Retirement is around the corner and you are concerned. How are you going to spend your time? Before you know it what you feared would happen happens. You were told your services are no longer needed. Now what?

Our society is so very oriented to youth that it is easy to overlook the advantage of age. Advantages you ask? It was easier when we were younger and did not hurt so much. When you were thirty, age seemed so far away but it eventually catches up to us. The changes in our body and body shape seem to accelerate in our forties and fifties while the list of medications and surgical procedures grows longer.

Making you feel even worse is your services are no longer needed. You cannot play bridge or golf or fish all day every day. By now you are starting to feel lonely. Some of your family members and friends are ill and some have died. Reminders of your mortality are not what you needed just now. Besides you have bigger worries such as will your money last your life?

Feeling this sense of separation from a previous active life gives you a better understanding about why so many seniors are taking anti depression medications. It seems like your value to others as well as your own self esteem have dropped off the map. Where are the challenges, the fun, and the involvement? Life does not have much of a shape anymore and it is depressing. It is also scary.This is the down side of getting to retirement. Change is frightening for everyone. Sometimes we focus so much on what we lost or stand to lose that we forget to consider all that we can gain.

There is another side, however a very different picture of just as many people who do not spend time mourning about what they lost but welcome what they have now. All systems, including your family and friends and yourself resist change. Midlife and beyond seems to be the time when we renegotiate our feelings of worth, our relationships at home and with our children who have moved away.

The fact is we are healthier and more alive than people our age just 20 years ago. Medical science has extended our life and our levels of energy. Most of us are a lot more sure of ourselves than we were when we were younger. If you are not sure, think back to your years in Junior High.Time has given us the ability to use our experiences to solve problems and make judgments. Wisdom is the word many use to describe this ability.

One of the most important things that we have learned is the gift of time. We were careless about it in our youth. Reckless about it in our teens. Then too busy for the next 30 years to not pay attention to it so we never did the things we always wanted to do. Retirement has once again given us the gift of time.

There are professionals and business owners who love what they do and plan to continue their work. However, they want to see more of their children and grandchildren live 600 miles away. They have changed their work schedule to give them the time to make those visits and maintain local family relationships and friendships. Employees who are fortunate to work for companies that appreciate their skills and willingly accommodate the changing lifestyles of seniors, work out a flex schedule with management.

It is difficult to accept that our energy level and physical abilities are declining. However, that does not mean we cannot do the things we want to do. Even tennis players and marathon runners are grouped according to their age. After all, a heavy weight wrestler does not compete with a light weight wrestler in college athletics. Neither do Class A and Class C high school football teams compete.

Make a list of the things you absolutely love to do. If money is not an issue, how would you spend your perfect day? What do you want your physical setting to be? Who are the people you want to see? The places you want to go? The activities you want to do? The pace at which you want to move? Are you seeking relaxation or excitement? Your answers will give you a good foundation for your thinking.

I invite you to learn more about working in retirement including how to promote your business or profession online and offline at http://FromRetirementtoCareerChangeGuide.com. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ruthan_Brodsky

  

 

 

 

 

New Seniors, those born between 1930 and 1945, are not the biggest users of many of the social networking venues. I did not spend much time connecting with others except through emails. But, I’m venturing out of my comfort zone and connecting in more ways. The payoff is gratifying.

Recently I celebrated my birthday and was a bit disappointed when only a smattering of cards dribbled in. There were several from my immediate family, mostly from the grandkids. A couple of friends sent me the usual “funny” you’re not getting better, you’re getting older greetings. Plus I got a few cards from distant relatives that are on the must exchange card list. That was it.

I left home earlier the morning of my birthday, not having time to check the email. When I got home later that day, I finally sat down at my computer. What I discovered was scores of emails with Facebook messages all wishing me happy birthday. Never before have I received so many acknowledgements on this special day.

Except for a few customized e-cards, the emails consisted of postings on my Facebook Wall saying happy birthday in one way or another. The nice thing is that once I linked to the person sending me the message, there was a photograph of them along with their personalized greeting. So it really was like feeling their presence via cyberspace.

The rest of the day was spent sending thank you comments back to those who provided me with those wonderful birthday greetings. That’s something I don’t do when someone mails me a card. Many of those responded to me and we ended up having a little Facebook exchange.

This activity spilled into the next day and beyond. Not only did all those birthday congrats come in, I heard from a number of people I don’t see or talk to on a regular basis. This process allowed me to reconnect with a number of them.

Interestingly, all but a couple of these Facebook postings were from folks under the age of 65. New Seniors did not embrace the social media as quickly as younger age groups. We were the last to get comfortable with the computer, last to go online and last to use email. However, the 65+ audience is now the fastest growing segment in all these areas.

If we continue to be true to form, we will incorporate social networks into our personal communications activities as well.

With the boomers turning 65 at the rate of one every ten seconds starting next year, New Seniors can be expected to be part of the social networking scene in growing numbers. After all, we have the time and are developing the skills to master all forms of social media. So there’s no reason why New Seniors miss out on any of the fun.

Don Potter, a Philadelphia native, was born in 1936 and is a 50 year veteran of the advertising agency business. Now living in Los Angeles, he has written two novels in retirement, frequently writes on marketing issues, and has a blog dedicated to pre-boomers (those born between 1930 and 1945). Read more articles for and about pre-boomers with thoughts, comments and opinions designed to spark thinking, foster discussion, and stimulate debate by logging on to http://www.pre-boomermusings.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Don_Potter

Facebook has seen a surge of 513% in sign-ups – by Seniors and over 55s!

These figures from the US, released by Nielsen, confirmed a trend that we’ve seen in recent years: That more seniors are becoming active on the Web. In fact, figures show that the number of older users of Facebook increased nearly tenfold in America last year, while university-age users declined by 55 per cent. (There have been rumors that these younger user groups are being alienated by their parents joining the service, and this data seems to prove it).

One of my favourite sites, Mashable, reports that “the rise of Facebook to number three on this list (of social network usage growth by over 55′s) from number 45 a year ago, is a huge sign of just how mainstream social networking has become. YouTube at number four is another confirmation of this trend”.

Australia, too, has seen a massive increase in seniors using Facebook, and social networks generally, in the last couple of years. Australian figures show that about one in five over the age of 55 is connecting through Facebook, with 550,000 logging in. Apparently the fastest growing demographic on Facebook is women over 55.
Nielsen noted a similar pattern with Internet usage, “Among people 65+, the growth of women in the last five years has outpaced the growth of men by 6 percentage points.” Marketers should stand up an take notice. The 65 and older online crowd in the United States totals 17.5 million – that’s 13% of the population. And this is a group that tends to have both more disposable income and leisure time than other demographics.

What’s the attraction for seniors? Most obviously, the ability to keep up to date with the lives of family and friends, especially grandchildren interstate and overseas. Not only that, access to the web keeps the mind active and focused, helping to alleviate boredom and depression.

However with this kind of uptake, it stands to reason that social media could become an as yet unseen source of interaction for people that are alone, isolated or socially inactive. A good case for providing all seniors with affordable internet access (and a Facebook account).

Deborah Lanyon is an online marketer with a background in media analysis and a passion for promoting the internet and social media as a valuable form of communication and interaction for seniors. Her Facebook page, Global Senior, provides “Fresh Ideas and Innovations for the Outwardly Mature”. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Deborah_Lanyon

There was a colossal rise in the birth rate after the Second World War. These babies were dubbed the Baby Boomers and they are the babies born between around 1946 and 1960. This means that the first Baby Boomers became pensioners in 2011 at the age of 65.

It should be noticed that when the first Baby Boomers came of age, they produced the changes in civil and human rights and discrimination associated with 1968. They also fashioned the Hippy Movement, Flower Power and the Sexual Revolution. So what will ensue when they become pensioners?

The Baby Boomer generation is the wealthiest generation ever, but they have never felt the drop in earnings, status, health and mobility associated with older age, so it is likely that there will be some sort of pensioners’ pressure group.

About 22% of the American population are Boomers, which means that there will be tens of millions of individuals retiring over the next ten years. This has several important consequences. The first one is for health care; the mass retirement could or almost certainly will put the health care system under massive strain.

The second one is employment. Because the Boomers’ generation is the largest sector of society, when they retire, there will be a shortage of labour. After all, if the Boomer generation is the biggest portion of society, then by definition the following generation must be smaller.

These figures are roughly the same for all Western countries and it almost certainly accounts for why there is a rush in Western countries to permit immigration. Firstly, immigrants will take up the slack in the workplace and second, their taxes will assist pay for all the old Boomers.

So, with any luck, neither the state finances nor the Boomers’ health will suffer, but what other effects might this mass retirement have? Well, there could easily be a huge increase in demand for retirement homes both in one’s native country and abroad. Baby boomers are prolific travellers and many may want to retire to warmer countries or warmer parts of their country.

The southern states, provinces or counties of Western countries in the northern hemisphere and warmer countries in general, like Thailand, Spain and Italy could see a boom in retirement housing. The construction industry might receive a much needed shot in the arm.

Most Western governments and many private construction firms already have plans and even dynamic projects to satisfy this need for retirement housing when it starts to kick in. If the Boomers make a mass exodus out of the cities into the countryside or to the seaside, it could free up millions of inner city residences and at the same time make plenty of construction work outside the cities. But not just that, millions of additional jobs will be created in support and service staff positions.

The aging of the Baby boomers could be just the boost that most failing Western economies require to get back on their feet after the banking crisis of 2008-2010. Let’s hope so.

Owen Jones, the writer of this piece writes on numerous subjects but is currently concerned with Baby Boomer Retirement. If you want to read more, please go over to our website entitled Retirement. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Owen_Jones

Someone sent me a joke a few years ago. Like so many jokes, it was grounded in truth. The joke was this:

Question: Why do grandparents and grandchildren get along so well?

Answer: They have a common enemy.

In case you are lucky enough not to know who the common enemy is, it is the in-between generation: the grandchildrens’ parents. Notwithstanding the popular image of doting grandparents jiggling happy toddlers on their laps while beaming parents look on, the relationship between grandparents, adult children and grandchildren can be fraught with tensions, stress and conflict.

Any pre-existing tensions between parents and their adult children will get played out in spades when grandchildren enter the picture. And as for the kiddies, at a very young age they learn how to exploit the situation. Children soon learn what to do if their grandparents overlook rules that their mommies and daddies enforce. Just as children become geniuses at pitting mommy against daddy wherever possible, they also learn to pit parents against grandparents.

Many years ago, I presented my parents with their first grandchild, leading to a challenging power struggle between the three generations. Today, a grandmother myself, I experience this dynamic from the opposite side of the fence. I am keenly aware that a false move will put me in the “grandparent doghouse.”

My friends are grandparents also, and I have watched more than one of them land in doo-doo by stepping on parental toes. I’ve also observed how wiser grandparents handle the situation. As my friend Joan put it, “I am sure I have offended them (the parents) far more than I might like to think. Mostly I try to mind my own business and not do anything they don’t.”

The way I see it, today’s young families are under considerable stress from many sources. This stress and sense of overwhelm can lead to health challenges, marital problems and sometimes even divorce.

As a grandparent, I may not be able reduce the amount of this stress – but I can refrain from causing more of it. After all, if I love my grandchildren, then it stands to reason that I want what’s best for them. It’s hard to see how contributing to disharmony in the family will be in the child’s best interests.

The following Grandparent Tips may pave the way to smoother relationships.

Grandparent Tip #1: Avoid Competitive Grandparenting

From time to time, I come across a grandparent who approaches the relationship as a competition between themselves and their adult children. The prize in the competition is the grandchildren’s love and affection. The goal of the game is not just to get the grandchild’s love, but to demonstrate that the grandchild loves you MORE than she loves her parents. This is relatively easy to do, given that parents are the “bad cops” tasked with maintaining discipline and reinforcing rules. The grandparents can slide easily into the “good cops” role”, closing their eyes to behaviors that the parents would strive to correct, or worse, encouraging them.

Competitive grandparenting can also occur between the two sets of grandparents. Who will be the “A” Team and who will be the “B” Team? This particular competition often involves one-upmanship in gift giving. While the grandchildren are likely to score big in terms of material things, you also have to ask what life lesson they’re learning when this occurs.

Either type of competitive grandparenting increases the stress and tension in the household. While temporarily “winning the grandparent competition” has its short-term psychological rewards, it is not in the best interests of the grandchildren or anyone else. In the long term, there are no winners in this game.

Grandparent Tip #2: Remember you had your Turn

Keep in mind that you had your turn at parenting children and now the torch is passed to a younger generation. It’s fine to be sensitive to the milestones in your grandchild’s life, but avoid usurping the parents’ right to acknowledge these milestones in their own way.

Many years ago, my well-meaning parents took my oldest child for his first haircut. My husband I knew nothing about this plan until the deed was done. To say we were annoyed would be an understatement. Not long ago, one of my friends got herself in the grandmother doghouse by doing exactly the same thing with her first grandchild. She (my friend) was both astounded and amused that her daughter and son-in-law were angry.

It may seem trivial – but it’s the sort of thing that builds resentment. A child’s first hair cut is an important milestone. It’s a decision and ritual that rightfully belongs to the parents. Interested grandparents might ask if they could be included in the haircut expedition, but most certainly should not take matters into their own hands.

The haircut is but one example of grandparents unthinkingly taking over the parenting role. When my oldest grandchild started school, I wanted to do something to mark the occasion. My first impulse was to buy a GIGANTIC box of art and school supplies along with a cute outfit for the first day of school. Thankfully, before I reached for my Visa card, I realized that shopping for school supplies and school clothing would be an important event for my son and daughter in law, and one that I should not hone in on. I bought a board game and books instead.

This brings us along to my third tip:

Grandparent Tip #3: Think Before You Buy

When I was a young mom, doting grandparents showered my son with enough cute outfits to supply an orphanage. Likewise, they bought enough toys, games, bicycles and other items to keep this same orphanage stocked for years to come.

Only a complete ingrate would complain about receiving such bounty, right? I never voiced my ambivalence about all of these gifts, judging myself for being unappreciative. However, not long ago, a young mom of today confided in me that she, as well as her circle of friends, wished the grandparents would cut back on the endless supply of kids’ clothing, toys and games.

Why? Several reasons. First, refer to Tip #2. You had your turn. Young parents want the fun of shopping for their children and picking out the cute outfits themselves. Similarly, young parents want to decide how much care they devote to looking after kid’s clothing. Most of them DON”T want the chore of caring for adorable but delicate fabrics that require special attention or worse, dry cleaning. I still remember the exquisitely cute outfit of red velvet and lace that my son received for his first birthday. Have you ever dressed a hyperactive 12 month old boy in velvet and lace? If so, you have a fairly good idea of how that worked out.

When it comes to buying toys, consider the amount of storage space available as well as the amount of hassle that the toy is likely to create for mom and dad. I remember, none too fondly, the electrical wood burning kit that my eight year old son received one Christmas. Our home had wood paneled walls. Let your imagination roam.

Also, keep in mind that today’s parents have their own ideas regarding the type of toys and activities that they deem appropriate and safe.

Excessive gift buying can get you in the grandparent doghouse for another reason. Refer to Tip # 1. You are likely to set up a competition between parent and grandparent. Grandparents may have more disposable income to spend than the young family – and this can create a situation where children see their grandparents as benevolent gift givers and the parents as stingy and withholding. This may be a “feel good” thing for grandparents, but certainly does not contribute to harmony within the family.

So how does a grandparent handle the gift giving and shopping situation? It’s all about communication and respect. Communicate with the parents and invite their input regarding the shopping decisions. Perhaps paying for swimming lessons, donating money to a savings plan, purchasing a membership in a children’s museum, or making personalized, hand made gifts would be a better approach. On the other hand, maybe you will find that your adult children are delighted to receive the toys and clothing – in which case, go for it!

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Remember when we actually wrote a letter to a friend and sent it using the postal service? Remember picking up the phone and calling up a friend or family member to chat? In the past, these were the traditional means of communication. As we graduated school, or moved to another location, we would promise friends that we would call or write often. How many of us have lost dear friends to being to busy to call or write? As we age, the list of special people in our lives that we have lost touch with grows. Social networking is becoming more popular for keeping connections with friends and relatives, no matter where in the world they are.

Setting up a Facebook account is a simple task. First go to Facebook.com. On the log in page there is also space to open a new account. Fill in the required information and click the “Sign Up” button at the bottom. Check your email for the verification notice. Confirm your account.

Now the good stuff. Terms you need to know when being active on Facebook:

Friend.On Facebook, a friend is someone in your contacts list. To be a friend, someone has to first become a contact.

Profile.Your profile is a collection of the personal information that you share on Facebook. This may or may not include, family members, past and present jobs, your location and contact information, interests and a place to see messages that friends have posted on your “wall”.

Wall.Your wall is where you communicate with your Facebook friends. It is important to know that all of your friends can see what is written on your wall. So don’t gossip about who Aunt Milly is fooling around with this week, she will see it if she is in your friends list! If a person on your list posts something you would not like others to see, you will find the ever popular “delete” option on every comment.

Status update.In Facebook, you can post your status. Your status can be anything from how you are feeling today, to a simple “good morning Facebook pals” that everyone will see.

Poke. It is more than ok to poke your friends on Facebook. Use this feature to start a conversation with a friend, or just let them know you are thinking about them.

News Feed.The news feed on your Facebook home page is a live stream of news from your friends. Only friends that are in your friends list will appear in your news feed.

Like. Almost every comment, photo, or page in Facebook has a “like” button. In face, the Facebook “like” button is showing up everywhere. See it on blogs, on products, and just about anything and anyone that has a page on Facebook, will have a “like” button. If you like a comment, product or photo, but don’t care to comment, just click the like button. Your friends will know that you looked and liked what you saw.

Chat.To chat on Facebook is to type a conversation or in the chat feature at the bottom right of your Facebook page. This is better for gossip. A more private form of conversation.

Facebook has become one of the best ways to connect and reconnect with friends and family. This is ideal for seniors. Home bound seniors can feel more connected with the world and continue enhancing their lives. Imagine finding your highschool sweetheart and reconnecting! Seeing pictures of your first grandchild hours after he or she is born, or their first day of school.

Kat Oakley Grandma F5MC Support Article Writer Blogger My vision is to have a steady income so that I can be a stay at home grandma. I welcome challenging subjects. I find researching a subject interesting. For me, article writing fosters life long learning. http://www.thegrandretirementplan.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com