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For much of our life, school systems and workplaces teach us the next steps. We learn in elementary school the skills needed in middle school to prepare us for high school. But we don’t wait until we are seniors in high school to prepare for college. College preparation starts earlier so we are ready for applying to colleges. Similarly, we don’t wait until we are seniors in college to decide a direction for a career. That starts earlier with declaring a major and securing a few internships.
Once we begin our careers, we learn the skills needed to advance through experience, mentors, and observation. Employee handbooks outline the policies and procedures to make sure we follow the norms. But when our careers come to an end, where do we learn how to be retired? Where do we find the handbook to guide us in this next phase of life?
We are living in uncharted territory—life expectancy has increased, along with changing expectations of aging. While these changes present challenges, it also offers opportunities. Richard Leider, author of “The Power of Purpose” was involved in a 2009 survey by the MetLife Mature Market Institute, titled “Discovering What Matters: Balancing Money, Medicine and Meaning.” The study revealed that as people reach retirement age, “meaning trumps money in defining the good life.” Leider concluded, “The good life consists of health, finances, and doing what’s important. But it is not always easy to figure out what’s important.