Are you a baby boomer about to retire? Concider a second career

Jun 27th, 2005 | By Bill | Category: Employment News



Are you a baby boomer about to retire? Concider a second career

In the next decade, it is estimated about 76 million baby boomers will hit retirement age, but don’t try to talk to them about it – they are much too busy. And to be honest, they don’t really want to even think about it. ”Most of the time, people have their heads down, still working,” says Dwight Moore, an industrial psychologist. ”Their companies might have information about finances and pensions, and their spouses or partners might start asking questions, but it’s really not on their radar screens.”

Moore, who often works with executives to help them transition to retirement, says some nearing that time start to get a ”vague, emotional discomfort,” but don’t plan anything for retirement other than travel, doing all the fix-it chores around the house, or perhaps moving to another locale – what he calls the ”first phase” of retirement. ”Those things take up the first six months, and then they get antsy. What they thought was going to happen, doesn’t. They feel uncomfortable and comfortable at the same time,” he says. Then, the second phase of retirement begins. ”There’s an active phase of about 20 years. That’s when they need to plan, to understand who they are and what they want to do – this is a chance for a second career,” he says. But what kind of career? Many of those who retire find they don’t want to work as a greeter in a retail store, but would rather find work that makes use of skills developed over a career lifetime. Moore says finding a fulfilling second career often depends on the retiree. He knows one retired executive who approached a local, private sewer company, which was ”floundering. They needed a chief executive part time, and he just wanted to work part time. They paid him a little bit, and he absolutely loved it.” Another former executive had great fundraising skills and was a devout Christian. He put those skills to use for his own church, and was so successful in raising funds that other churches hired him to perform those same services. Now, Moore says, the man has more work than he cares to have. ”One-third of people who retire say they want to work part time,” Moore says. ”It’s key to identify what your skills, abilities, values and interests are. Then once you get a clear fix, you will be able to find a venue to exercise that.” Moore says once those active ”second career” decades have passed, then the third transition for retirement is a ”slowing down” period of about two or three years ”where you’re just tired – you’ve done all the things you’ve wanted to do,” he says. Finally, there is the fourth phase where assisted living is needed for a couple of years, and then ”a real decline until death comes,” Moore says. Moore says that if baby boomers want to have an active and fulfilling retirement life while they are still physically capable, then they need to start making plans at least one to two years before they walk out the workplace door. He recommends: l Talking it over. Sit down with a spouse or partner and talk about what you envision for retirement. ”Couples need to look at what they will do to renew a relationship. Many of them have gotten into leading separate lives,” Moore says. l Acknowledging change. ”Many times, the person who is retiring has friends based on their work. It might be customers or vendors or co-workers,” he says. ”That will change radically when they quit working.” l Acting thoughtfully. Moore says it’s a ”big mistake” for retirees to yank up roots upon retirement and immediately moving to a retirement community in a place they have always loved on vacations. It’s better to wait for a while and simply adjust to retirement in familiar surroundings. If you’re interested in more information on retirement planning, check out Moore’s Web site at http:/www.drmooreandassociates.com or the AARP Web site at http:// www.aarp.org.

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