Done With Work

Larry Gard, Ph.D. One of the functions of work is that it provides structure to our lives.  Even if your work is quite varied, chances are you still follow a schedule of some sort.  Now, for just a moment, imagine having no place to go, no appointments, and no schedule.  Some people are reluctant to even  think about exit planning because they can’t conceive of a life without a work routine.  They’re convinced that such a life will feel aimless and unsettling.    So how will you spend your days?  Will you need to have a new routine in place immediately, or will you be comfortable allowing one to emerge gradually?  Either way, you should identify in advance a few practical and rewarding activities that can be introduced into your daily or weekly routine.  The last thing you want is an empty calendar on Day 1 of your retirement.   If you’re truly at a loss about how to occupy your...

Larry Gard, Ph.D. There are some interesting findings in the past two Retirement Surveys conducted by the nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies®.  The respondents included over 1800 employers and roughly 6000 workers.  Here is a noteworthy selection from the report:    Three quarters of employers consider themselves to be “aging friendly” yet only 54% of workers share that sentiment, and only about a quarter of firms have adopted a formal Diversity & Inclusion policy that specifically includes age.      The data suggests some disconnects between employees and older workers.  What’s going on here?  Even when companies try to be “aging friendly” it seems that some may be missing the mark.  Like most workplace topics, this one is complicated and there are no simple answers, but I wonder if it has something to do with our cultural attitudes toward aging.    One of my former professor...

Larry Gard, Ph.D The other evening, I ran into a friend Peter who I hadn’t seen in some time.  He appeared relaxed and contented, and he informed me that he retired last year.  We chatted about his various pursuits and initiatives.  Peter related a story about a colleague at his old company who was apprehensive about his own retirement, fearing he would feel aimless and bored. Seeking reassurance he phoned frequently during Peter’s first few months of retirement to ask, “what are you doing?”    Many late career professionals I speak with describe the same uneasiness that Peter’s colleague had. They’re not confident that they’ll find truly meaningful, satisfying things to occupy their time.  Many of them claim few if any hobbies or interests other than work.  On further examination, this isn’t always true.  Their work is particularly compelling because that’s where their focus is. They actually do have o...

Larry Gard, Ph.D. Most of us have beliefs and assumptions about retirement, often based on what we’ve witnessed among friends and relatives.  Yet the  reality  of retirement may not always coincide with our  expectations , which makes it that much more important for you to give serious thought to this next chapter in life.   The Pew Research Center conducted a survey comparing what younger Americans expected later life to look like, versus the reality experienced by those 65 and up.  They found some significant differences between the two groups.  For example, on the chart above we see that 39% of respondents expected that they would have a second career, but that was actually the case for only 14% of those over 65.   And it’s not just a matter of being realistic with your plan.  You have to take an active role in making it happen. Consider the finding that 80% of the younger Pew survey respondents expected they would be engaged in volun...

Larry Gard, Ph.D. I had coffee last week with an esteemed colleague who offers pre-retirement coaching like me. We were discussing how notions of retirement have changed over the past few decades, so much so that many people have tried to coin new terms to replace the word “retirement” itself. “Reengagement” and “Life 2.5” are two such contenders.  While it may be the case that baby boomers have reinvented retirement, I’m a bit wary about giving retirement a new name. True, we have access to a greater range of active, compelling paths in retirement than our parents and grandparents did. Yet by giving retirement a new name, one that highlights the meaningful and rewarding activities that lie ahead, we run the risk of overlooking what makes retirement such a profoundly moving transition.   Jack Beauregard, founder of the Successful Transition Planning Institute, points out that unlike most life events, which flow from beginning to end, retirement starts with an ending. As much a...

  Larry Gard, Ph.D. We’ve all seen the ads on television telling us to plan for retirement and save more money. They’re absolutely correct and the earlier you start the better. But whether or not you build the nest egg you want, you still need to be psychologically prepared. In fact, I’ve encountered many financially comfortable people who were surprised by how strongly their emotions impacted their transition to retirement. You can’t go from the present to an active and meaningful retirement without giving it some thought. It simply doesn’t emerge on its own. What Has Been Satisfying? Long term, you need a strategy to figure out what is going to be interesting, meaningful, compelling, and rewarding. As a starting point, one exercise I do with clients involves determining key satisfactions derived from work and then identifying alternatives that can provide similar benefits. For example, perhaps one satisfying thing about work is that it allows you to tackle problems. You don’t nee...