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Dear Friends and Clients,

I am working hard to prepare for my 60th birthday, which will come next July. I’m already planning the party but, more significantly, I’m also getting ready for the next couple of decades.

During my 50s, I stepped away from the fast track, but I never really contemplated a traditional “retirement.” Instead, I launched a work phase that may last for more years than did my career as a lawyer and executive.

I now have more time for relationships, hobbies, non-profit activities and my fitness regimen. But I also want continued professional challenges and the knowledge that I can earn more money when I need it.

I’m optimistic that my own dreams will be realized. And with this issue of Bev’s Tips I’ll report on research suggesting that the happiest time in your work life may come in the years that follow the peak in your primary career.

Warmly, Bev

Your Next Career Phase
Can Be the Best One

October 18, 2005 * Number 25

A recent study by Merrill Lynch found that 76% of Americans aged 40 to 58 plan to work in retirement. And 56% of the total group say that they want to switch jobs to something completely different.

One reason that many professionals want to keep working in their later years is simply so that they have the money to do the things they most enjoy. And yet it doesn’t appear that financial pressure is the primary reason that Baby Boomers expect to stay in the workforce for many years to come. They want to be mentally active, to stay connected, to be respected and to make a contribution.

There is evidence that meaningful work will be a key factor in the reinvented lifestyle that professional Boomers will enjoy in their 50s, 60s, 70s and even beyond. It is probably time to scrap the retro concept of “retirement” and start looking forward to a lengthy career pattern that may feature periods in which you cycle in and out of the workforce.

A number of factors suggest that the phase that follows your career peak may be the best time of all:

After mid-life it gets better. Many studies suggest that the middle years, for both men and women, is the least happy time. One of toughest periods in your life may be during your 40s, even though your career is thriving and you have much of what you thought you wanted. Psychologists say that our happiness level tends to follow a U-shaped curved, dipping after age 40 but then rising again later in life.
You become your real self. Carl Jung coined the term “individuation” to describe the process by which you integrate all the aspects of your personality to become a fuller, richer person in the later years of life. He said that in youth we develop a social façade that helps us to get along well at school and work, but it can limit us as we continue to develop. In mid-life we may abandon some of the restrictions of our socialized persona, and find ways to pursue the things that really matter. Our new sense of self can help us see an entirely different set of career options.
Lifelong learning will open new doors. Around the world, universities are starting to seriously recruit older students. More than 20% of college students in America today are over 35, and adults over 65 are going back to school in growing numbers. As lifelong learning becomes routine, it will become easier for middle-aged adults to go back to school as part of the path to restructuring their careers.
We’ll make new friends. Having a network of supportive relationships can be a critical factor in successful aging. And having a broad network of connections can help us to spot opportunities as we restructure our careers again and again. The great news is that we won’t be alone as we look to forge new friendships. Middle-aged professionals may feel too busy to care for even their most treasured friendships, but priorities shift as people get older. After age 50, empty nesters and early retirees may refocus on their social lives, and we all may develop a new wave of nurturing relationships.

For suggestions about ways to start exploring options for your next career phase, see my January 18 ezine. One way to get started is to abandon the concept of a building career followed by retirement. Instead start thinking about your work life as a series of phases with the potential to become increasingly flexible and rewarding as the years go by.

Want to Read More About
Restructuring Instead of Retiring?

Described below is a book that may help you to prepare for the next phase of your career. To order this book from Amazon.com, click on its title. For reviews of other helpful books, go to: ClearWays Books and Services. If you buy a book through these links it will contribute to the cost of distributing Bev’s Tips, and be much appreciated.

The Power Years, by Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D. and Daniel J. Kadlec, Wiley, 2005.

Book store “self help” sections are brimming with guides to preparing for life after 40. One of the most heavily promoted this year is “The Power Years,” which bills itself as, “A User’s Guide to the Rest of Your Life.”

The authors draw on both psychological research and real life examples, as they suggest strategies for renewal after mid-life. The book may not measure up to the publisher’s claim that it is a “step-by-step guide to repowerment and personal re-invention.” But certainly the authors offer insights that might be helpful if you’re starting to prepare for the next phase of your life.
Among their suggestions are these:

Get out there and find new ways to have fun.

Use some of your leisure to enhance the relationships that matter most.

Connect with other generations.

Don’t just keep doing what you’re doing now – change your patterns and see what turns up,

Decide what kind of work is most meaningful to you, and craft a new career, even if you don’t need the money.

Spend less money now, so you’ll be under less pressure later.

It takes a team. A strong and varied team can strengthen and enrich your career, and a coach can be a powerful addition to your team. Coach Bev works with executives and professionals to meet organizational challenges and bring new energy to their work lives. If you want to learn more about coaching, or if you’re looking for a speaker or workshop to inspire your team,
contact Bev.

Bev’s Tips for a Better Work Life is published on the first and third Tuesday of each month by Beverly E. Jones of ClearWays Consulting, LLC. Bev is a lawyer and former executive who now coaches accomplished CEO's, public afffairs executives, and other professionals to bring new direction, energy and enjoyment to their work lives.

All rights in all media reserved. However, the content of Bev’s Tips for a Better Work Life may be forwarded in full without special permission on the condition that (1) it is for non-profit use and (2) full attribution and copyright notice are given. For other uses please contact Bev Jones.

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