A Retirement Lifestyle Strategy: Practice Positive Thinking
I have reached retirement age but I’m still growing. I have been a member of Toastmasters for several years. I like the practice Toastmasters gives me as I develop better presentation skills for Retirement Lifestyle Strategies. I usually choose a topic that’s related to something I’m working on personally or professionally. As I was preparing my talk this month on positive psychology, I shared with the group how difficult it was to make a transition from my small home town in upstate New York to a large Virginia suburb of Washington, D.C. almost 40 years ago. Moving to Virginia was exciting because there were so many professional and personal opportunities available to me. However, I was leaving the predictability and security of the home I grew up in, my job, close family and friends. How would I adjust to the challenges of making new friends, finding my way around this maze of highways, being successful in my new job, making enough money to live on my own, and being integrated into a whole new lifestyle?
Same issues—retirement is just a different life stage
As I thought more about that transition, I realized that it’s almost identical to the transition from full-time work to life after work. The only difference is that most of us have arrived and are accomplished professionally and our dependents are gone or almost gone. We may be living in the same home, but many people will relocate or buy second homes in their retirement. When my husband and I bought our second home in Tampa and began spending the last 10 days of each month there, there were times I felt lonely because I really didn’t know anyone. We would meet people periodically on the elevator but that wasn’t enough to start a friendship. When the condo association began having their first meetings and social gatherings, we began to become more connected as we had conversations with various residents.
This reminded me of when I moved to Virginia and struggled with all of the adjustments I had to make for the first time in my life. It was when I was first introduced to a book written in 1952 by Norman Vincent Peale that I began to find my way to a more fulfilling life in my new environment. In his book, Peale revealed that he had grown up in with a terrible inferiority complex. He learned at a very young age that through positive thinking and focusing on his attributes he could feel better about himself. He used that knowledge to dig his way out of the dark place of inferiority into the limelight of radio, television, and media while helping millions of other people. This was his lifelong calling.
I’m sure you are familiar with and may have read his most famous book, The Power Of Positive Thinking. It is still in print and has sold 20 million copies. Peale went on to write 40 more books. He also started a radio program called the Art Of Living which then evolved into a television program on NBC. As a minister, he grew his congregation from 600 parishioners to 5,000 by the time he retired. He lived to be 95 years old, living proof of the benefits of positive thinking and attitude. Millions of people were attracted to his positivity.
J.K. Rowling, who is famous for her Harry Potter books and movies, also had a very rough start in her young adult life. A divorced mother of an infant daughter, living on welfare, Rowling decided to make good on her goal of becoming a published author. While her infant slept, she wrote about the exciting escapades of Harry Potter. She persisted until she found a publisher, and we all know how her story evolved to a series of books, movies, and success.
Characteristics and benefits of positive thinking now and in your retirement years
Successful people have certain characteristics that we need throughout our whole life to be successful. Remember that retirement is just another phase of your life’s career. What made you successful in the earlier parts of your life can be used as you venture forward into a whole new world of opportunity.
Positive thinkers are:
- Optimistic and see problems as challenges
- Capable of finding happiness within themselves
- Open-minded to new ideas and suggestions
- Grateful for what they have, not obsessed with what they don’t have
- Focused on what’s important and are determined to move towards it
- Courageous and confident, taking risks that make a difference in their world
- Determined to reach their goals with integrity
The benefits of positive thinking will serve us well by:
- Attracting like-minded positive people
- Sustaining better health
- Helping us experience life/retirement career success and financial stability
- Sustaining healthier relationships within our circle of family and friends
- Successfully reaching our goals because we have the courage to take risks with confidence and determination
Create the life and the retirement you want with a positive mindset
Norman Vincent Peale and J.K. Rowling are just two of the many success stories we can use as models. No matter what life stage we are in, we can choose to be positive or negative. Thinking positively about our life circumstances, no matter how challenging they are, and finding the support we need to accomplish success is up to each and every one of us. Which direction will you choose for the next 20 to 30 years of your retirement years? Remember, the power of positive thinking IS powerful! Use it to your advantage. As Norman Vincent Peale said,”If you can change your thoughts, you can change your world!”
Now make the best of your life for the rest of your life with positive thinking.
Dee
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
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