Retirement Talk for Boomers, Seniors, and Retirees

We can never predict where retirement might take us any more than we could have predicted our life after leaving high school or college. The world changes around us and we had better "sit loose in the saddle".

Is there such a thing as a "retired state of mind"? Do we see life a bit different than other segments of the population? Is there something about retirement that tends to tie us together as a group? Experience tells me there is.

When problems arise it is always easy to lean back and yearn for the "good ol' days". It initiates an almost auto-acceptance as truth. Retired people have experiences which may reveal a different truth.

Sometimes we find ourselves living out a self-fulfilling prophecy. We hear about "Senior Moments" and think ours are on the increase. Perhaps we are only forgetting that forgetting is a way of life.

Retirement is often accompanied by assuming the role of caregiver. Life calls us to care for someone who needs attention. We had best be prepared physically and psychologically for this demanding and yet gratifying role.

It is easy to follow the group. It is not easy to do exactly as you want. It is not easy to create your own way in life. We learn to go along with the group as a child. Retirement gives us a chance to become our own person.

Sometimes we need a reminder to open our eyes. We need to be reminded to look at what is right in front of us. Some of us see everything around us and others only what is directly in our path. We need to be conscious of our world if we want to enjoy it.

Retirement brings forward many opportunities. One of the big possibilities is that we change the way we have been living for the way we have always wanted to live. We have choices. We may wish to continue in our friendly and familiar path or we may wish to turn and walk another road.

Our body takes a little more care as we move into the retirement years. We have to pay attention just a bit more. Moving our health care into the front of our mind pays - "If we take care of our feet our feet will take care of us," someone said.

Retired people have one big advantage over those who are younger. We have lived longer, seen more, and have a wealth of experiences. We have been warned that these were the worst of all times often. What can we make of that?

Sometimes we just don't know what to do. We have time, energy and all we need is direction. Time seems to have deleted our ability to dream or imagine. We might gain by kicking back on a regular basis and letting our mind wander as we did as child. Dream big.

We could all use a little help throughout our lives. A special request from a listener prompted this topic. You can lend a hand here. It will help someone else and it will probably help you as well. A good thing to do whether you are retired or not.

Ever get the feeling that you may have skipped a few experiences in your younger life? One may be movies or the world of video. Now we have time to indulge that desire and fill up that hole. It just takes making a decision and then following through. Sometimes it is so easy and yet so satisfying.

Retirement offers us time to step up and out and into a new world. We can disturb the comfort zone of others and ourselves. We can engage in activity where we always have felt limited.

Retirement brings us time to do things we never did, or never did well enough or long enough, when work interfered. Now we can explore. Working with our hands or minds during a lifetime of work can now be reversed if we choose.

Ever go looking in book stores for something on retirement? Find anything other than material on retirement and money? Me either. Is it possible that there are things that matter to the retired other than money? I think so.

Good habits are not easily established. But once in place they serve us well. When my work life would not allow it going to a coffee shop on a regular basis is something of which I dreamed. Retirement afforded me the opportunity to fulfill that dream and I leaped.

What we are doing with our life comes into very clear focus when we retire. We no longer have school or a job dictating to us. We can choose. It does require that we make a conscious effort with our mind as to what we do with our limited time. And that limited time is getting shorter all the while.

Retirement brings with it time to consider what we really think is important in life. It gives us time to focus on what we believe has been our strengths and weaknesses. Now we can choose to be the person we have always wanted to be.

"Small Is Beautiful" is one of my favorite books. I read it perhaps 40 years ago and it left a lasting mark. Retirement gives us more time to consider what really matters in life. Some of our views of life can be summed up in seemingly simple terms.

We pick up lots of experiences and stories as we age. Retirement gives us time to pass some of this information on to our grandchildren and those of younger generations. We might want to spend some time and effort in this pursuit. Perhaps in the form of letters or in the form of personal conversation.

The Ten Thousand Hour Rule has become popularized through a book by Malcolm Gladwell. The idea is that if you spend enough time practicing your desired goal you will arrive. Perhaps there is a bit more to it than time spent.

Technology comes at us whether we like it or not. We can ignore it or we can take a ride. What are the consequences?

We have all heard that practicing Tai Chi is good for us. I have practiced it for over the past 20 years. Here is my story.

The thought of our own death can be disturbing if not paralyzing. It might be best to give this one a little deeper thought. What may be seen as disturbing can also be seen as our biggest blessing.