Act your age? Why start now! There is no reason you can’t just reinvent yourself and change the way you look at the world. With so many changes in our world lately, we all need to explore new things, create new identities, new interests that we can find to make life more enjoyable. You can open up a door to a whole new world in retirement, there is nothing stopping you unless you think others will think you’ve lost your mind. So what if they do? They might be jealous more than anything at your new outlook on life.
Do you act your age? If you are in your sixties, I suppose most folks think that you should act a certain way. You know, move slowly, talk slowly, complain about the weather, things like that. But if you’re like me I don’t really feel “old” at 65 – I still feel pretty darn good as a matter of fact! I go to the gym at least twice a week, go for walks with my wife every night, and like to try at least to keep up with events in the world and what is going on with social media and popular culture. Why is that most people don’t get that just because your in your sixties, doesn’t necessarily mean you must act really old? I believe I know what might be going on, since it’s a fairly new phenomenon really.
Life is about choices, really. The choices you made in the past have decided what your present is like. And the choices you make now will decide how your future will be – for better or worse. Making good decisions is something we all try to do but sometimes don’t weigh the consequences and end up making the wrong choices. So choose wisely and take care of your health, your loved ones, and your finances, because retirement will be much happier in the long run if you do!
Be bold, reinvent yourself!
Now is the time in your life where you can finally do whatever you want to do – no holds barred. So do you know what it is that you want to do with your time, now that it is all yours?
- Travel the world, or at least your country.
- Write a book – it’s probably not as hard as you think.
- Learn to paint (portraits, not walls!)
- Learn to play an instrument, or another one if you already play one.
- Hike the Appalachian Trail.
- Try zip-lining in Costa Rica
- Scuba diving
- White-water rafting
- Skydiving (if you do, you’re braver than I)
- Take dancing classes.
- Grow your own garden.
- Teach an online class that you create yourself.
- Find a place to volunteer your time, a great way to meet new people.
Or really, anything you aways wanted to do, but just never found the time. I always wanted to take karate lessons, but never found the time in my younger years. Guess what I’m doing now? You bet, it’s never too late to be inspired and follow a dream. Never. Too. Late. One of my favorite things to do now is go to the library and take out as many inspirational books as I can read and just get completely inspired by them. Some people call them self-help books, others motivational books, but there are literally hundreds of books you can read that are positively inspiring and will motivate you to find new and fantastic things to better yourself, have more fun in life, and make new friends as well in the process.
Don’t let the boredom of sitting around the house watching TV or chatting endlessly on the phone with anyone who will listen, get out there and do something new! Reinvent yourself now that you can – and now that you have both the time and the will to better yourself. You might think “I’m too old to do those things” – but once you get started on something new, you will find the joy of doing something new is just what you needed all along. It will change your whole attitude about your life and who you are as a person!
Planning for your retirement can be tricky, and there are questions you have like everyone else. If you want to learn and explore more ideas for yourself, check out my book here for more information:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D3S2V9VM
Happy retirement planning!