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Retire? Not Me!

Musings Senior-2642041_1920We may soon have to ban the word "retirement" from the Boomer lexicon. In order to write this blog, I scan numerous other blogs, newsletters, websites and articles that deal with aging and retirement. A common theme across virtually all of them is how Boomers are completely redefining retirement, almost on a daily basis.

I've begun to think of the concept of retirement as the "instead of" time of life. Instead of retirement, Boomers are reinventing themselves through any number of second act pursuits. Some potential retirees volunteer, some travel, some start new ventures of their own, and some want to or have to continue to work.

Retirement and Its Discontents, a recent book by university professor Michelle Pannor Silver, draws from in-depth interviews she conducted with people whose departure from their life's work meant losing a core and fundamental component of their personal identity. In the Introduction to her book, Silver addresses an interesting paradox: "Although retirement is primarily thought of as a time to enjoy life without the burdens or work, some people can feel burdened by a life without work. For these people, retirement can feel deeply constraining and limiting. Retirement's freedom can create challenges for people whose life's work was closely associated with their sense of self-worth."

I think Silver's salient observation about the retiree's "sense of self-worth" is a central theme in the retirement dilemma for many Boomers. Professionals in particular may feel a real loss when they leave their careers because it may have been their careers that defined much of their lives. How do they resurrect the feeling that this next stage of their lives has meaning and purpose? How do they achieve fulfillment from something else -- something that may not be as all-encompassing and exhilarating as their work lives?

Of course, there is no uniform answer for every aging Boomer. Each of us finds our own unique path to what's next. This is the part of retirement that is both vexing and liberating. What's most important is that we do not let the concept of "retirement" close ourselves off from life -- rather it should represent a welcome new phase of life for all of us.

HappilyRewired.com is a Top 75 Baby Boomer Blog.

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Julie Gorges

Great article. I have a feeling that boomers reinventing retirement and looking for fulfilling ways to stay active and productive has something to do with living longer!

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