In trying to prioritize the news that have resonated with me lately, I put as No. 1 learning that the UK has a new minister of loneliness. How many times do we hear that we need to develop skills for the unknown jobs of this century? It never occurred to me that a job of this century would be Minister of Loneliness. And yet, how much needed!
Continue reading “Are We Alive? Technology May or May not have the answer.”
Do you have a millennial at home or at work? I do. We find article after article describing the differences between millennials and baby boomers. However, listening to the millennial I have at home I wonder: are we really that different?
The most powerful moral influence is example.
Huston Smith
In an open letter to management, Lisa Earle McLeod’s compelling writing shows why millennials are constantly quitting jobs. The baby boomers reading this blog may be saying at this point “I worked for many years in the same company! We are really different.” And you may have a point or two when you add that we never expected free lunches at work!
Continue reading “21st Century Retirees are the Millennials of Retirement.”
I’m writing this post on Halloween day. Today fear is welcomed. Enjoy it while it lasts!
“The enemy is fear. We think it is hate; but, it is fear.”
— Gandhi
In my readings on retirement a common pattern arises. People near to stepping outside of the work box fear it. I speak about retirement with friends, family, and people in general, all in their 50s, as part my journey to dig deeper into the subject. At some point of the conversation I always ask, what do you fear about retirement? 90% of the time the answer relates to the word health. I must confess this response disappoints me. Shouldn’t we be fearing being disengage with life after retirement more? When I think of the 43% of retirees who fall into depression because they lose purpose, that statistic scares me.
Taking care of pending shores and visiting new places or revisiting others gives most new retirees direction during the first years of retirement. Then the need for a higher purpose kicks in. Striving for self-fulfillment has never been as important as it is during this stage of life. What gave us purpose in the past disappears or is replaced by unfamiliar activities. Our children are gone; our identification with the job title we used to have vanishes; the network of friends reduces as we lose contact with co-workers; and the daily stimuli from work is replaced with routines. It sounds scary. “Meaningful activity will play a huge role in your retired life. If you feel bored, depressed, or unsatisfied with what you do for large part of the day, it can take a serious toll on your physical and mental health,” says Robin Ryan author of Retirement Reinvention.
The situation begs the question, what to do?
We have worked hard to build the financial support for retirement. Our basic needs of food, water, shelter and safety should be covered by our financial retirement plan. Despite this financial effort, we know that mankind doesn’t live on bread only.
The need for achievement, independence, development of our full potential and self-actualization (full realization of one’s creative, intellectual, or social potential) requires planning as well. Fortunately, we are now 50+ and that comes with some advantages (finally, the good news!)
The pre-retirement advantage: income for experimentation.
The retirement advantage: tested plan (if we have experimented in pre-retirement), time, experience, knowledge.
With 10 years ahead of me before retiring, my goal is to experiment with options. I’m looking forward to discovering the ones that I will pursue in retirement. Fear no more! I will learn my way to a happy retirement; to a realization of my full potential. Health issues may still come but I may cheat some illnesses by keeping myself engaged with life.
“Fears are educated into us, and can, if we wish, be educated out.”
— Karl Augustus Menninger
Ready to educate out your fear of retirement?
I met Jeanette at a social event this summer. Our conversation moved quickly from our professional lives to “I will retire in Mexico,” she said. I think she noticed my bewilderment after she mentioned her retirement plan. Based on OECD analysis of quality of life cities like Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, and Vancouver are among the 23 best places to live in. Why to move south then? I did not ask at that moment but a few days later I invited Jeanette for a coffee to learn more about this idea.
It seems she is not alone. The Expat Insider 2018 report by InterNations indicates that “nearly a quarter of US American expats (23%) describe their current employment status as retiree.” I visited additional online resources to prepare myself for my next conversation with Jeanette. Kathleen Peddicord, author and publisher of Live and Invest Overseas, advises on the benefits of retiring abroad, while others like Chris Powers, who runs PanamaForReal.com, has a more cautious approach.
Armed with coffees Jeanette and I started talking. “How did you decide to retire in Mexico?” I asked.
As a passionate traveller she and her husband are always organizing trips around the world. They see living in Mexico as an opportunity to continue travelling even when they start their transition to retirement. They have been influenced by Jeanette’s father-in-law’s own experience as an expat. This connection has helped them test drive the idea of living in Mexico. She has been visiting the lake Ajijic area to experience the daily life in this community made of mainly expats. The weather, the country’s slower pace, the lifestyle, the shops and affordable health care are among the benefits she and her husband see in this option.
I must tell you, I admire these expatarees™, as I call them. I left Latin America more than 20 years ago to move to Canada. I have lived in 3 countries by now. I have experienced first hand the culture shock, the loss of a social network, the awkwardness of not knowing the language and the rules. The baby-like feeling of having to learn everything from scratch. Would I like to start again in a new place at 64 or more? I asked myself. Jeanette’s explains me that, as a bonus, living in Mexico allows them to include more travelling in their retirement budget.
If, so far, you’re more intrigued than discouraged test drive your retirement plan as Jeanette and her husband did.
Find a culture that fits your psyche.
Rick Steves, Americans living in Europe
Time passes fast when listening to Jeanette’s plan. I want to stay longer and ask more questions but we both have busy schedules for the day. Before finishing the conversation, I asked a last question. I know she is an active member of the community who regularly works on social causes. Do you have a life purpose for your retirement? With a big smile she says, “Now we are talking!” She has visited associations in lake Ajijic to continue her social work there too. You can see that she has done her homework. She left me with one final thought, “don’t go to a place to change it,” she said. On that, I cannot agree more.
I join those that are intrigued, or cautiously intrigued rather, by the idea of becoming expatirees™. If you are too, tell us what has worked and hasn’t worked for you as you look for the next city to call home.
Retirement Cloud 