Retirement News : Seniors : Six Secrets to a Successful Retirement

Six Secrets to a Successful Retirement

Date Added: 02-11-2005

Baby boomers may be a long way off from retirement; they are more likely to relocate or seek out new jobs and careers.  Read the excerpt below.

Healthy Wealthy n Wise - Kearneysville,WV,USA

By: Jan Cullinane
 
 
Retirement (n): removal or withdrawal from service, office, or business; withdrawal into privacy or seclusion
 
WRONG! With apologies to Webster’s Dictionary, this is no longer your father’s (or mother’s) retirement. Today’s retirees, and those approaching retirement, differ from their parents in a number of important ways. Baby boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) are living longer, perhaps spending 30 or more years in retirement. As a group, they are healthier, more active physically and mentally, more affluent, more educated, and more likely to relocate after retiring. Although seemingly an oxymoron, more Boomers plan to continue working in retirement and view retirement as a process, rather than an end, with perhaps several forays into and out of the workforce
 
This truly is a “new” retirement. In fact, many believe the word “retirement" itself needs to be retired – the word no longer represents the porch-rocking, shuffle-board playing, early-bird dining, silver-haired stereotype of yore. So, how can you plan for a successful, happy transition into the second half of your life? I’d like to offer six secrets:
 
Secret 1: Have Strong Social Support
 
Who would have known Barbra Streisand foreshadowed the results of a scientific study when she sang her song “People”? But did you know that those lucky people also live longer? A study done in New Haven, Connecticut found that men and women who were socially active lived an average of two and a half years longer than those who were not.
 
Other studies have found that social interactions have a significant effect in maintaining mental health, regardless of whether retirees live alone, live with someone other than their spouse, or are childless. Satisfaction in retirement is strongly correlated to the strength and number of your personal connections. It would seem that investing in building and maintaining friendships can reap far greater rewards than investing in stocks and bonds!

Read the entire article: http://www.healthywealthynwise.com/article.asp?Article=3090