With life expectancies hovering in the 90s, chances are most of us will be working well into our 70s. However, it looks like we're not as prepared as we should be.
Why?
Many baby boomers are not happy with their work lives now. According to Boomers at Midlife 2003: The AARP Life Stage Study, finances and work life are among the least satisfying aspects of baby boomers' lives.
Many are stuck in a work life that no longer makes sense, is so emotionally stressful or, at the other extreme, is so boring that they hate going to work every day.
Others find themselves out of work and replaced by younger workers. It's a perfect time to create a work life to take you into your retirement years.
What are the possibilities? Start by returning to your roots and thinking about the lifestyle you want. Do something about which you are passionate.
Most of us established our career interests in our 20s, although we were not able to pursue them at that time. Some of us became lawyers or doctors, or we went into the family business because our parents expected it.
Others were more opportunistic in finding jobs because they needed the work. The job became a career, almost by accident.
Take some time to explore what you value and care about; consider what you would do if you could do anything. Money actually has very little to do with making a sound career decision.
The decision of which career to purse is the hardest part of career change. Once you know the career, you've got a roadmap for moving forward to make your desires a reality.
For example, in my studies of midlife career changers, I found lawyers who became artists, restaurant owners, priests, writers and professors. I found an executive who became an event planner, a nurse who became a business project manager, an IT professional who took up career counseling and many IT and HR professionals who became successful consultants.
Why start to think about it now?
My research showed that successful midlife career change requires time. It takes anywhere from two to six years to complete a career transition.
During this transitional period you need to pursue a number of career-change activities, such as research, networking, interviewing people to gather ideas, trying out jobs, returning to school and/or taking on an apprenticeship.
Not only do these activities open up options, but they actually develop your self-confidence and your ability to make decisions about career directions. This provides the foundation for the action-oriented behavior that can increase your work life satisfaction.
For example, I was a business owner and consultant, tired of constant travel and no time at home. After much writing in my journal, experimenting with a retail job and teaching several courses at the local university, I made the decision to become an academic for my retirement career.
So, I went back to school to earn my doctorate at the University of Baltimore. The transformation took four years, but now at 50-something, a new and stimulating intellectual life is taking root as I stand firmly on the ground in the classroom, teaching and writing.
Lifelong learning makes a lot of sense. We need to stay connected to people, to contribute and to give back. Explore the possibilities for your retirement future. Ask yourself what kind of lifestyle you want in your 60s, and start preparing for it now.
Dorine C. Andrews is a visiting assistant professor and director of external relations at the University of Baltimore Yale Gordon College of Liberal Arts.
Source: The Daily Record (Baltimore)
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