Retirement In Times Of Uncertainty
We must be willing to let go of the life we planned
so as to have a life that is waiting for us.”
—Joseph Campbell
My intention, as we began the new year, was to write about planning goals and setting your intention for the new year. Many of us do this throughout our whole lives, and it’s especially important as you approach retirement. However, as we all know, life happens, and we must be flexible and adjust to the unexpected.
This year 2021 began with a somewhat disjointed delivery of vaccines to our hard-working healthcare workers and those in long-term care facilities. We are being informed of the lack of the number of vaccines promised and the absence of coordination of distribution among states. We don’t know for certain if this is only a short-term situation. I can imagine that you are hoping, like me, it is only temporary and soon we’ll have an abundance of the much-awaited vaccine along with healing for our country.
We also need time to heal the social, emotional, and psychological devastation of the recent assault on the hallowed halls and rooms of the Capitol. My thoughts and prayers are with all those individuals who were in the building that day and all the police and others who tried to protect them as best they could. When will all this end, we ask?
Events like this instill fear in many of us and at times it can feel paralyzing. However, we must trust our country and its ability to come together and protect our democracy along with all the values that we believe in.
Times Of Uncertainty
It’s awfully hard to plan for the future when uncertainty is around every corner these days. However, if you can put some of these events in perspective and trust your process, you can begin to see your way clear for the future.
As a retirement coach, I encourage my clients to do as much lifestyle planning as possible before retirement. You’ll have a softer landing once retired to carry you through the emotional part of the transition. Since your work is so much a part of your life, it’s challenging to go from a 40 to 60-hour week to no plan for what you’ll do on Monday morning.
Add in a pandemic and a rush to get the approved vaccine to improve social mobility and freedom to be out and about, and you might think you are rushing against time. I know I feel that way sometimes.
A colleague and I decided to brave the waters and offer a retirement webinar in the fall of 2020. Remarkably, we had plenty of attendees. Even with all the uncertainty, one attendee, who had planned to retire at the end of the year, followed through with his decision to retire because he had already begun to consider all his choices. That plan expanded and was solidified by his participation in the webinar. Another person, who was exploring when to retire, decided to take his work on the road as he toured the US with his partner, combining his work with his love of traveling. As these individuals demonstrated, you can work around circumstances with a plan, support, and courage.
Our History
I’m reminded of how our boomer generation—the largest, most educated, and longest living generation in our history—has endured so much during our lifetime. After WWII, our parents were busy getting on with life and that included having big families and here we were. The “Baby Boom,” as we are affectionately called, emerged. Our generation’s numbers rose exponentially with 78 million people born between 1946 and 1964, which represents 1/4 of the US population. We drove the economy by needing more housing, hospitals, doctors, nurses, schools, teachers, grocery stores, automobiles, etc.
As we grew, we enjoyed the inventions of the television, microwaves, dishwashers, all the gadgets that made life more convenient. We also faced challenges like the divisiveness of the Vietnam War, the civil rights riots where Whites tried to stop Blacks who were fighting for their constitutional rights, and a preponderance of psychedelic drugs. Then we endured the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr, leaving us wondering who was next. The recessions of 1989 and 2007 left us recovering for the next 10 years after each slump. Then there were the terrorist attacks in 2001 which left our nation and our world in shock and shattered our sense of safety and security. There is much more but this is enough for now.
Through all these years, our generation has responded with doing what is best for the collective whole, supporting each other, and responding with resilience. This latter quality is woven through all generations but especially the boomer generation.
How can our generation be the role model for dealing with uncertainty in these times? How can we model strength, resilience, and unity for future generations? We have the life experience, knowledge, wisdom, education, and skills to gracefully come together for the good of others and give back!
Coping With Uncertainty
In a Washington Post article by Marta Zaraska entitled “Boosting Our Sense Of Meaning In Life Is An Often Overlooked Longevity Ingredient,” she talks about the importance of having purpose and meaning in your life. She writes “there are some indications that Americans and Europeans alike may be engaging in more purpose-creating behaviors during this pandemic than they did before COVID-19 hit. New accounts say charity donations are up both in the United States and Britain. According to a recent study, almost half of Americans checked in on elderly or sick neighbors when the pandemic began, while 20% potentially exposed themselves to the virus to help other people.”
Our generation is one of the most seasoned because of our life experience. We can find ways to help others as a strategy to overcome uncertainty and not let it control our life.
Ask:
- Who can you help?
- How can you help and still stay safe?
- How about supporting a cause you believe in?
Here are some ideas to get you started:
- Organize your friends and family to help with food insecurity
- As you do home improvements during this pandemic, take the old “stuff” like furniture, appliances, etc. to Habitat for Humanity
- Lend an ear to a friend who just wants to talk and wants you to listen
- Volunteer in your community via phone or Internet to be safe
- Wear a mask while you take a friend who can’t drive to a doctor’s appointment or to get a vaccine or a COVID-19 test
Some of these strategies will help keep you from getting paralyzed by the uncertainty because you will be focused on giving back.
For self-care, establish some rituals to anchor you:
- Do a gratitude list three times a week
- Take long walks
- Meditate once a day
- Organize a family Zoom call weekly
Between stimulus and response there is a space.
In that space is our power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”
—Viktor Frankl
Nothing in life is certain! The only aspect of the uncertainty is to manage how we respond to it. My hope for all of us is that we will find healthy ways of coping with uncertainty and experience better days ahead.
Dee
As you face the challenges due to COVID-19 as well as changes and transitions in life and work, I welcome the opportunity to assist you. I am available for virtual consultations and virtual presentations at this time instead of corporate and group seminars and community workshops. Please contact me.
Dee Cascio
Author, speaker, Licensed Psychotherapist, Certified Life Coach, Retirement Lifestyle/ReCareer Coach, and Life and Work Transitions Strategies Coach.
The Life and Work Transitions Community
You’ve joined a great group — people who plan to make successful transitions in life and work. May you be inspired to use your strengths and skills to grow in this season and may each transition be your best ever.
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