It’s your golden years and you have earned it - no financial worries, no work or family stress. Life is good, but are you ready?
Retirement Is a New Beginning
Retirement is a landmark of achievement and the new baseline of re-establishing lifestyle. It takes some thoughts and some time to transform your mindset, as the “golden gate” bridging into your golden years. This mindset transition process may begin sooner or later and duration varies individually.
Retirement is meant to be a new beginning for meaningful life, deepening relationships, and exploring passions. It’s marked by changing habits as the person transitions away from a work-focused lifestyle, and adopts a constellation of behaviors that help or hinder physical and mental well-being. Retirement is a once-in-the-lifetime opportunity to turn a fresh page, give up entrenched bad habits and take up new ones. These choices affect the quality of life and happiness experienced by retirees. There are two opposing cognitive forces at work for people, one that is positive and optimistic, and the other which is negative and debilitating. On the positive side, retirees have a greater sense of autonomy and control because they no longer have to work for money. On the other side, there is uncertainty and concern about the future, and a sense of disempowerment. Many retirees also suffer from acute loneliness and experience a sense of alienation, as well as dealing with chronic health issues. These negative aspects of the retirement mindset affect how retirees make decisions.
You may feel working 40 hours a week is standard routine and hard to imagine how will the non-work life to be. Got lost in personal identity after retired from your beloved career? As you are no longer the CEO, Manager, or senior titled professional, and your name is no longer associated with a company/business. Deep in your heart, you may be wondering “Who am I now? What I’m going to do with my time?” You may not yet get use to the slowdown, or guilty for not working or earn income or feeling talent wasted or lonely…… Now, let’s change to a different mentality - In retirement, you are the CEO of your own life, and your activities are focused on moving your life forward rather than moving forward the goals of a business.
Don’t you feel empowered toward a meaningful future life journey now? This is the goal of golden mindset transformation for your golden years.
Golden Mindset Transformation
With life expectancy at an all-time high, retirement leisure can last anywhere from 20 to 30 years. That’s a lot of time to fill, and retirees need to well plan for it to make the most of golden years value.
Retirement Is a New Beginning
Retirement is a landmark of achievement and the new baseline of re-establishing lifestyle. It takes some thoughts and some time to transform your mindset, as the “golden gate” bridging into your golden years. This mindset transition process may begin sooner or later and duration varies individually.
Retirement is meant to be a new beginning for meaningful life, deepening relationships, and exploring passions. It’s marked by changing habits as the person transitions away from a work-focused lifestyle, and adopts a constellation of behaviors that help or hinder physical and mental well-being. Retirement is a once-in-the-lifetime opportunity to turn a fresh page, give up entrenched bad habits and take up new ones. These choices affect the quality of life and happiness experienced by retirees. There are two opposing cognitive forces at work for people, one that is positive and optimistic, and the other which is negative and debilitating. On the positive side, retirees have a greater sense of autonomy and control because they no longer have to work for money. On the other side, there is uncertainty and concern about the future, and a sense of disempowerment. Many retirees also suffer from acute loneliness and experience a sense of alienation, as well as dealing with chronic health issues. These negative aspects of the retirement mindset affect how retirees make decisions.
You may feel working 40 hours a week is standard routine and hard to imagine how will the non-work life to be. Got lost in personal identity after retired from your beloved career? As you are no longer the CEO, Manager, or senior titled professional, and your name is no longer associated with a company/business. Deep in your heart, you may be wondering “Who am I now? What I’m going to do with my time?” You may not yet get use to the slowdown, or guilty for not working or earn income or feeling talent wasted or lonely…… Now, let’s change to a different mentality - In retirement, you are the CEO of your own life, and your activities are focused on moving your life forward rather than moving forward the goals of a business.
Don’t you feel empowered toward a meaningful future life journey now? This is the goal of golden mindset transformation for your golden years.
Golden Mindset Transformation
With life expectancy at an all-time high, retirement leisure can last anywhere from 20 to 30 years. That’s a lot of time to fill, and retirees need to well plan for it to make the most of golden years value.
- Retirement should be more about you than your money. Now, you are duty-free and debt-free. It’s time to be and take care of yourself, after a long career life and raising family. When you have everything, health and happiness now becomes the most important focus.
- Keep engaged and active: You are not too old. Explore an “encore career” or volunteer to help those in need can be enjoyable and rewarding. Finding ways to make money from your knowledge and skills shall give you a good sense of satisfaction, as long as doing so does not make you work unwillingly. Don’t force or stretch yourself over limit.
- Self-discovery for new freedom and growth: Your mind and body must be challenged to stay healthy. Make your own bucket list. Learn a new subject and challenge yourself to try a different skillset. As you further separate from full-time work and gain comfort with your post-work identity, you will enjoy more of your leisure and appreciate more for the purpose of life.
- Self-compassion and make yourself happy: Show your love to the world by loving yourself first. Treat yourself well, do not feel guilty to use your money to do what you love to do or go where you want to be. You reserved these years to be yourself and to do the things you dreamed of doing but unable to do while working or raising family. Enjoy physical activities at your comfort level.
- Appreciation: Be thankful for what you have, who you are and where you will be. The true fountain of youth is an attitude of gratitude.
- Re-adjust priorities, activities, relationships, social and family roles: as children are grown and independent, the family dynamic changes. Life continues to evolve over the years. Prioritize and put thing in order under a clear vision.
- Balance leisure expense with financial comfort: Financial comfort is about being able to manage your life in a satisfying and fulfilling way using the financial resources that you have. A good way to look at your financial situation in retirement is to think about the three “buckets” that you will have to keep filled in order to achieve financial comfort: http://www.retirementlifestyle.com/the-eight-keys-to-a-successful-retirement-life/
- Your “essentials” bucket, which will pay for all of your basic needs
- Your “lifestyle” bucket, which will fund those fun things that you dream of doing
- Your “nest egg” bucket, which will fund any emergencies that may arise, provide you with a sense of security through good and challenging times and ultimately will form part of your legacy.
- Establish a healthy lifestyle routine with healthy eating, exercises, and sufficient quality sleep. Healthy life style is better than medicine. As health conditions are more pervasive in late adulthood and can limit leisure experiences, many are dealing with an increase in doctor visits and medical care, learn and practice therapeutic life style is essential. Health coaching is a valuable resource to support you for golden mindset transformation and healthy aging. Check out Quality Life Forum health coaching programs available to you.
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Taking Actions
1. Using the QLF score below to evaluate your days for a week. QLF score (the perfect score will be 10 points/day) 1 point A good night sleep (optimal 6 - 8 hours/day) 3 points (1 pt per meal) Eat healthy in balanced meals at 80% full, or keep calorie track on target 1 point Drink water and/or green tea; allow occasional alcoholic and other beverages 1 point Not smoking 1 point Physical activities or work out 30 minutes or more daily, at least five days a week 1 point Enjoy social connections or making trust building efforts 1 point Stress level self-rating is low or medium (no point for high) 1 point Feeling good and happy overall If scored 5 or below on 3 days or more of a week, improvement is recommended. |
2. Toxic thoughts damage quality of life. Don’t struggle alone with negative thoughts. Your health coach can help. Premium coaching packages and customized health coaching are available from Quality Life Forum.
3. Write yourself an annual review. A good tool for retirement success self-evaluation is to write an annual review, to see what you have done for a year and building on new goals for future.
Here is an example for “a great year review” -
Accomplishments:
- Key health indicators improvements (body weight, BMI, Hip/waist ratio, lab results, etc) and overall quality of life satisfaction
- Exercise and sport activities (races and sport events, fitness programs completed)
- Learning activities (classes/courses completed, langrage learning, musical instrument practice)
- Social activities (major social or community events, volunteer or paid works, book club/reading group)
- Leisure activities (travels, photography, books read, art work, hobbies)
- Home maintenance (lawn care, house work/projects, tax returns, family or personal financial management)
- Other (Writing, any value added contributions)
Unmet goals or change plans
Review any unmet goals or change plans with reasons identified, update your bucket list
Summary
When you have everything, health and happiness now becomes the most important focus. Retirement should be more about you than your money. You are not too old. Your mind and body must be challenged to stay healthy. Be thankful for what you have, who you are and where you will be. The true fountain of youth is an attitude of gratitude. Establish a healthy lifestyle routine; enjoy physical activities at your comfort level.
Golden years are most enjoyable, as you are duty-free and debt-free. Health is the prerequisite for freedom. Healthy mindset is the foundation for wellness.
Feel free to contact qualitylifeforum@outlook.com for your health coaching needs.
References:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-science-behind-behavior/201611/4-different-ways-think-retirement
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/ken-dychtwald/four-distinct-stages-of-retirement_b_9875128.html
http://www.retirementlifestyle.com/the-eight-keys-to-a-successful-retirement-life/
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/charlie-nelms-edd/twelve-tips-for-a-success_b_12765078.html
https://www.cio.com/article/3125094/careers-staffing/4-keys-to-a-happy-and-successful-retirement.html
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Disclaimer: This information is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice. Consult your healthcare professional for personal conditions.
Advocate and Giving Support for Healthy Aging
To support healthy aging, all helps are sincerely appreciated. We hope more people to share the benefits and making contributions to support Quality Life Forum continued health coaching education and services. You can help now by sharing [passing on QLF valuable health coaching resource for other’s benefit] and giving [click here for a donation in any amount]. Your help will benefit many others in need and make you feel great for your kind act of giving.
To support healthy aging, all helps are sincerely appreciated. We hope more people to share the benefits and making contributions to support Quality Life Forum continued health coaching education and services. You can help now by sharing [passing on QLF valuable health coaching resource for other’s benefit] and giving [click here for a donation in any amount]. Your help will benefit many others in need and make you feel great for your kind act of giving.
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