DEFINING RETIREMENT
The definition of retirement is changing, and that has caused a lot of confusion. Retirement used to be considered the end of things and the beginning of old age. Now, since we live longer and are healthier, more and more people see retirement as a great opportunity to do new things and find more meaning in their lives.
I would like to offer two definitions that reflect the new thinking about retirement. The first definition is practical; the second, focuses on the emotional demands of retirement. We need two definitions because retirement has important practical and emotional components.
On the practical level, retirement is the career change you make when you are no longer required to work full time and you have some freedom to choose the life that you want to live. Retirement is a career change because it has all the practical hallmarks of a career change, such as the need for planning, the need to learn about your own strengths and priorities, the need for networking, the change in income, the need to try out new things, and the choice of a new direction. To have a thriving retirement, you need to be doing something that you believe in and that feels important to you.
On an emotional level, retirement is a process of letting go, followed by renewal - just like a career change. The emotions you feel upon retiring are those you might feel when you start a journey to a strange country you have never visited before. You can feel scared, uncertain, and confused, but then exhilarating when you become accustomed to the new territory. The emotional transition of retirement takes from six to more than eighteen months, and the more you know about making the transitional trip and the more you know about the new country, the better off you are.
According to Dr. Nancy Schlossberg, in her book Retire Smart: Retire Happy, (published by The American Psychological Association, Washington, D.C., 2004), the transitional journey to retirement has three stages: Moving Out/Letting Go, Moving Through/Searching, and Moving In/Creating a New life. For many people, the Moving Out stage is actually the time to grieve and let go of the old life. The Moving Through stage is the time to suspend decision-making and try out new things. The Moving In stage is the time to reinvest in new activities. This transition is a process during which you have to be very patient, understand the complex changes, and make no long-term commitments for a while.
People who follow the practical and emotional principles of retirement tend to do very well with it. For example, Grandma Moses took up painting when she was seventy-six. Paul Newman was driving a race car at Daytona when he was seventy-nine. Paul Spangler finished his fourteenth marathon when he was ninety-two. Bill and Kate Long of central PA were running a bed & breakfast and guiding anglers in Montana.
If you look around, you will see people in your own community who are doing many interesting and fulfilling things with their own retirement. With a good attitude, patience, and planning, you can make the change to retirement one of the best changes of your life.
