Staying Impactful as We Age

It used to be that once a person hit 65, retirement was mandatory.  Then along came the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) that abolished that requirement (there are still some exceptions like being an airline pilot or being a part of the military).  Now, people 70 years old and up make up 6% of the American workforce.

There are lots of reasons that people who could stop working don’t.  A recent report released by AARP notes that 37% of retiring adults plan to keep working.  Of that number, 44% said they would be doing something completely different than the career they are retiring from.  The main reason people are interested in continuing to work?  They want to contribute something of value by using the decades of their accumulated experience and wisdom. 

What is it about contribution that is so important to us as humans?  There is LOTS of evidence that suggests that contribution, whether in the form of helping someone else, community engagement or care-giving a loved one, makes US feel like we matter and have value.  To the old part of our nervous system, this carries the message of being a part of something which helps us feel safe and secure.

What really seems to be important is to make sure that the actions we take are in harmony with our most deeply held values.  Whatever our contribution is, it needs to be important to us, not something society or family thinks we should do.  This is best accomplished when we are clear about not only what we are good at but what we love doing.

Many of us have accumulated a lot of diverse experience over the course of our decades on the planet.  The key, and sometimes the challenge, is to identify what the common thread is that has run and continues to run through our lives.   Not to be confused with a job, as such, this thread is a talent or natural inclination that has been with you since the beginning.  You might be the person who is great at helping heal conflict, you might be excellent at helping people feel comfortable or conversely, challenging those around you to think differently.  Whatever it is, it shows up in all of the roles in your life.  It is something that makes YOU feel most like yourself.

The tricky part about the thread is that it can be such a natural part of who we are, that we don’t always consider its importance.  We can think because it comes so easily to us, that it can’t be that big of a deal.  The GREAT news?  Once we have some clarity on the thread, we can truly live with impact through our whole life cycle!

Take some inspiration from the poem by William Stafford.

The Way It Is

There’s a thread you follow. It goes among
things that change. But it doesn’t change.
People wonder about what you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the thread.
But it is hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can’t get lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
or die; and you suffer and get old.
Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.
You don’t ever let go of the thread.