Your Retirement Profile Is
As Unique As You Are
Whether you know it or not, your retirement profile is as unique as you are. Just as the description that makes up your personal profile, such as age, height, weight, marital status, education and the scores of other descriptive characteristics that are part of who you are, your retirement profile is just as unique. The essence of who you are becomes a prologue to what your retirement will be. The exciting part is that you can change it and be anything you want and make it reflect your true self rather than the person people “think” you are. You’re the one in control.
All the things you look back on with wonder and appreciation can be amplified in this exciting part of your life. How about the roads not taken? The activities you wanted to explore or the skills you wished you had the time to develop can be revisited and enjoyed more fully. Life can be hectic and, when you reach the age where your working days are ending or have stopped altogether, some portions can seem like a blur. The pressure to make money and support a family may have forced you to put a little piece of who you are on hold. But remember, you never lost that piece. It’s now a part of who you are, or your retirement profile, as I like to call it. We all approach this time of life with questions of “what if?” What if I had made a different decision at this point in my life or pursued a totally different career altogether?. I’m not suggesting that retirement is a time to wallow in the past. Far from it!
Your Retirement Profile Will Lead To A New Future
Retirement is a time to explore all the options – all the things you thought about doing. Your retirement profile contains many things you wished you had done but, for one reason or another, just couldn’t make it work at that particular point in time. Well, now is the time!
Were you a science "nerd" who could never afford college to get the degree needed to explore the worlds you were intrigued by? Did a chemistry set at a young age give you endless hours of fascination? Did a friend's telescope start you to wonder about what outer space is like? Or did the stories of Pirate's Treasure get your mind racing about a diving expedition off the Florida Coast. You can put any of these dreams back into action and make them a reality in retirement. You don't have to keep living the life you've been living the past year. You can change it any time to align it better with your retirement profile - those little memories that you thought had been lost forever. And even if you don't go out and buy a scuba tank to look for that sunken ship, you can at least look around on YouTube to watch the exploits of people who have done it. There are a few guide tour companies that can specialize in almost anything you can imagine.
Do you know how many retirees start bands because that was their passion in their youth? Or how many start their own art studios because painting or sculpting or quilting was something they always wanted to try? Do you know how many retirees have fallen in love with cooking and trying new recipes because of the recent pandemic? Some have found a new love in the kitchen and I can tell you from experience, when you cook a meal that is as good as you get in the finest restaurants, it’s a great sense of accomplishment. You also develop more of an appreciation of how much work it is and why restaurant prices are what they are. But it can also give you the desire to learn more.
Our increased time in the kitchen turned into a desire for fresh ingredients so we started growing our own herbs. When my wife was looking around for a plantstand to hold the basil, tarragon and other spices, she thought about her ongoing curiosity about woodworking because every plantstand she saw brought the same reaction: “I can make that!” So, she did! She has since acquired other tools and is very serious about her new hobby. Woodworking is a very popular hobby among retirees, and you can find some great instructional tutorials and courses out there to get you started.
Everyone’s dreams and talents, desired skills and longed for experiences make up their own unique retirement profile. It’s time to explore your retirement profile more fully. Take the blinders off and assume anything is possible and set aside some time to make a list of things you’d like to do. Don’t worry about money at this point. Don’t let that be an obstacle. As we cover elsewhere in this website, there are many ways to supplement your income and, besides, many retirees have turned their passions into an extra income in the process of living out their dream. Whether it's by starting a website or writing a book, there are ways to attract extra money into your life. That’s the best of all worlds: doing what you love and making extra money at it at the same time. It’s happening every day for some people. Turn your love of cooking into a little food truck. Take your love of cars and learn how to make extra money with car restoration. There are people who are just like you who are changing their lives into something exciting based on a dream they once had. Why can’t one of those people be you? Create your own retirement profile and take the time to explore your past, take inventory of your desires and talents, and build a future that is filled with passion and excitement every day. It’s time to Enjoy Retired Life!
Thanks for visiting. If you like what you see here, please tell your friends. If you haven’t done so already, be sure you take The Self Discovery Challenge for Retirement! It’s designed to help you make the most of this wonderful time of your life.
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