank that was seized by regulators, the stint at the forest products company, the auto dealership, two separate periods at Simplex or SimplexGrinnell businesses and a few other stops before ending up in her current job with an insurance company. Since 2001, the office worker has been laid off three times.

"I've done so many things," she said.

Through all the difficulties, Mrs. Bennett and her husband, Gary A. Bennett, have worked to adapt to changing job situations and shifting financial demands. It's a strategy that career counselors and job-search experts say can help individuals survive in tumultuous times.

"It does take adaptability, trying something that you didn't know you could do and being creative," said Patricia Stepanski Plouffe, a career counselor and coach, and founder of Worcester-based Career Management Consultants. "I've known people who've lost their jobs and they become caregivers. There are jobs out there that people have never thought of ... what they might want to do is step back and think about what they have to offer."

Adaptability boils down to staying flexible and finding solutions. Federal labor officials don't really know how many times on average U.S. residents change careers over their lifetimes, but a recent Bureau of Labor Statistics study that tracked younger baby boomers for 25 years found that individuals held an average of 10.8 jobs between the ages of 18 and 42.

The numbers don't illustrate the anxiety that can accompany a job change, however. Especially how stress can engulf job seekers, according to Robert T. DePetro, job search counselor at Workforce Central in Worcester. He tries to remind applicants that they know how to succeed.

"Things that have worked before can work again, but we tend to forget that when we're thrown into a chaotic ocean," Mr. DePetro said.

The Bennetts know a bit about bumpy waves.

High-school graduates who married at 19, the couple purchased their modest ranch house soon after Mrs. Bennett lost her job as an item processor for Gardner-based New England Allbank for Savings, which was seized by regulators in late 1990. Her retirement savings from that job made just enough for a down payment on the modest ranch house with a big yard for the couple's two children.

It was one of a series of calculated...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT