Mastering the Art of Retirement

A magazine advertisement for Lindt Chocolate® grabbed my attention. Printed in cursive lettering at the top of the page: Mastering the Art of Retirement.

Retirement and chocolate—two of my favorite subjects! However, upon closer review, I realized the title read "refinement" not “retirement”.  Making great chocolate is a refined art. 

While my desire for Swiss chocolate lingered, I began to mull over the idea that creating a meaningful retirement lifestyle is also an art that requires mastering. Consider this:

When we first retire most of us don't know how to live "retired." Until now we've been rewarded for mastering many of the skills that don't do us a lot of good in retirement, such as getting as much done as possible (or not possible) with limited time and conforming to structure and other people's expectations. To make retirement an art, we need to develop a new skill set that requires time, creativity, talent, and patience—all the essentials that an artist works with to master his or her art.

What goes into the art of retirement?

1.     Artists have a vision, an inspiration before creating their art. What is your vision for retirement? Where can you find inspiration?

2.     Artists invest in the materials needed to master their skills. What materials, activities, and pursuits do you need to craft a meaningful retirement?

3.     Artists experiment with new methods and materials. Where can you take risks and try something new?

4.     Artists are willing to be vulnerable—not everyone appreciates their work. Where can you be more open to possibilities, letting go of others' expectations and living a life that is true to you?

5.     Artists are continually mastering an art—appreciating the fact that great art cannot be mastered. The same is true for retirement. Creating a rewarding retirement lifestyle is always a work in progress. While you never fully arrive or achieve this goal, you create a rich life along the way.

Copyright 2015 Patrice Jenkins All Rights Reserved.

I Participated.

On May 20, 2015, I was watching an interview between Charlie Rose from The Morning Show on CBS and actor George Clooney. The two men were discussing Clooney's involvement with humanitarian emergencies in Sudan, the vastness of need and challenges of sustainability. At the end of their discussion, I was taken back by Clooney's comment: "When you look back on your life and they say 'What did you do?' I want to be able to say, I participated."

I repeated the words out loud: I participated. I was drawn to this simple statement and I knew in that moment that these  two words were going to change the way I view my volunteer roles.

I think most people will say they want to make a difference in the world. Still, how many of us can honestly make that claim? Measuring the extent of our impact is not easy, and even when it is, we often come up short when comparing it to the vastness of needs around the world or in our own backyards.

However, when I view my involvements as participating, every little thing I do contributes to something that can make a difference. I'm not sitting on the sidelines only observing the needs that exist in my community and around the world. I'm in the game. I'm participating. Let me share an example.

One of my volunteer roles is with PEER Servants where I place college interns with indigenous microfinance organizations around the world. Am I making a difference in this role? I think so, but still, it's not easy to measure the impact. On the other hand, can I say that I'm participating in helping the materially poor in the world? Yes. I'm participating.

By participating, I don't feel the responsibility to make a huge impact or change the world on my own. Instead I can feel good about doing something, contributing, and giving of my time and talents.

Now I pose the question to you that Clooney answered in his interview. When you look back on your life and people ask, "What did you do?" how do you want to respond?

I want to be able to say: I participated.

Copyright 2015 Patrice Jenkins All Rights Reserved

Do Something Worth Writing About

Summer is a perfect time to enjoy a great book. In fact, summer reading lists can be found in many of the popular magazines and bookstores. The summer months and reading seem to go together.

This summer when you reach for a book, imagine that you're reading your own story—a book that is full of adventure, humor, challenges and successes. A plot that brings you to the edge of your seat, makes you laugh out loud, and leaves you feeling happy and eager to read the next volume in the sequel.

This summer aim to do something that is worth writing about. Be bold with your plot. Where's the humor? The adventure? The lessons and the successes? When you view decisions from this perspective, you'll make choices that create a more interesting life.

If something is outside your comfort zone, then suppose it's happening to another person—imagine you're reading about the experience in a book. For example, if you're leery about going camping without an air-conditioned RV, then imagine reading about someone's experience with sleeping under the stars.  This is the perspective I brought to a camping experience with my husband.

Dave enjoys camping in his family's 1957 Sears and Roebuck canvas tent. I prefer 4- and 5-star hotels. For his birthday I booked reservations at a campsite along the water. As soon as we arrived I saw a snake in the water. (Dave promised me that a water snake never leaves the water.) In the middle of the night I walked to the bathroom, but on the way back to the campsite my phone battery went dead, meaning that I also had no flashlight. (The plot thickens…) I got lost trying to find our campsite. I ended up walking through brush up to my waist with no idea of where I was (and sure that the snake sleeps in tall grass at night!) Eventually a park ranger found me and showed me the way back to my campsite.

I can't say that I enjoyed this experience but if I were reading about it in a book, this story is more riveting than, "She slept comfortably through the night in her posh hotel room." Dave and I still laugh about my adventure. It's a birthday we'll never forget. This summer I've agreed to camp out again for his birthday. You can be sure that I'll bring a flashlight with a long battery life, still, hopefully there'll be another incident that is worth writing about.

As you create your retirement lifestyle, don't play life too safe. Who wants to read a boring book?

"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing." Benjamin Franklin

Copyright 2015 Patrice Jenkins All Rights Reserved

10 Tips to Creating Meaningful Work in Retirement

1.    Make a list of the benefits you have experienced from work. When you know what work has done for you, then you know what you need to have in retirement.  For example, work provides you with a sense of belonging, a purpose, an opportunity to use your skills and abilities, and a place to receive recognition and admiration. As you consider meaningful work in retirement, how will you meet these needs?

2.     Don't think of work as WORK.  Our culture has conditioned us to think that work is something we should want to get out of.  Even though studies indicate we are happier when we are working as compared to leisure time, most people say they prefer leisure more so than work. You don't need to apologize for working in retirement; in fact, work may be the best prescription for a happy retirement.

3.   A paycheck doesn't define the value of work. Volunteer opportunities are just as valuable (or more valuable in some cases) than paid work. It may be difficult to overcome the belief that your earnings determine the value of your contribution.  For years the value of our contributions have been recognized through promotions and raises. In retirement, you will be defining the value of your work.  Most people find greater satisfaction from volunteering for work that is meaningful than being paid to do something that lacks purpose.

4.     Revisit some "forks in the road."  It is never too late to become the person you might have been, or at least to feel like that person.  Think back to dreams and goals you had earlier in life but for some reason life took you down a different path.  Retirement is the perfect time to re-invent yourself through a second career. 

5.     Retirement is the perfect time to pursue your "life’s work."  Is there a calling that you feel compelled to do?  The gift of retirement is you don't have to make a living wage doing what you love.  If your nest egg is secure, then use this time in life to make your calling your life's work.

6.    Start preparing now for what you want to do in retirement.  The first steps to creating anything new often take longer than expected.  If you want to start a new business, then consider what you can begin doing right now. If you want to do something completely different from your career, then enroll in a class or degree program.  You can take one class at a time and still arrive at your goal.  There is no rush in retirement.

7.  Make your retirement work challenging.  Life without challenges soon becomes boring.  Work in retirement can provide you with opportunities to engage your skills through challenging projects.  The benefit is lasting satisfaction comes from meeting these challenges.  Work can prevent retirement from becoming too easy. You need some hard days to make the easy days sweeter.

8.     Create a two-year plan for your retirement work.  You don't have to figure out what to do with the next 25 years of your life.  Instead, think in two-year intervals. What would you like to do for the next two years? 

9.     Bring purpose to your hobbies. Hobbies without a purpose can leave you feeling like you're just keeping busy.  By adding purpose, you can transform a hobby into meaningful retirement work. 

10.   Last, always have something that you call "work" in your life and have a business card to prove it.

Copyright 2015 Patrice Jenkins All Rights Reserved

Am I Losing My Drive?

As new retirees, I believe we have more in common with people in the twenty-something age group than any other age bracket. We can learn from their questions, books, websites, and other sources that target a stage of life when one is trying to find direction, change the world, and create a life that's more than a resume.

This belief proved true the other day when my 25-year old son told me about a friend who is concerned that she's losing her drive. The conversation went like this:

Theresa asked Steven if he thought she was losing her drive since she doesn't feel motivated to put energy into work-related stuff. Theresa has always been a high-achiever, but now she's feeling like she doesn't have the ambition that she had in the past. Steven explained that now is the first time in their lives when the next goal/step is not obvious. When they were in college there was always the next class, project, semester, etc. Now that they're in "real" jobs, there's not a beginning and an end. They have a long road ahead, but to where? And for what?

Steven and I talked about the importance of forming your own goals at this stage of life. You have to create what you're aiming for. It is the goal/deadline that generates the drive. We don't believe that Theresa has lost her drive—she just needs to decide what is the next thing that she's excited about pursuing. Once she's on this path, her get-up-and-go will return.

This discussion could have easily (or more easily) taken place between two retirees. There are times when I question if I have lost my drive—especially when I look back to all the things I accomplished in my life when I was much busier than I am now. Compared to those days, I feel like I don't have the fire, motivation and ambition that I once had. I have reason to question, "Am I losing my drive?"

I found the answer to this question when I offered to host the family of a dear friend who had recently died. Her family was from out of town and they were coming to empty her house. Instead of returning at the end of the day to a motel, I invited them to spend the week with my husband and me.  In preparation of their visit, I developed a two-page "punch" list and worked tirelessly all week to prepare the house for their visit. I also had incredible drive to be hospitable the entire week while they were here.

I learned that I hadn’t lost my drive—it just needed a place to go. I needed a purpose.

Daniel Pink, author of Drive, encourages us to develop a "purpose-motive". Profit-motive may have provided a source of energy while we were working. Now a purpose motive can be an equally powerful source of energy.

If you want to reignite your drive and motivation, then create a greater sense of purpose. Set goals and know what you're aiming to achieve. Once you do this, your drive will return. Keep in mind—it needs a place to go.

"Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement."  -W. Clement Stone

Copyright 2015 Patrice Jenkins All Rights Reserved