Retirement and Self-Discovery
02/18/2019
A major study about retirement called the Retirement Transitions Study reveals that many retirees face a psychological battle for self-discovery. Harvard Business School professor Teresa Amabile, who conducted the research along with colleagues from other institutions, says that retirees are typically "searching for something to replace [their] work identity." Amabile's team cut a broad swath with their research, interviewing 120 professionals at three different companies located in separate geographic areas of the United States. They talked to Millennials, workers approaching retirement, late-career professionals entering retirement, and those who had already retired, all at the same companies.
Amabile saw a distinct pattern emerge from the research: Those who had retired seemed to be quite happy about it initially, but then, after several weeks or months, the novelty wore off. According to Amabile, “You go from [work] to having to be an architect of a new life structure and, often, a new identity, where you need to build a new life and explore new activities, relationships, and ways of thinking about yourself.”
One of the intriguing qualities uncovered in the research is something called building "identity bridges," which retirees use as a strategy for preserving continuity between their pre-and post-retirement selves. Some of these identity bridges include "activating a latent identity" (rediscovering a passion that could not be pursued due to the rigors of work), "maintaining a life philosophy" that helps an individual remain positive despite the challenges of retirement, and "finding a new source for valued affirmation" (establishing relationships that provide the positive feedback that work used to offer).
This is important research that may very well validate what you feel if you are thinking about retirement or have already retired. Read more about it here: https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/welcome-to-retirement-who-am-i-now
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