Research shows more than 90 percent of retirement plans still - today - don't go beyond money, travel, social life and family fun.
Six months to a year after leaving work, I hear, “what have I done??”, “my family are busy living their lives”, “once I was a somebody, now I’m a nobody”,”I am a stranger in my old workplace”, “my partner is either working or has their own interests”. These are all true-life 21st century responses!
I can’t believe how many thinking businesspeople still think life after work is simply ‘putting the feet up’, free of work-related stress and life becoming one long holiday. C'mon! We're talking potentially another 30 years or more.
When people say “I don’t ever want to retire”, they don’t mean they want to work until they drop; they mean they don’t want to stop living a purposeful life. Implying there is no purpose in life if one is not working. Wrong!
The good news is we were all born with the potential to find a purpose beyond making money. Our job is only a snapshot of our unique life identity - what we are good at, what makes us different and what people value about us. When are the best years to realize that? – in our latter half of life.
Purpose has found me twice since I left fulltime work more than 20 years ago. It’s simply a matter of wanting life purpose and meaning beyond work.
The secret is to start searching before you quit work. That’s when you know what you’re good at and (as I did) could tweak it to a cause important to you (pay is optional).
Momentum matters if you want another 30 years of purposeful living. To ensure you stay being a somebody, start planning today for a seamless transition into how you can be of value to others in your life after work.
Any or all of three of my books will help you work through your own unique approach to planning your life after work:
"Enjoy Being You More: The Path to Finding Your Purpose and Legacy", January 2026
"Free to be Me: Why a Life Ethic is Replacing the Work Ethic", June 2023
"The Hunger to Grow : How to Enjoy the 'Desert Years' of your Life", 2016
