Jobs @ Career Consulting Limited

Return to career-consulting-limited.com
Managing
People
Managing Your Career
CV Examples
Coaching
Cover Letter Examples
Pre-Employment Tests


The Changing Values Landscape of the U.S. and How It Impacts Midlife Job Searchers, Part Two


The values landscape of our nation is changing, and with it your personal values landscape is changing as well.  What does this mean and what does it have to do with midlife?

Researcher Dr. Paul Ray says that the predominant values set held by Americans has been one he terms Modernist, with roots in the Renaissance.  Modernists presently represent 88 million U.S. adults, or 47% of the population, but the numbers of Modernists are shrinking as those who hold these values are increasingly leaving this subculture and choosing instead the values of one of the other two subcultures ray has found, the Heartlanders (representing traditionalist values) and the Culture Creatives (representing  newly emerging integral values, never before seen in human history).  Heartlanders represent 29% of the population, or 56 million adults, while Culture Creatives represent 24% of the population, or 44 million adults.

Those with a Modernist perspective tend to value religious and lifestyle pluralism, career achievement stepping stones, consumerism, a "winning" lifestyle, capitalism; tolerate societal fragmentism; and welcome the technologization of life.   Many Heartlander values are the polar opposites of Modernist values:  simplified and unified lifestyle options; an emphasis on putting families, not careers, first; buying in accordance with budget and values; a family-oriented lifestyle; a deemphasis on individualization and capitalism; a great desire to heal the fragmentations of American society; and a dramatically lessened interest in and dependence on technology.
 
Now, what about the Culture Creatives?  Who are they and what do they believe?  Ray names this subculture this way because this is the group that is coming up with the new ideas that are transforming society as we know it.  Culture Creative values tend to be person-focused and environment friendly and include:  psychology; spiritual life; self-actualization; self-expression; mastering new ideas; social concerns; and women's issues.

Dr. Ray sees American society as approaching what he terms a "Great Divide" in which the mainstream Modernist subculture is shrinking as members move instead into Heartlander or Culture Creative camps.  Midlife acts as your own personal "Great Divide" and challenges you to choose your own values.  Are you a Modernist?  Will you remain one?  Or are you really more of a Heartlander and just beginning to recognize yourself?  Or are you a Culture Creative who never before could name what you knew you were becoming?  What about your present family and friends?  Or your family of origin?  Or the people in your faith community?  Are you surrounded by likeminded others or those with contrasting values?

Review the informal lists above and see which subculture feels most like you.  Consider reflecting on the questions raised in the last paragraph to help you explore your own personal values landscape.  If you are surrounded by supporters, then no matter which category you live in, the changes ahead will be easier for you.  If, on the other hand, you are surrounded by those of other subcultures, then not only the societal changes ahead but your own midlife changes will be more chaotic as well.

Most critical of all, though, make sure you incorporate your Modernist, Heartlander, or Culture Creative values into your resume summary, cover/follow-up/thank you letters, and interview responses.  By doing so, you dramatically increase the odds that you'll end up working next to likeminded others, which, in turn, should assure you some measure of career satisfaction over the long-term.

Cheryl Lynch Simpson is a Spiritual Director and Solutions Coach who helps women discover and create the life they've always wanted to live.  Cheryl is the author of over 30 print/Internet articles and the founder of Coaching Solutions For Women, a coaching website that produces and showcases career, business, and life solutions that improve the life balance of today's busy women.  For a complimentary copy of her latest e-book, Ten-Minute Stress Zappers for Women Service Business Owners, visit http://www.coachingsolutionsforwomen.com.


MORE RESOURCES:


Work At Chess.com  Chess.com








Careers - Human Resources  Kennesaw State University







Careers  Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center



Careers  Micron










Careers at Bucknell  Bucknell University


Career Paths  FEMA




Industry sells workers on ag jobs  The Western Producer

Veterans and transitioning military | VA Careers  VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs



Careers  Smith College GrĂ©court Gate


Careers at NATO  NATO HQ

Apply for a Job  The City of Vancouver, WA


Join our team  FHI 360


Careers at USI  University of Southern Indiana


Careers  Medline Newsroom

Work for Us (U.S  National Park Service

Careers  The Ocean Cleanup


Careers at Air Liquide  Air Liquide

Careers | US Forest Service  USDA Forest Service




Careers  Technip Energies






Industry Jobs • ASI  Advertising Specialty Institute

Careers  CPKC

Work Here  UnitedHealth Group



Careers with Impact  IFC Press Releases








Education and Development  WellSpan Health







Find a Role  Bain & Company


Jobs  Energy.gov


Employment Opportunities  City of Windsor

Careers  City of Somerville



Employment Opportunities  Unity Health Toronto

Careers & Employment  Pinellas County


ADM Job Openings  Unlocking Nature. Enriching Life. | ADM


City Jobs  charlottenc.gov

Current Job Openings  Pinellas County

Find your next job at UC  University of Cincinnati

Need More Information?
Site Home | Site Map | Links | Contact Us | Privacy Policy
© Career Consulting Limited.com 2011

tumblr visit counter