Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Tips for Looking for a Job; Health for Her; Eye Tracker
Aired January 31, 2009 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MELISSA LONG, CNN ANCHOR: The state of jobs. We have a special hour devoted to you and your livelihood. If you're unemployed, concerned about keeping your job that you already have, a career counselor has valuable advice.
Frustrating finances as well. We have a psychologist who will help you to cope in this economic crisis.
And where are the jobs? There are companies that are hiring right now. We're going to talk about them. I'm Melissa Long in today for Fredricka Whitfield. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
It is an ice storm for the record books, and the misery is far from over. We begin this hour with a lingering effects of this week's big winter storm. In hard-hit Kentucky first, an unprecedented move by the governor. He's ordered a total call up of the National Guard in places there's no heat and there is no water.
Food is in short supply. Some people in the rural areas are having to get their water from creeks. More than half a million people in the state of Kentucky still do not have power. Nearly a dozen states were slammed by the storm. And there are still power outages from the southern plains to the East Coast. At least 42 deaths blamed on the storm, and many of them in the state of Kentucky. Some of them were from carbon monoxide poisoning. Among the apparent victims are three members of a Louisville family. Authorities say they have been using a generator that wasn't ventilated properly.
And parts of Kentucky have been knocked back to the dark ages. Really from this ice storm. There is no power. There is no television. There is no phone service. Reporter Sheila Reeves with our affiliate WAVE Television reports now from one of the the worst areas that is Grayson County.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHEILA REEVES, WAVE TV: Nearly all of Grayson County is still in the dark after Tuesday's winter storm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It has been disastrous. Trees down. Power - electric poles, lines, all of them are down.
REEVES: Downed trees and power lines created situations too dangerous for emergency crews to reach, and 95 percent of the county is still without power.
RANDALL SMITH, EMERGENCY MGNT. ASSN.: We have people on our lakefronts and so on that we don't know if they're alive or dead. We haven't even got to clear the roads into them.
REEVES: And with more than 600 power lines down it will be a long time before power is restored.
It will possibly be four to six weeks.
REEVES: Local shelters are filling up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When I arrived here there was already like 500 people here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We had 150 cots for 500 people the first night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're not open, but if you need something - what do you need? The National Guard will help. And they're on their way right now to pick up the milk.
REEVES: This convenience store shipment arrived the day of the storm but can't be sold because of the outage.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's probably going to be households that probably lose more than that. At least we didn't really lose it. Now, people get to use it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two trays up front and a full tray here.
REEVES: Workers like this letter carrier are determined to bring (Leechfield) back to life.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're crawling, ducking under trees. Our postmaster told us yesterday that when you go out into the community, people expect to see you. It gives them a sense that things are coming back to normal.
REEVES: Sheila Reeves, WAVE TV News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LONG: A lot of people in the dark today. And it is cold. How cold? Let's bring in meteorologist Jacqui Jeras who is keeping track of the severe weather that's been going through so much of the country, Jacqui. Yes. We've got a lot of cold out there. The good news is we're getting just above that freezing mark in some of these areas.
Louisville, Kentucky 33 degrees right now. So we got some melting taking place. That's good. You know anything that you can shave off some of that ice. Get rid of some of that heavy accumulation is getting you but in addition to the dripping. You know, that ice is going cracking and falling off and that can be hazardous so you have to be extremely careful. You have to go outside some fo these areas for today. Temperatures are going to continue to warm up a little bit today and tomorrow as well.
Look at that, we're talking 48 in Louisville for your sunday. But we've got an approaching cold front reinforcing cold air moving in behind it. So, you know, two days where you're going to be above freezing, and that's about it. So it's going to be back in the cold and still in the dark, unfortunately, for a lot of you folks. Our clipper type system in the upper midwest right now. Ahead of it we got winds coming in from the south.
So that's warm air convection as well call it. It's the transport of the the milder temperatures into this area. Now, it's going to kick up a little bit of moisture. I think enough to bring us some light snow showers Sunday night and into Monday. Little to no accumulation anticipated here. It will bring in that north westerly wind then by Monday into Tuesday. And that's when you're going to start to feel some of these colder temperatures.
So in the meantime, we're looking at that cold air staying bottled up here to the north. We've got some milder temperatures on down to the south. And kind of a tranquil week. Now on the tail end of that front, Melissa, I just want to mention, you know, some of the computer models have been developing a pretty good storm for the southern states and then moving on up towards New England.
Right now, my best thinking is that storm will be far enough offshore that it shouldn't bring additional heavy snow or problems into the Ohio Valley, but we could be looking at a significant storm for you in the northeast, early to middle next week. We'll keep you posted.
LONG: Well, that in Kentucky, you mentioned the warmer temperatures. Of course, that causes all the melting, which causes a whole different problem for people in Kentucky.
JERAS: Right. As I mentioned, you know those ice patches will fall down in chunks and they can certainly hurt you and then you get that thawing throughout the day. So your streets are going to get a little wet again as everything starts to run off. Then the temperatures overnight will be back below freezing again. So you could get a little black ice and stuff like that. So use a lot of caution because of it. And generally there is two by the way, Melissa.
We've got at least four people die because of carbon monoxide poisoning with the generators. So if you're going to use them make sure you know what you're doing and you actually read that instruction package if you never had one before.
LONG: Rely on the shelters. They're there waiting for people to come.
JERAS: Absolutely.
LONG: Thanks, Jacqui.
Turning the economy around, the sole theme of President Obama's weekly radio address today in an internet address. The President had no public events this afternoon but in just about three hours he will attend the alfalfa club dinner. It's the annual closed door event roasting well known politicians.
As CNN's Elaine Quijano can attest, there were no jokes earlier in the day when the president was talking about the struggling economy. Elaine.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right, Melissa. In fact, some pretty serious tones as President Barack Obama in his weekly address tried to ratchet up the pressure on lawmakers to get behind his massive economic recovery plan. That plan as you know did pass the House earlier this week, but it did so without a single republican supporting it.
It's now heading over to the Senate where it's likely to face some GOP opposition there as well. And ahead of the that, President Obama had a not so veiled message for republican lawmakers basically saying that Americans will blame them if Congress fails to act.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRES. BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES: Americans know that our economic recovery will take years, not months, but they will have little patience if we allow politics to get in the way of action. And our economy continues to slide. That's why I'm calling on the Senate to pass this plan so that we can put people back to work and begin the long hard work of lifting our economy out of this crisis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUIJANO: Still some republicans insist that Americans are also concerned that their taxpayer dollars are not wasted, that they're being spent wisely. They say some of the spending in this massive bill just not jump start the economy. Here is Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MINORITY LEADER: The task for democrats in the house was to craft a stimulus plan that was timely, targeted, and temporary.
Apparently they didn't get the memo. The bill they presented, in which House democrats approved this week along a party line vote, looks more like a trillion-dollar Christmas list.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUIJANO: Now what are they questioning? Republicans are questioning spending millions of dollars on doing things like improving ATV trails on buying cars for government workers and millions to renovate the Commerce Department Building here in Washington.
But President Obama insists that this stimulus and recovery plan will actually help to create or save more than three million jobs. He says that America cannot afford to have inaction on this issue. Melissa.
LONG: Elaine Quijano at the White House. Elaine, thank you.
The list of layoffs just keeps getting longer and more overwhelming. The latest company to announce cutbacks, Sears confirming today 300 corporate employees are getting pink slips. The cuts happening at the headquarters in Illinois and also facilities in Michigan and New York in addition to Illinois. Here's a look at other major companies that announced layoffs this past week. All State, Kodak, Pfizer, just to name a few. Let's look at the hard number. 145,000 jobs gone this week alone. If you woke up this morning among the legions of unemployed, you may be asking what do I do now?
We're going to get some good hard answers for you from Maggie Mistal. She is a career counselor, the host of the radio program, "Making a living with Maggie."
Maggie, nice to see you. Thank you. Look forward to your advice right now. 145,000 just for the week. So people are sitting at home on this Saturday, they nay be out of a job, and they're feeling overwhelmed, and understandably.
MAGGIE MISTAL, CAREER COUNSELOR: Yes, I mean this is affected my own household as well, Melissa. And really, the emotions range. and I know we'll talk more about it. But it's really shock and anger, and in some cases though, and I want to point out the positives. I've talked to a lot of people who have been let go this past several weeks and there is some sense of relief to be to be able to perhaps move onto something new they've been thinking about.
And even to have a severance package would be great in these times. Our unemployment is you know, is great to collect. Because there may be other things out there for you. Just because one door closes, it's so important to remember that doesn't mean every door is closed on your right now.
LONG: It's great to hear you say that some are looking at this in a positive way. Saying maybe this is the next big opportunity for me. But when you have this many people looking for work, what do you do to just make yourself just stand out and shine.
MISTAL: Well what you really want to do Melissa is focus and target your resume towards the jobs that you like. One of the biggest challenges that most people do in this economy is, oh, my god, you know, the sky is falling. There aren't jobs so let me just spread my resume out everywhere. And when I tell people, don't do that.
Take a step back. Do a bit of soul searching. Where would you really like to be? And what are you strengths? What are you passions? Because right now in order for you to stand out, you're going to need to be somebody who has a unique set of skills. And we all do. We're unique individuals. So it's important to look back at those performance evaluation. Talk to friends. Talk to colleagues and former bosses and find out what do you best and that's a great way to seel yourself even in a competitive market place.
LONG: So what you're saying is essentially to make sure that you're networking 24/7?
MISTAL: Absolutely but know what you're telling and know what you're telling your network, in terms of what you are trying to do. If you're networking now and you're not sure which direction you want to go, they're not going to be able to help you. So understand and think again, soul search first and what would I love to be doing right now?
I know that sounds crazy, but actually it's a great first step to focus in on. And tell your network, here is what I'm looking for. Do you know anybody who can help?
LONG: Maggie, yu're going to help us soul search all this hour. You're going to stick around, right?
MISTAL: I'm ready for you it, Melissa.
LONG: All right. Maggie is going to join us and we have other guests joining us this hour. This hour, we are dedicating it to those that are looking for work. Also joining us from New York is Jeff Cardere. He is a psychologist who is going to help us to deal with the emotions associated with this difficult marketplace. Losing your job and that anxious feeling you may have if you are worried about other people losing your jobs. Maybe your colleagues or your loved ones and also a gentlemen who has reinvented himself, looking forward to hearing more about his story as well.
And in the meantime, we want you to e-mail your questions for all of them. Send the questions to weekends@cnn.com. You can also send it in the form of an I-report. That's another option. Go to I- report.com. So, the big question, who is hiring today? The companies that are searching for the job searchers.
And debt and despair. Police say a man killed his five children, his wife and himself after a layoff. A psychologist coming up on how to cope in this economic crisis.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
LONG: Mayo Clinic, men's health throughout the hour. We're going to be showing you the companies looking to hire new employees. Get your resumes ready. Fine tune them. One of the places you may just find that perfect job.
Foreclosure notice goes terribly wrong in southern New Mexico. A standoff ended earlier today with one person dead. Officers went to the home yesterday to serve an eviction notice. A sheriff's deputy was injured by flying glass after his windshield was shot out. Deputies say the homeowner had told them he was willing to die before giving up his home to foreclosure. Officials say they aren't sure how the man was killed.
As job losses and debt mount, so does despair. Tuesday, a California man apparently distraught after he and his wife were recently fired from their jobs as hospital technicians shot and killed his five children and his wife before turning the gun on himself.
An extreme example, perhaps, of the pressure being brought on by the job cuts, the foreclosures, the lost investments. Jeff Gardere is a psychologist in New York. He joins us live this hour to help us to better understand how to cope. Jeff, nice to see you. Thanks for your time.
JEFF GARDERE, PSYCHOLOGIST: It's a pleasure, Melissa. Thank you.
LONG: You're hearing one story after the next and after the next and whether you are feeling it because of a loved one or a friend or your colleagues or you're just hearing it on the news, it's overwhelming.
GARDERE: It is overwhelming. People are very scared. People are very anxious. And with these two stories you just showed, what we're finding is people who are on the fringes, people who have depression or anxiety or have had some personality issues.
These are the people who are going to fall first in this line of foreclosure fire. In this whole issue of the economic meltdown. So we have to be cognizant of those around us who already have pre- existing mental health issues. Because those are the ones that need help first.
But even if you don't have these issues, you're anxious, you're scared. You don't know whether you're going to be the next one to lose your job. And if you've lost your job, it has hurt your self- esteem. Because we define ourselves by the work that we do and being able to take care of our families.
LONG: All right. As a psychologist, if you have someone who had a preexisting condition as you just said and is about to lose a job, worried about losing a job, or has lost a job, what can he or she do?
GARDERE: Well, I think the first thing they need to do is to be able to debrief. In other words, talk about what the anxiety may be about. Talk about what the pressures are about. Be able to get together with an informal group of people whether family or friends who have a lot of the same concerns. Melissa, the bottomline is if you know that you're not alone, if you know that there are other people going through the same things, you can get together, have that catharsis, be able to talk and share strategies to prepare one self for what to do if in fact you lose your job or if you've lost your job, what you can do to find one.
LONG: Jeff, good advice. We're going to continue to talk to you throughout the hour as well. Don't go away, of course.
GARDERE: All right.
LONG: Talking to Jeff. Talking to Maggie and talking to a man who had re-invented himself. If you have questions for any of the individuals on our panel - a career counselor, a psychologist or a man who has successfully reinvented himself, walter Krishbaum. Go to weekends@CNN.com. That's the e-mail address again at weekends@CNN.com. Or submit an I-report. Go to the main page, ireport.com.
Now the dire economic situation is getting even a cockeyed optimists down. CNN's Kara Finnstrom visited a mental health center in southern California where business is booming.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't want to live if you can't find a job, I think we need to probably call and send you to the nearest emergency room.
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Elizabeth Gore has been a mental health counselor for decades. She's heard pain. She's heard desperation. But Gore is alarmed at what she's hearing now.
ELIZABETH GORE, MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELOR: it is a big deal if you tell me that you don't want to live if you can't find something (inaudible). Do you realize what you're telling me.
I don't think it's ever been this bad. A lot of these people they've always had and they went to school, they're able to get jobs. Now the jobs aren't even out there.
FINNSTROM: Gore works in L.A. counties mental health access center. Where they are now getting 27,000 calls every month. An all-time high.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She is unemployed.
FINNSTROM: With many linked to financial distress. And where they're seeing a spike after Tuesday's tragedy in a normally quiet L.A. area neighborhood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We found the bodies of a male and a female adult a s well as five children.
FINNSTROM: Police say Irvan Antonio Lupo and his wife had been fired, drowning in debt, and that he ended it all by taking his own life and the lives of his wife and five children.
There are five angels in heaven. And it's just a real tragedy.
FINNSTROM (on-camera): Here at L.A. County, the unemployment rate is at 9.5 percent. Way above the national average. The area has been rocked by foreclosures. And those phone calls to mental health counselors keep coming.
GORE: They feel hopeless and feel that, you know there's nothing there. So that's where they want to turn to hurt themselves. This lady probably would. She sounds like, you know, she needed somebody to talk to and you know ease her fears.
FINNSTROM: Gore becomes that somebody.
GORE: This lady applied for 200 jobs. She got one callback. And she still didn't get the job.
FINNSTROM: Steering the distress to help.
GORE: I have a caller on the phone and she is unemployed. She's going through a lot of social anxiety right now. She would like to see somebody today.
FINNSTROM: Gore guides callers to social service agencies and clinics and just listens.
GORE: I get emotional. I get all that stuff. But I just have to keep a certain calm. And I kind of sort of put that on the backburner and get to business and help people feel that you know there is hope. And there's help. All they got to do is contact us. Just dial the 800-number. Somebody here can help somebody.
FINNSTROM: Kara Finnstrom for CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LONG: Looking at this with optimism. Turning a layoff into a lifelong dream. One enterprising man turned his job loss into a job opportunity.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Losing a job may seem like the end of the world. It can also be a new opportunity. Walter Krishbaum lost his New York finance job two years ago at the age of 61. He became an i-reporter recently shared his story, how he turned an old passion into a small business.
Walter, so happy to talk to you. And I think a lot of people find inspiration from your story. How did you turn this likely despair into being an entrepreneur?
WALTER KERSCHBAUM, STARTED OWN BUSINESS AFTER LAY-OFF: Well, Melissa, I searched for a job for quite a while after I lost mine. And it became pretty clear that I wasn't going to find anything. And one day as I was walking away from a job interview, I saw a man working in a watch shop. And it made me realize that, hey, I'm a clock maker.
I had actually in 1972 after I finished my MBA, I had gone to clock maker school. And eventhough I didn't practice it, but it was really more in terms of my hobby. I said, look, I'm going to do this. I'm going to just jump in, and I'm going to start a clock shop.
LONG: Fascinating. You have B.S. in engineering, an MBA. You couldn't get a job. So you looked back in your lengthy experience and found you know what I had this passion for clockmaking. In fact, you have the skills and the training. Were you overwhelmed though with the thought that starting a business from scratch and at the age of 61?
KERSCHBAUM: Well, you know I said to myself, even if I do get a job, how long is it going to last? Two or three years? And then where do I go? So I said, no, no. This is the time to do it. And basically starting a company is just as simple as getting a tax I.D.. In my case, I made it into an s-corp. But the administrative hurdle isn't very great. What comes next is not easy. You just got to open the doors and say here I am. Put your shingles out and struggle -
LONG: And you said here I am. And I understand you got a lot of local press, which helped obviously to get the word out about what you were doing.
KERSCHBAUM: Yes. The local press was very, very kind. The "SCARSDALE INQUIRER," believe it or not, they had a front page article on me. OK. It's a small local town paper, but it helped.
LONG: It helped a lot. And now a couple of years in, is this what you're planning for the next decade, two decades?
KERSCHBAUM: Well I hate to put it this way, but one of my colleagues is an 85-year-old man who just passed away. Yes, I think I'm going to be doing this for quite a while. I enjoyed doing it. And finally, you know, I've gotten past the break even point. I'm actually starting to make a living at it.
LONG: Congratulations. Two years in. That's actually very, very much a good sign of what a good business it is. Isn't it normally like five years I think starting a business. Walter is going to stick with us throughout the hour. So is Jeff Gardere. He is a psychologist. And aslo Maggie Mistal who is a career counselor.
All this hour, all we are talking about how to reinvent yourself, like Walter. How to get the job and how to cope with all the difficult news we've all been hearing? Thanks so much. Don't go away. Of course, we're just going to make sure we're up to date on some of the other stories making news this hour.
Four more suspicious fires in eastern Pennsylvania have been ruled arson. We'll get you more on that story coming up in just a couple of minutes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: As promised, half past the hour. Let's get you some of the other stories making news at this hour.
Four more suspicious fires in eastern Pennsylvania have been ruled arson. They were set overnight near Coatesville, all caught early. None of the homes completely lost. There had been at least 30 arson fires in the area in the past 13 months.
The peanut processing company linked to a salmonella outbreak could face criminal charges. Officials are looking into reports that the company's Georgia factory was contaminated with salmonella as far back as 2007. Peanut Corporation of America says it wants to express its deepest and most sincere empathy for those made sick in the outbreak.
And Iraqis going to the polls today for the first time in four years. Voting heading home waved their index fingers stained with purple ink used to identify people with cast ballots. More than 14,000 candidates are running in provincial elections, including 3,900 women.
A crippling ice storm has hundreds of thousands of people seeking shelter in Kentucky and elsewhere. And iReporter Mike Watt has some photos. I want to share them with you right now from his home in Mayfield, Kentucky. Most of his community out of power, still. Mike says most of the roads are still impassable. Let's bring in Jacqui Jeras from the CNN Weather Center.
(WEATHER REPORT)
LONG: Maybe you're looking for work. A lot of people are. The number of people getting unemployment benefits reaching an all-time high. The government reporting 4.78 million laid-off workers continuing to claim unemployment benefits, and more Americans are filing new claims.
The seasonally adjusted figure for last week, 588,000. That is up 3,000 from the previous week.
As promised, we are getting advice for you. We have the experts, Maggie Mistal, a career counselor, Jeff Gardere is a psychologist, and Walter Kerschbaum, a man who has reinvented himself two years after losing his jobs. And also Josh Levs, who's been taking your questions.
Of course we want to get you help as well. Finding some inspiration from Walter today. Let's get some people some jobs as well.
Josh, what type of e-mails have we been getting? What's the theme?
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Melissa, I'll tell you, we've been hearing from people of all ages, literally all ages within the workforce, people who are in their teens, all the way up into their 70s. A lot of people expressing something similar, which really is desperation, really being at wit's ends, not knowing what to do.
So to all of you, Maggie and Jeff and Walter, and on behalf of all our viewers who keep writing us, let me thank you guys for doing this and for being here to take so many questions.
Could we just zoom into the board so we can get to the first one right now? Let's check this out, because this is really an emotionally one and really struck me. I usually wouldn't read one this long, but I want you to hear this story.
"I'm 19, a hard worker, currently at Mr. Pickles," which is a sandwich shop. "After high school, I worked at an automotive department, but the gas cost too much. I want to go back to school to do auto or art. I'm also open to learning something new."
Now, listen to this. "I just want to make something of my life." I'm losing him here. OK. Forgive me.
Let's start off with this one instead. I'll get back to that one. So this is going to be a second.
"I was laid off from my job in July, 2008, was lucky enough to land another job in August of 2008, but that one was laid off" -- she was laid off form that as well and wants to know if that should stay on her resume. And that's actually about one of about 10 I got like this, people who have been laid off twice in the last two years.
Maggie, if that happens to you, do you put that on your resume or do you not? Does it make you look bad if you get laid off twice?
MAGGIE MISTAL, CAREER COUNSELOR: Not in this economy, Josh. We're all in this together, actually.
So what I encourage people to do in that situation is, absolutely, list that job, because you may have great references from that job, even if it was a short time. So -- and focus on any results you got in the time, even if it's a few projects, because it will show your skills and talents, which is really important right now.
LONG: You know, I want to ask something about that too. That person has been laid off repeatedly.
Jeff, how do you deal with that bad news? It's one after another. It's a domino effect emotionally.
JEFF GARDERE, PSYCHOLOGIST: Well, again, I think Maggie is correct. We're all in this together. So this isn't something that's just happening to that particular person. You don't have to get into the thinking of, woe is me.
What you have to do actually is have that intestinal fortitude and keep trying, keep moving forward. And then you see inspirational stories like Walter's, and it makes you want to do more. You can keep moving forward.
LEVS: Yes, and that's the problem that a lot of people are having, though, is that they want to keep moving forward, but they're convinced that if there's any thing that's even the slightest glitch, because there's so much competition, people will ignore it.
I managed to fix the screen here.
LONG: Yeah.
LEVS: I apologize for that. I want to get back to this. A brand new touch screen, actually, Melissa. Today is the first day we get to use it.
But check this out. What he's saying -- this is Dustin.
He's saying, "I just want to make something of my life. I want to be successful and happy. I just want my family to be proud. And I want to be proud of myself for making it."
And that was so striking to me.
Jeff, I want to go to you first, because having a job is so caught up with your personal pride.
GARDERE: That's right.
LEVS: How do you hold onto your pride, your strength, that kind of conviction, while you're in this tough situation?
GARDERE: Well, one of the most important things is to not tie your self-esteem to your work. Your work is something that you do. Your work is something that brings you money and takes care of yourself and the family. But at the same time, you have to realize that you're a whole person, that there are other aspects to you. And therefore, you cannot be that one trick pony.
So if you're not going well at work, then you still should move forward and be able to work with the other talents that you have. Bring those things together to make you different and make you stand from the crowd. But more than anything, hold on to your self-esteem and have that faith. Have that belief in yourself.
LONG: OK.
LEVS: So many people need to hear that. And I'll just let everyone know, coming up later this hour, we're going to be asking some more of the questions we're hearing from people who feel like they have to get back in the workforce now. They've been out, they've been retired. They feel like they're losing their retirement, have to work again.
We're going to toss that at Maggie in just a couple of minutes.
LONG: And Josh, I know we have a question coming up as well, directly to Walter, seeking some inspiration.
Coming up in just a matter of minutes, we continue to focus on you, finding jobs, and staying at peace during this really difficult economy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Girls have been making tremendous strides both on and off the playing field. But despite this growing equality, young female athletes seem to be at the greater risk for knee injuries than the boys.
Judy Fortin explains in today's "Health for Her" segment.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JUDY FORTIN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the sports playing field, young girls seem to be winning out in one area they probably weren't even trying to compete in. That of knee injuries. And these injuries become more of an issue as they go through puberty, for while boys grow stronger and muscular, girls start making more hormones and grow more limber and more shapely.
DR. LETHA GRIFFIN, ORTHOPEDIC SURGEON: Well, women aren't straight up and down like men are. Their legs don't go straight up and down.
They have wider pelvises. Their knee comes in at an angle. And because of that, their kneecap doesn't go straight up and down. And so if they don't balance out their thigh muscle well, the kneecap can shift to one side and could cause problems.
FORTIN: And those problems can be anything from shin splints, stress fractures, or a much bigger problem, a torn anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL. While a man's ACL can get torn, there are studies showing that females playing sports are up to six times more likely to sustain the injury.
GRIFFIN: We're not sure quite why. It may be part of anatomy. It may be the difference of how boys move and girls move.
If you look even when kids are little, little boys are down to the ground. They're scooping down. They got their knee bent. They're almost right there on the ground.
Little girls are tiptoeing around on their tiptoes where their body up right. And we know when you're hip and knee is straighter and you twist, that's when injury can occur to the ACL.
FORTIN: But just how do you combat a problem caused by anatomy or posture? The first step might be by literally playing the field and doing it while girls are young.
GRIFFIN: Kids, when they get to be about 5th, 4th, 6th grade, are starting to get into one sport rather than doing multiple sports. They have a predilection for a sport, their parents encourage them to do it, the coach encourages them to do it. And pretty soon, one sport is taking over their lives. So they're really not getting a broad base of muscle development.
FORTIN: And it's that broad base you need if you want to stay in the game, or at least until you reach a certain age.
GRIFFIN: Once they get into those middle years and high school, they've got the body they're probably going to have, and now they can start sports specializing.
FORTIN: So maybe one way to try to keep an older female athlete uninjured and strong may be to let them remain kids just a little while longer.
Judy Fortin, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: This hour is dedicated to the economy, jobs, and finding you work. And we're also taking e-mail questions. We're relying on experts.
Maggie Mistal, a career counselor. Walter Kerschbaum started his own business a couple of years ago after losing his finance job. He's reinvented himself successfully. And Jeff Gardere, a psychologist, helping us to deal emotionally with everything we've been hearing. And Josh Levs taking your e-mails.
And I know the next e-mail we have is related to somebody who is looking for inspiration and feels the need to reinvent.
LEVS: Yes, and is inspired by Walter's story, but is feeling kind of frustrated because she feels like she can't necessarily get her own chance to do it.
Let's zoom in on the board. I want you to see this. This is a good example of something about 50 people wrote us.
"How do you convince employers that you're capable of doing something that you don't have on your resume as having done for years? I've written all my life, but I'm in the accounting field."
Walter, let me toss this at you. A lot of people saying they would love to reinvent themselves, they think they could, but they can't get someone to pay them for it. What do they do?
WALTER KERSCHBAUM, STARTED OWN BUSINESS AFTER LAY-OFF: Well, you know, I think there are a lot of ways you can do it, you know, like blogging or somehow doing what you want to do but at first maybe you're not paid for it.
LONG: Like volunteering.
You know, I wanted to ask you something about, Walter, where you are now, because you have successfully reinvented yourself, but life isn't easy. You still don't have health insurance.
KERSCHBAUM: I sure don't. And you know, it's something that drives me forward. It's one of my goals, is to earn enough money to be able to pay that monthly payment.
LONG: I mean, that's important to point out.
LEVS: Yes.
LONG: As people are reinventing themselves, there are going to be challenges, obviously.
LEVS: Yes, big-time, absolutely. And it's interesting what he was saying there, maybe a blog, maybe something that comes across as official, ends up counting as experience.
Maggie, let me toss one at you that's very symbolic, it's something a lot of people writing us. We'll zoom back in.
This one comes for Tim. "What suggestions do you have for older Americans trying to find employment? Is there any hope for us, or are we now considered unemployable?"
I'll tell you, I got several from people who said that they were retired. They're losing their retirement funds, they have to go back to work now. But what are they supposed to do these days when they have to compete against the younger people?
Maggie, what do they do?
MISTAL: Well, what I tell them is, first, don't feel you have to dye your hair or change who you are. And literally, I was coaching someone this week who felt that that's what he would have to do to land a job. And I said, "No, no, no. Don't do that. Don't change who you are. Rather, focus in on your skills, your experience. And brainstorm sort of new ways to use those valuable talents in the marketplace."
For a lot of folks that I've been talking to who are over 50, they can actually really benefit by being consultants. And it may take rather than looking for a job, starting their own business. But it's absolutely something that I tell people to look out for, just like Walter put out his own shingle. It's definitely something that is possible, especially if you have that experience that younger workers don't have.
LONG: Selling yourself, marketing yourself, finding a job. We continue to talk about it this hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Traumatic brain injuries, the signature wounds suffered by troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. But with new technology, quick assessments in the field may soon be possible.
With this story, here's Deborah Feyerick.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This device tracks eye movements. In matter of seconds, it can detect brain damage caused by anything from traffic accidents and sports injuries to bomb blasts. The Eye Tracker didn't exist when Sergeant Major Mike Welsh was injured in a car bomb explosion in Afghanistan.
SGT. MAJOR MIKE WELSH, BRAIN INJURY VICTIM: They removed fragments out of my temple.
FEYERICK: Two years after the blast, Welsh still has trouble balancing his checkbook and has constant headaches.
WELSH: You can say that having a traumatic brain injury is almost like sometimes you're dead and you don't remember that you're dead.
FEYERICK: It took a month just to diagnose his brain damage, and Welsh says he's fortunate.
WELSH: There's guys that have gone a year or two without even being treated because it wasn't diagnosed immediately.
FEYERICK: The Eye Tracker is being developed by a team of researchers led by Dr. Jamshid Ghajar. Every thousandth of a second, a camera snaps a high-resolution image of the eye, and special software looks for subtle eye jitters, a sign there's damage to the area of the brain that lets us focus and pay attention.
DR. JAMSHID GHAJAR, NEUROSURGEON, WEILL CORNELL: And that jitter is responsible for a lot of attention problems and memory problems. And this Eye Tracker picks that up very quickly.
FEYERICK: So treatment can start right away. Welsh looks toward to the day the device will be portable enough to take to the front line.
WELSH: The sooner that could be done, they sooner they can enter treatment.
FEYERICK: Deborah Feyerick, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: KPMG one of the many companies hiring.
Our job panel is back answering your e-mail questions. Once again, an introduction.
Maggie Mistal, a career counselor. Walter Kerschbaum starting his own business a couple of years ago after losing his job in finance. And Jeff Gardere is a psychologist. And Josh Levs also searching through your e-mails.
This next e-mail, Josh, is so interesting to me, because I think a lot of people are feeling this way and having a lot of sleepless nights.
LEVS: They are. Sleepless nights is exactly what it's about. Take a look at this.
This one comes to us from Denisse, one of many people who said something similar. She works at a spa tub manufacturing company. I'm just going to get to the gist of it. "I rarely sleep at night thinking of a master plan that might help make things better."
And we're going to toss this at Jeff, the psychologist.
And Jeff, part of what's so tricky here is that she, like so many other people, is working so hard all day long, it's hard to have those healthy mental habits all day. So what do you do to not have sleepless nights?
GARDERE: Well, Josh, one of the most important things you can do, instead of keeping all those thoughts inside, internalizing all of this, find someone to talk to. That's why I think an informal support group is so important.
The other thing, we're talking about people not being table to afford health care, getting that. For this particular person who sent you this e-mail and for those folks, it's important to exercise. You may not be able to afford a gym, but do the exercise at home, because then it allows the endorphins to make you feel better and to get that sleep that you need so you can go out there the next day and keep looking for that job and inventing and reinventing yourself.
LONG: Jeff, I feel like that advice you were just sharing is not just for people that are out of work right now, but for people who are in an environment where they're fearful of losing their job, or even just opening the newspaper, turning on the TV, going online. Every day we're learning about thousands of jobs being lost. GARDERE: Well, absolutely. Now, we don't want to people to overdose on that bad news. But the good news is that we do have a new president. There is a new spirit, a new hope in this society, and we all have to work together.
The important thing is having a positive attitude. Of course you're going to get knocked down. Of course there are a lot of people looking for jobs. But the important thing is you just have to keep trying. It's a numbers game. Eventually you will get something.
Stay empowered, not a victim.
LONG: Josh, I know you have other e-mails.
LEVS: We do, absolutely. This one is going to go to Maggie.
Now, it's interesting. You just use the words "numbers game." A lot of people talking about all these hundreds of billions, bailout dollars, now the money that Barack Obama, President Obama is talking about giving certain industries. Let's zoom in on the board.
Tim says to us that he's interested in getting involved in alternative fuel, but he wants to know where that money is going to be. Is it going to be with companies that are already heavily invested in alternative fuel, or will it be new, smaller companies forming?
Maggie, if he wants a piece of that pie, where does he go?
MISTAL: Yes, Josh. Well, actually, I've been tapping into the experts I know in green power. I have clients in this area. And what they're saying is a lot of the work is going to be with utilities and government buildings to start. Because of the financial crunch, and the credit crunch in particular, it's going to be harder to start businesses, or for businesses to get credit to do this.
But government buildings are going to be revamped. I mean, President Obama has already said he wants to weatherize a million homes and bring government buildings up to speed in terms of green power and using green energy. So look to the government for those jobs. Look to the government for training. Look to utilities.
These are the areas where the jobs are going to be if you're interested in green energy.
A lot of people are trying to find jobs for the short term. More and more retailers are laying off. That's an industry to look to for shorter employment. What suggestions do you have to find the work that recently has been considered works that can be easier to get?
LONG: A lot of people are trying to find jobs for the short term, part-time employment. But more and more realtors are laying off. And that's an industry that a lot of people will look to for shorter-term employment.
What suggestions do you have, Maggie, to find the work that recently has been considered work that sometimes can be easier to get? MISTAL: Well, what I'm telling people, Melissa, is if you need something in the short term, still turn to your own network. The relationships you've already built are still going to be your best way to some kind of employment, even if it's on a project basis or a freelance basis.
Don't be afraid to look to the people closest to you to say, hey, how can I help you out, even in the short term. Because these jobs unfortunately don't exist the way they used to, so you can't always rely on the traditional methods of landing a job. It really has to be even much more through networking.
LONG: Very atypical job environment.
Josh, I know we have time for one more question.
LEVS: Yes, one more, a good one for Walter. And the reason for this is a lot of people are saying something similar.
They love the story of reinvention. They love to reinvent themselves. Here's a good example from Cedric.
"I'm looking to reinvent myself. I've reached a glass ceiling in my current job. Now with the economy I feel stuck. What do I do in this climate?"
You know, Walter, if someone wants to reinvent himself but doesn't know that he has a passion for clocks (ph) or anything specific, what does he do to figure out where he might go?
KERSCHBAUM: Well, I think he really does need to look within himself and find out what that passion he has is. That's why I wrote the iReport. People have -- everyone has a passion. And you can exploit that passion in these difficult times.
LEVS: That's comforting. Let's hope that Cedric can.
And thanks to all of you for this.
LONG: Yes, thank you so much.
And I guess just let me get the last final perspective from all of you just very quickly.
Because at the top of the program, Maggie, we talked about soul searching. I'm curious what bit of advice you have for people at home, just in two sentences, about what they need to be doing now.
MISTAL: Focus on passion and talents. I couldn't agree with Walter more. And look for ways to create value in the marketplace with that.
There are jobs for people. Even in the toughest industries they're finding them. So don't be afraid to go after them.
LONG: Walter, parting words of advice from somebody who has done it successfully? KERSCHBAUM: Control your costs, work hard, and look to satisfy your customers.
LONG: And Jeff, we'll give you the last word. A psychologist out of New York. Help us to deal with all this bad news we've been dealing with. How can we get through it?
GARDERE: Bottom line is there should be no shame in your game. If you need help, if you want to reach out, go ahead and do that with your informal support group of friends and family.
And as far as getting work, don't be afraid to ask your friends, former employers what it is that you can do. Look for that passion, but look at all your successes, because there is an answer there as to what you can do. You can -- you can make it.
LONG: Jeff Gardere, a psychologist. Maggie Mistal, a career counselor. And Walter Kerschbaum, an inspirational story today, a gentleman who found himself out of work and reinvented himself.
And Josh, you don't need an introduction.
(LAUGHTER)
LEVS: Bye, everybody. I love this, "passion, no shame in your game." We got some good stuff to take away from this hour
LONG: Yes.
Thanks, everybody, for joining us on this Saturday. Hope you learned something positive today.
I'm Melissa Long -- thanks for joining us -- in today for Fredricka Whitfield.
Don Lemon has the next hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
