A recent survey showed that the majority of pre-retirees
(72%) would like to keep working in retirement. About half (47%) of current
retirees either are working, have worked or plan to work in retirement, and 58%
of working retirees say retirement was an opportunity to transition to a
different type of work, according to the survey, sponsored by Merrill Lynch in
partnership with Age Wave, a research think-tank on aging issues.
But how do you figure out what to do in retirement for your
second, third or fourth act? The beauty of later life transitions is that
people can "leverage their life's experience and skills to fix the world,
or their corner of it, in some way. As you age, you realize you only have so
much time left" so if you try something and it doesn't work out, it's
important to admit that and move on to the next thing.
Marci Alboher, a vice president at Encore.org, has talked to
hundreds of people who have found their way to work with social impact later in
life, and she says that those who really make a difference share some common
characteristics: the ability to see problems that need fixing, persistence in
finding opportunities or crafting new ones, and a willingness to learn and try
new things.
Some people spend their lives in jobs they don't find deeply
satisfying because financial commitments and family obligations often preclude
a career change, says Joe Burgo, a psychologist in Chapel Hill, N.C. Retirement
gives people a chance to finally pursue their passions. His advice: Don't do
anything only because you think you ought to do it or because someone else
expects it of you.
Careers and industries change very quickly, and it's important
to help people adapt, according to Paul Irving, president of the Milken
Institute.
Click
here to access the full article on USA Today.