| What is so hard about retirement? This sounds like a | | | | health. What are you going to do with this new time, |
| made up question. Many people feel retirement is no | | | | which some call the "30-year bonus round." There are |
| big deal; you just stop working! But, let us ask the | | | | no real models to guide you. History has few |
| question another way: what is a good retirement? | | | | answers. For 99.9 % of human existence, there was |
| After all, we pretty much know what a good | | | | no such thing as retirement. We worked until we |
| education is and have some ideas about a good | | | | dropped. When the first government-supported |
| career, but what are the qualities which make a | | | | pension program was started in 1889 by Germany's |
| "good" retirement? If you believe the ads from | | | | first chancellor, Otto Von Bismarck, pension |
| financial service companies, you probably think that | | | | payments began at age 65, at a time when the |
| money is the answer. And certainly money is | | | | average life expectancy was 47! So most people |
| important. But there is a lot more to it than that. | | | | died before they ever saw a check! And our families |
| A friend of ours, Bill, got a new puppy, and hired a | | | | do not offer much help as a reference. Oh yes, there |
| dog trainer. The trainer arrived at his home, | | | | is usually someone in the family who lived to be 93 |
| introduced herself, and asked, "Now exactly what is | | | | or more, but he or she was usually living most of |
| this puppy going to do?" "What do you mean," Bill | | | | those later years in a state of physical, and |
| replied, "he's going to be a puppy!" "No, no, no!" she | | | | frequently emotional, frailty. |
| exclaimed, "Is he going to fetch the newspaper? Is | | | | So how do we find our sense of purpose, or how do |
| he going to guard the house? Is he going to heard | | | | we recreate one? In our book, "Your Retirement, |
| sheep? If he's going to be happy, he has to have a | | | | Your Way," we explain two different but |
| purpose!" | | | | complementary methods for finding a sense of |
| Just like that puppy, we all need a sense of purpose | | | | purpose. The first can be done at home on your own |
| in our lives, and we continue to need it after we | | | | time. We encourage exploration of times in your life |
| retire. We had a sense of purpose when we were in | | | | when you have experienced an extreme sense of |
| school. For some of us, it was qualifying for the next | | | | purpose. And we train you to mine these memories, |
| grade or the next level. For others it was getting | | | | helping you to explore and analyze them. Like an |
| through to get out. No matter. During our working | | | | anthropologist, an explorer, or acting as your own |
| years, we also had a sense of purpose as we built | | | | psychoanalyst, you explore your motivational needs |
| our careers and raised our families. Our careers were | | | | when you were deeply engaged. Now frequently the |
| central in helping us define who we were by what | | | | information may be coded. If you remember loving |
| we did and it occupied the bulk of our days. And we | | | | to play football, for example, that doesn't mean you |
| knew what it felt like to be successful, to be | | | | want to be a football player in retirement, but it can |
| recognized for our contributions. And we could usually | | | | mean that you love being part of a team and having |
| find a way to measure our progress against others. | | | | a schedule! And that is what you need to do: |
| But retirement is different. What are the measuring | | | | understand what motivates you. |
| rods? Thank goodness, you say, I'm glad I'm getting | | | | The second method involves a process for analyzing |
| out of all that competitive stuff! And perhaps you do | | | | your own personality. We use the Birkman |
| want to give up the aspects of belonging to a | | | | Personality Profile (a customized brief version) in our |
| stressful, competitive community (like the workplace). | | | | book. Having a deeper understanding of your own |
| But there is always a need to find a sense of | | | | personality will help you create a retirement lifestyle |
| purpose, of making a contribution. Previous | | | | that will complement that personality. The point is to |
| generations choose one of three general ways | | | | get enough information to become the architect, the |
| forward: (1) a hedonistic pursuit of "not working," (2) | | | | visionary, and the author of a retirement lifestyle |
| a dedication to non-profit causes, or (3) | | | | which will give you a sense of purpose and also make |
| grandparenting, which was work but not for pay. And | | | | you feel satisfied and fulfilled. |
| for many people those directions satisfied the few | | | | Compiling this information will help you begin the |
| years they had between retirement and either | | | | planning of a journey, one which may be exciting |
| physical frailty or death. | | | | enough to last a quarter of a century or more! And it |
| The baby boomer generation is different. If you are | | | | has been statistically proven that happy people live |
| now in your 50s or early 60s and active, the chances | | | | longer. |
| are that you will live another quarter of a century or | | | | Best wishes for a wonderfully long retirement, full of |
| more, and for most of that time you will be in good | | | | meaning, excitement, and purpose. |