Self Improvement > Myths and Truths of Retirement
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Article rating : 0.00, 0 votes. Author : Joanne Wiley
Here are some common thoughts that we have heard as we have talked with people who are already retired or are looking at retirement. These misconceptions shape our thinking and impact how we see ourselves living out this time of life called retirement. They create the Grey Years rather than the Golden Years we desire.
Myths of Retirement
“True success is retiring to do nothing.” Being successful means accumulating enough so you have to do nothing.
“At 65 I’m no longer capable of working. I’m too old.”
“When I retire, I should start winding down. I need to take it easy.”
“I want to retire while I am still healthy so I can stay healthy
Truths about retirement
Enjoy these facts.
1. In the 1930’s Roosevelt created Social Security to provide a pension for workers 65 years and older. This was to create openings for younger workers by removing seniors from the workforce during the Depression where there large numbers unemployed.
It was not created from the basis that 65 year olds and older were unable to work. We need the creativity of older people even more today. Creativity generates jobs. Older people are needed in the work world!
2. Generally, we are healthier than ever have been before. A recent cover of AARP, a magazine for people over 50, announced: “Sixty is the New Thirty.” Immunizations, medications, health knowledge and education have made a huge difference.
3. Our longevity has increased. A 65 year old man can expect to live until age 83, while a 65 year old woman could possible reach age 85. If you are in your 40s, and retire in your 60’s, you will likely be retired a minimum of one quarter of your life.
Those living to one hundred years of age have increased. The 1960 census listed about 3000 centenarians. Today, that number is estimated at 7000, with predictions of 4.2 million people reaching that age by the year 2050. If you are 50 now, you could be one of the 4.2 million!
4. Winding down leads to poor health. People who study aging describe the “Use it or lose it” phenomenon. We keep our health by using it. We need to be active physically, mentally and emotionally. Studies have shown 90 year olds are capable of increasing muscle mass and tone moving from beds and wheelchairs to walking without aids.
And the good news is: It is never too late to start. We have the capacity to grow emotionally, physically and mentally at any age.
George Bernard Shaw, an Irish dramatist, won the Nobel Prize for Literature at 69. He wrote his last play at 93.
Grandma Moses, a renowned American folk artist, started painting at 78 because her fingers were too stiff to continue with embroidery.
Pablo Picasso’s 90th birthday was celebrated with an exhibition at the Louvre in 1971-the first time a living artist had ever shown their works there.
5. AARP reports that 80% of boomers plan to work during retirement. Hurray, people are recognizing that we have to be active with a degree of risk to be healthy and stay healthy.
People who have had a great deal of stress at work often have a shock when they retire. Imagine taking a fine sports care, a Ferrari and having it rev in the parking lot. Soon it self destructs. So do we, without some stress, some reason to be alive.
An example: This spring we met Don, a 4 year retired IBM executive. Don handles his retirement by consulting and traveling in a motor coach with his wife, Sue. Don shared that 2/3 of his peers died within 2 years of their retirement.
Alan, another retiree described how two of his colleagues retired the same day he did. Both of them cleaned out their desks, then sat there. Alan asked them what was wrong. They shared they wanted someone to phone and cancel the retirement. Both had heart attacks within 6 months of retirement. Alan continued to work with part time consulting in his area of expertise.
For many men, it is not the work that killed them but the emptiness of retirement. Golfing, fishing and visiting the children are not enough. We need to be challenged and growing.
6. Many retirees are looking for personal growth, activity, purpose. In 2000, the University of Arizona conducted a study of what baby boomers wanted in housing.
Large numbers had moved away from the retirement housing concept to integrated communities involving families and seniors together. They wanted an active lifestyle with a sense of community where they could give to others.
7. Connecting to what makes you passionate and purposeful brings the greatest degree of joy, health and life satisfaction.
Dave, when an airline pilot in his 50’s was grounded. “I was lost, devastated. I realized then that I needed a purpose when I retired, too.” He enjoyed people and on his holidays often walked around looking at houses. He combined the two by selling real estate. He is successful too, while he mentors new real estate agents.
This phase of life called retirement is a new phenomenon. Baby boomers are caught in a change. We are conditioned by what we saw our parents and older colleagues experience, yet the reality is quite different. The challenge is to enjoy the opportunity that is offered.
Joanne Wiley: co-owner of Full Life Seminars with her husband Hugh, also seminar leader and writer discussing how to find passion and purpose in your life at any stage, but especially at that unique time known as retirement. Find more information at their website http://www.retirement-wishes.com.
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