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The five barriers to your thinking about retirement
Are you prepared for transitioning to the second half of your life?
Until now, you may have thought you were prepared for that time when you stopped full-time work, when you could lead the life of your choice. This meant doing what you wanted to do, when you wanted and with whom you spent your time.
These preparations may have involved your looking at your financial affairs for the last decade or so, certain that your investments, shares, property or termination funds would sustain you well into the future.
You may have attended exercise classes, or read a book or eating well, or searched the Internet for ideas about an active time at this transition.
But are you really prepared? It seems that many Australians are not.
For example, about 40 percent of Australians die without making a will (State Trustees, 2008). Imagine that – only 60% of Australians have considered the inevitable, by making provision for distribution of their assets to loved ones as they would have wished.
Are you one of those 40%? Are you aware of the challenges that face you in planning your lifestyle in retirement?
What are the challenges for you in planning for your second half?
You may have heard the stories about people finding this transition painful, unrewarding and generally unsuccessful.
You may know of people who thought stopping work full-time will provide them with a life of leisure but it was neither satisfying nor rewarding.
For many, stopping work means they lose touch with their colleagues who provided the social and work relationships they valued so much.
People will react to this feeling of dissatisfaction.
They may return to work, either full-time or part-time, change their life partners of many years, or become frustrated and unsure of what to do.
What are the barriers to your making this transition?
Sadler and Krefft (2007) have written extensively about the risks in transitioning and planning your life, after a lifetime of action, achieving, and accumulating.
In thinking about retirement people may falter in getting to a clear plan of what they want. There are five general risks that prevent people from being proactive about seeking information and overcoming the barriers to those thinking about retiring.
Let's explore each of these risks: - Being clueless; you may have ideas about your second half that are not true. You were told or believed that life after working full time would be happy and carefree and you have found it was not.
- Believing in aging stereotypes; you have a view that now you are older, you must behave as others who have gone before you behave; that is, you are ‘old.’ This attitude can become a self-fulfilling prophecy; if you believe that it will happen, it will happen.
- Hanging on; you want to continue the way you have been in your first half; ignoring the progress of time or the transition of what is now important to you. The achievements of your first half may not be valid for your second half.
- Being busy; your first half has been filled with things to do; places to go; people to meet and all the time being busy doing. There will be plenty to do in your second half but on your own terms, at your own pace.
- Sticking with old habits; what worked for you in your second half, such as a focus on accumulating wealth or possessions, achieving at all costs, planning your activities moment by moment – these habits will not suit you for your second half.
Want more information and help in facing any one of these challenges?
What can you do to overcome these barriers head on?
How can you tackle the barriers to a successful transition? How can you overcome your uncertainties and create a plan for a life of meaning and purpose? How can you live your life to the full, for the rest of your life, for as long as you live?
Contact us for a 30 minutes complimentary consultation to talk about the tools to get you on track, planning for a successful lifestyle in retirement. We'll send you also a checklist of 5 tips to jump-start your transition.
References
Sadler , WA & Krefft, JH 2007. Changing Course: Navigating Life After 50. Centre for Third Age Leadership Press. USA.
State Trustees, 2008, retrieved 21 October, 2008 http://www.statetrustees.com.au/uploads/a%20will%20writ%20helps%20loved%20ones.pdf
© 2009 Helene Strawbridge, All rights reserved. You are free to use material from the Second Half Success material in whole or in part, as long as you include complete attribution, including live web site link. Please also notify me where the material will appear. The attribution should read: By Helene Strawbridge of Second Half Success. Please visit Helene’s web site at www.secondhalfsuccess.com.au for additional articles and resources. (Make sure the link is live if placed in an newsletter or in a web site.)
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