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PRESS RELEASE
November 18, 2002, Revised 11/3/2003
For Immediate Release
Contact: Ron Manheimer
828-232-5180
rmanheimer@unca.edu
Paths To a Creative Retirement
Between now and 2010, almost 11 million Americans will shut the
office, clinic, lab, school or plant door, never to return. With the
average age of retirement in the United States hovering around 63
(U.S. Bureau of the Census), this out-migration is predicted to
leave huge gaps in the workforce, particular in professions such as
teaching, law, nursing, medicine, and in trades such as plumbing and
electrical contracting (Segal Special Reports, 2001; Hewitt Assoc.,
2001).
Will this prediction hold? Worries about the economy, shrinking
retirement portfolios, and uncertainties about affordable health
care are causing many pre-retirees to halt in their tracks (AARP,
2002). Can they afford to retire and cover the cost of unprecedented
longevity? And even if they can, do they want to? For many,
especially professionals, work provides a sense of identity and
self-worth, generates a ready-made circle of friends and
acquaintances, and supplies the funds to underwrite a comfortable
and familiar lifestyle. But what about the freedom to fill each day
as you please? Be your own boss?
Today’s 45-60 year-olds have few roles models as they confront a
vast array of issues, options and choices about life after work.
There are plenty of financial advisors and web site calculators to
help them do the math, but how do you calculate meaning, motivation,
and life satisfaction? And how do you communicate your dreams to
family and friends?
These are the questions with which people will grapple at workshops
entitled “Paths To A Creative Retirement"," to be
held April 23-25, and Sept 3-5, 2004, on the campus of the
University of North Carolina at Asheville. The North Carolina Center
for Creative Retirement (NCCCR), the university’s award winning,
lifelong learning, leadership and community service program,
sponsors the workshop.
The workshop builds on similar three-day seminars held in 2002 and
2003, when people from around the country came to Asheville, NC to
delve into “How to plan for a creative retirement.”
Through case studies, small group interaction, and lectures from
experts, participants evaluated whether and when to retire, how to
balance personal fulfillment with family and community obligations,
ways to renew intimacy and communication when retirement brings
added time together. In addition, they identified those values that
enable them to stay vital as they navigate the physical, mental and
spiritual challenges that come with age. In follow up interviews,
participants shared their views and next steps, reflecting how a new
generation is reinventing retirement.
Participants’ Views and Decisions
“I knew one thing for sure about retirement,” said Edwin McMullen,
66, a developer from Orlando who attended the workshop with his wife
Pam, an interior decorator. “I wasn’t going to do it the same way as
mom and dad. They flat out retired.” McMullen admired his parents
for their community service projects and he supports many charitable
causes. But the workshop convinced him of three things. “One, this
is a period in which you can recreate yourself. Two, I have some
great ideas for new types of housing developments which I want to
explore. And, three, meeting the 40 other people showed me, I’m not
the only odd dude out there who wants to continue to work but in new
ways.”
“That was one of the great things about the workshop, finding out
you weren’t alone,” echoed Judy Stonestreet, 56, of Farmington
Hills, MI, who attended the workshop with her husband Steve. The
recently retired executive secretary from GM said she welcomed the
camaraderie of fellow participants. “Going through case studies,
role-playing, and brain storming sessions, we discovered that other
people were as confused, excited, and uncertain as we were. That was
both comforting and inspiring,” said Stonestreet.
“The workshop put us in a great frame of mind,” added Steve, 63,
who just retired from GM where he was an engineering executive. “I
appreciated the array of facts and the recommendation that we share
our decision making process with family. We’ve already talked a lot
of the issues over with our kids.”
One immediate result for the Stonestreets came through discovering
that travel and learning were high on both their lists. “We picked
up a travel-learning brochure at the workshop and immediately
agreed, let’s use our new-found leisure time to take an educational
trip to China. It was fantastic.”
“I tried leisure for 18 months,” said Sandi Anderson, 57, a
psychotherapist. “My husband and I even moved to the retirement
mecca – Florida. I was burned out on my job and retirement seemed a
solution. But I felt this wasn’t the right move.”
For Anderson, the workshop confirmed her inclination: “I wanted to
go back to work, but in a new place and in a new way. After she got
home, Sandi sent out two resumes and received two offers. Sandi and
her husband Gary moved to Atlanta where she now works in a recovery
clinic as a family therapist. “The work environment is much better.
We serve mainly professionals. Also, I’m taking classes to get
certified in two sub-specialties of my profession,” Anderson added.
And what about Gary? “Well, he’s still searching for what to do.”
Retirement: A Complex Process
“Retirement is a complex process, not a single event,” said Ron
Manheimer, workshop co-leader and director of the Center for
Creative Retirement. “As participants discovered, there are many
decision to make and these, in turn, have consequences that are
sometimes hard to anticipate. Your financial plan is in order but
when you stop working you suddenly realize you don’t know what
you’re going to do with yourself. Or you decide you want to sell the
family homestead but the kids complain, ‘where will we celebrate
Thanksgiving?’ Too often, people either do not plan ahead or they
focus only on finances.”
“That was our problem,” said Cindy Thixton, 53, of suburban St.
Louis. “I’m a financial planner and Vic (age 57) is a human
resources director, so naturally we focused on financial security.
That’s important. But so is the emotional side. That’s what we
needed to talk about.” The Thixtons have given themselves the next
10 years to figure out which fulfilling activities they want their
financial plan to make possible.
“We recommend people take classes in subjects they think will
interest them, try out these projected future activities,” said
Manheimer. “It’s better than harboring a fantasy until you retire
and them discovering the reality doesn’t suit you.”
And what about the downturn in the stock market? “We’re not going
to wait for it to come back up,” said Ken Kopesky who, at 57, is a
vice-president at Minneapolis-based Medtronics where he has worked
for 31 years. “Time is precious. There are other things to enjoy in
life besides work.”
The Kopeskys plan on moving in retirement and have a house under
construction in a new residential community on Lake Oconee, east of
Atlanta. “It’s a little bigger than our long time family home,” said
Mary Ellen who just retired after 28 years with Medtronics where she
was a finance director. “We’ve got five adult children and we want
them to stay whenever they choose. Sometime in the future, we’ll
consider downsizing.”
The workshop provided participants a chance to envision possible
futures, and excellent company for trading ideas and sharing life
stories, said Manheimer, the author of several books and numerous
articles on midlife development and the changing nature of
retirement.
The Big Questions
According to Manheimer, the Asheville Center’s staff of experts and
several of their volunteer leaders who have successfully made the
transition, have structured the 2004 workshops around seven sets of
questions they believe every future retiree should consider:
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What is my image of retirement? Is it useful?
Accurate?
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When is it time to leave my job and do I want to
return to paid employment, possible in a second or third career?
What are the opportunities and constraints?
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How do I balance my dreams and goals with family and
societal responsibilities?
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Can the next step be truly revitalizing? What
obstacles stand in my way and how can I overcome them?
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How will I structure my time and coordinate my
schedule with my significant other(s)?
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Does my past pattern of dealing with change provide
me with a good model or do I need to consider other approaches?
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How do I plan for a changing scenario? What is the
first step in putting my plan into action?
“The workshop is intense,” said Manheimer, “after
all, we’re dealing with the fundamental meanings people give to
their lives. But we have a lot of fun, too. People tell us the
workshop is invigorating and helps to make this time of transition
an exciting, learning experience rather than one of anxiety about
making the wrong moves, or even of boredom from counting the days
until their retirement party.”
Manheimer emphasized that at the forthcoming workshop participants
will explore the need to have more than one plan as a hedge against
the major uncertainties that beset Americans. Despite these
unpredictable factors, Manheimer was upbeat. “How often do you get
to rethink what you want to do with your life? Maybe not since you
were just out of college. And think of the life experiences and
accumulated wisdom you bring to this choice point.”
For more information on the curriculum, dates, cost, faculty, and
accommodations for “Paths To A Creative Retirement,” visit
our website at
www.unca.edu/ncccr or call the Center for Creative Retirement at
828-251-6140.
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