In the previous issue of Canadian Teacher Magazine, we discussed changes in attitudes about aging and retirement since the first baby boomers left the workplace. In this issue, we’ll take a look at a few of the books and other resources now available that are specifically directed to the boomer demographic, some of which encompass the topic of retirement.
Ten years ago it seemed that the traditional concept of retirement was the lifestyle in store for the leading edge of the boomer demographic; now it seems this demographic embraces retirement as just one part of an overall vision of what the “third age” can bring. Here are a few of the many publications that make up a burgeoning library of works directed at the boomer demographic, covering a multitude of topics. You can rest assured that as this huge cohort continues to make its mark on all aspects of life, there will be more interesting and innovative sources of information available to us all.
Stayin’ Alive
How Canadian Baby Boomers Will Work, Play, and Find Meaning in the Second Half of Their Adult Lives
by Michael Adams with Amy Langstaff
Viking Canada, 2010
ISBN 978-0-670-06369-7
Author Michael Adams, born in 1946, writes not only from his own experience as a baby boomer but also considers the world into which he was born, how it has impacted his generation and what impact that generation has had on the world. He describes four personality types among baby boomers, saying: “In order to understand how this huge cohort in Canadian society will behave—and affect others—in the years to come, it’s essential to understand the four personalities that populate the Baby Boomer Landscape.” From there the book explores areas such as the structure of family, the future, the end and various other life stages from the perspective of the boomer demographic.
You Could Live a Long Time
Are you Ready?
by Lindsay Green
Thomas Allen Publishers, 2010
ISBN 978-0-88762-527-5
Written when the author was 60 years of age and beginning to think with a certain amount of anxiety about how best to prepare for her future, this book presents a series of interviews with elders from whom inspiration and wisdom were drawn. Contrary to the author’s expectations of discovering negative responses, she says, “What the elders taught me turned my thinking on its head. Their most important lessons are almost all paradoxical: they run counter to our society’s obsession with staying forever young, and to my own assumption that I must fight aging at all costs.” The interviews of the forty elders reflect their experiences and cover topics such as the self, civic engagement, work, home, body, finances and embracing old age.
52 Ways to Wreck your Retirement … and how to rescue it
by Tina Di Vito John
Wiley & Sons Canada, 2011
ISBN 978-1-118-07609-5
Perhaps one of the most common questions asked about retirement is, “Will I have enough money to retire on?” and it is also one of the most difficult to answer. No matter how much planning you do, and how you might visualize your future, there is always a fear that you might make the wrong decision or life will throw something unexpected in your direction. This book is written from a financial perspective with a realistic view of what today’s retirement might look like, covering such topics as investment mistakes, living in retirement, spending savings and considering just what is retirement and what is being old. “Fifty-five is the new 40! Since people are looking and feeling younger, why would they want to retire?” is one of the questions discussed. There are tips as to how to rectify many situations under the “rescue it” segments at the end of each chapter.
Your Retirement Income Blueprint
A Six-Step Plan to Design and Build a Secure Retirement.
A Canadian Guide
by Daryl Diamond
John Wiley & Sons Canada, 2011
ISBN 978-1-118-08752-7
Upon turning 65, the author was prompted to write this book which he says is not a do-it-yourself book but one that helps “facilitate more comprehensive communication between investors and advisors, it is intended to be a ‘do it properly’ book.” It contains step-by-step guidelines to help design a retirement plan that understands the boomer demographic and takes into consideration the experiences of those within it.
The Laughing Boomer
Retire from Work – Gear up for Living!
by Mahara Sinclaire
Autumn Publications, 2011
ISBN 978-0-9780600-0-8
You’ll probably gather from the title of this book that it is has a very positive slant on aging. It’s full of suggestions to enhance and expand life as a senior, covering topics such as hobbies, health, freedom, travel and relocation. Without trivializing various aspects of life as a boomer, it emphazises how readers can get the most out of life by exploring their values and their definition of happiness, and asking if they are a prisoner of their possessions. In conclusion, the author says, “Being a laughing boomer in retirement is about taking the time you now have to reconnect with your goals and dreams and bring them into reality.”
(Note: Mahara Sinclaire was previously an educator in BC’s colleges and universities where she presented retirement workshops. She’s now travelling the world and has visited more than 40 countries in the past two years.)
Retire Retirement
Career Strategies for the Boomer Generation
by Tamara Erickson
Harvard Business Press, 2008
ISBN 978-1-4221-2059-0
Taking a look at career possibilities and developing strategies for work options into later life are covered in this book by considering generational preferences and how they figure in the choices made. What influenced traditionalists, boomers and generations X and Y are reviewed as groundwork in preparation for subsequent chapters which challenge assumptions and help sort through options to reinvent a career and life.
Whether it is a lighthearted approach to making the most of being a boomer, an in-depth look at what financial aspirations a person of that generation might have, or solace from the wisdom of those older than you, there is a book out there to cover it. The boomers have been around long enough now to ponder the paths they’ve trodden over the years into older age, on the changes they have wrought, and how they’ve reinvented themselves; now they’re sharing it all with you who are about to experience retirement.
Useful Websites
www.retiredworker.ca – work after retirement and related topics
www.jobbank.gc.ca – job search
www.fifty-plus.net – part of Zoomer Media
www.aarp.com – American Association of Retired People
www.apa.org – American Psychological Association (under the heading “Retirement”)
www.life-academy.co.uk – ideas for holistic retirement solutions
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Carol Baird-Krul & Enise Olding
Carol and Enise (info@drassociates.ca) are the creators of a series of pre-retirement and post-retirement planning workshops: Transition to Retirement: The Uncharted Course©, Recently Retired: Charting a New Course© and Ideas… Enhanced and Advanced©, and authors of Transition to Retirement: The Uncharted Course. Previous articles on retirement may be viewed in back issues at CanadianTeacherMagazine.com or by clicking HERE.
This article is from Canadian Teacher Magazine’s Nov/Dec 2012 issue.
