Great Pajama Jobs. Kerry E. Hannon

Zena and Caparino Z

Acknowledgements

      My guiding light and inspiration for this book is Sara Sutton, a leader in the field of remote work. My deep and heartfelt thanks to Sara for always being available to answer my questions and to lend her expertise.

      Sara is the CEO and founder of FlexJobs, a groundbreaking career website focusing on telecommuting, flexible, freelance, and part-time job listings, and founder of Remote.co, a resource for remote teams and companies. She graciously opened up the vault to allow me to access her list of great companies for remote workers.

      A huge cheer to the following workplace experts who shared their insights with me: Dan Schawbel (danschawbel.com), author of Back to Human and a Millennial and Gen X career and workplace expert; Sharon Emek, founder of Work at Home Vintage Experts (WAHVE.com), a site for professionals over 50 who work from home for over 300 insurance and accounting firms; and Steve Dalton, program director for daytime career services at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business and author of The 2-Hour Job Search: Using Technology to Get the Right Job Faster.

      Special nod to Beverly Jones, an executive career coach and author of Think Like an Entrepreneur, Act Like a CEO, my go-to expert on all things career-related and a good friend.

      My deep gratitude to my agent, Linda Konner, of the Linda Konner Literary Agency, whose publishing vision and faith in my work has driven my mission of empowering people to practically improve their working lives.

My sincere appreciation to former John Wiley & Sons editor Michael Henton for embracing Great Pajama Jobs and making the smooth handoff to the thoughtful and engaging editor Kevin Harreld. Gratitude to Jean-Karl Martin, associate marketing manager at Wiley, for his insights on how to employ marketing resources to bring readers the information they need at this unprecedented time. A warm thanks to Purvi Patel, my project editor, and Susan Cerra, Wiley managing editor, who led the production of this book with smooth and clear direction. And a rousing shout-out to my superb copy editor, Amy Handy, for polishing and perfecting every page with care. Beula Jaculin, production editor, carried us to the finish line with aplomb.

      The Wiley design team once again fashioned an outstanding book jacket that projects the advice within, with a boost from the spur-of-the-moment photo image by photographer Cliff Hackel, shot in a simple country cottage in Boston, Virginia, one cold Sunday morning (with fashion styling by Caitlin Bonney).

      Special credit to Richard Eisenberg, the managing editor of NextAvenue.org. Rich has been making my work smarter and sharper for years and a trove of the work I've done on the subject of remote work was developed with Rich for Next Avenue. Plus, we are both remote workers, so we have that going for us.

      On a personal note, my writing and work depends on the support of my family and friends. These include my mom, Marguerite Hannon; the Bonney family: Paul, Pat, Christine, Mike, Caitlin, Shannon, Garrett Goon, Eileen Roach, and Lindsay Corner; the Hannon family: Mike, Judy, Brendan, Sean, Conor, and Brian and Charmaine; the Hersch family: Ginny, David, Corey, and Amy; and the Hackel family: Stu, Sue, Cassie, and Eric. And my best gal pal, Marcy Holquist.

      Big thank you to my horse set at Woodhall Farm, especially trainer Peter Foley and Amy Zettler, and, of course, my special horse with the heart of gold, Caparino Z, for bringing balance to my life.

      Zena, my super-pooch, gets the shiniest star for always getting me up and going at dawn and accompanying me wherever my laptop goes.

      Finally, much love to my remarkable husband, Cliff, who knows what it's like to work from home and helps us find joy in every day.

About the Author

      Photo credit: Elizabeth Dranitzke

      Kerry Hannon is a leading authority and strategist on career transitions, entrepreneurship, personal finance, and retirement. She is a frequent TV and radio commentator and is a sought-after keynote speaker at conferences.

      Kerry is the best-selling and award-winning author of 14 books, including Never Too Old to Get Rich: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Starting a Business Mid-Life, published by John Wiley & Sons in 2019, a number one bestseller on Amazon and selected by the Washington Post for its Book-of-the-Month Club.

      Other best-selling and award-winning books penned by Kerry include Money Confidence: Really Smart Financial Moves for Newly Single Women, Great Jobs for Everyone 50+: Finding Work That Keeps You Happy and Healthy … and Pays the Bills, Love Your Job: The New Rules for Career Happiness, Getting the Job You Want after 50, and What's Next?: Finding Your Passion and Your Dream Job in Your Forties, Fifties, and Beyond.

      Kerry is currently an expert columnist and regular contributor to The New York Times, MarketWatch, and Forbes, and is the PBS website NextAvenue.org personal finance and entrepreneur expert. Her areas of expertise include entrepreneurship, personal finance, retirement, wealth management, and career transition. Her advice as a work and jobs expert is a regular feature in AARP publications.

      Kerry lives in Washington, D.C., with her husband, documentary producer and editor Cliff Hackel, and her Labrador retriever, Zena. Follow Kerry on Twitter @KerryHannon, visit her website at KerryHannon.com, and check out her LinkedIn profile at www.linkedin.com/in/kerryhannon.

Also by Kerry Hannon

       Never Too Old to Get Rich: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Starting a Business at Mid-Life

      Great Jobs for Everyone 50+, Updated edition: Finding Work That Keeps You Happy and Healthy … and Pays the Bills

       Money Confidence: Really Smart Financial Moves for Newly Single Women

       Getting the Job You Want After 50 for Dummies

       Love Your Job: The New Rules for Career Happiness

       Great Jobs for Everyone 50+: Finding Work That Keeps You Happy and Healthy … and Pays the Bills

       What's Next: Follow Your Passion and Find Your Dream Job

       Suddenly Single: Money Skills for Divorcees and Widows

Introduction

      I love my job. I log in to my computer in the quiet predawn from my comfy couch with a steaming mug of black coffee and get to work tout de suite.

      This spring, in what felt like a blink of an eye, remote work suddenly was thrust onto many workers and employers who had never wished for this to be the only work option. And there were millions of workers like me, logging into the office without the commute, not because they wanted to, but because they had no choice.

      The coronavirus has radically changed our workplaces. Unprecedented, unprepared, and uncharted, working from home became the norm. Adjust and get on with it. Kids scrambling underfoot, teenagers sitting at the table beside us engaged in their online classrooms, ramping up tech skills to make virtual