Five Wise Words For Midlife

Hello friends, and welcome to Notes from the Road! Glad you're along for the ride. Each week, you'll get news, advice, tools, and inspiration to design your “years beyond careers,” whether you're traveling around the world or blazing a trail in your own backyard. In this issue:

• Five wise words to lead you through midlife.

• What you should do for National Retirement Security month.

• The Weekly Roundup.

• A trip on the Ticonderoga Ferry.

• Henry Wadsworth Longfellow on aging.

Let’s get started!

“It is what it is.”

This is the closing statement of three entirely separate conversations I’ve had this week with friends.

What is it about this phrase? Why do so many of us land on this as our defining strategy for navigating midlife?

Maybe it’s because so many of our challenges here in midlife are intractable.

That’s what we’re dealing with at this stage of the game. Physical ailments. Aging parents. Sick partners. Adult children making their way in the world. Almost impossible to control, slightly easier to deal with.

It’s entirely possible that we never really had control. But we could actively deny it by hurling raw energy, enthusiasm, and optimism at whatever presented itself. (Don’t ask me how I know this).

I don’t know about you but I’m not doing much hurling these days. Chasing control is a fool’s errand. It is, indeed, what it is.

But now what?

At this stage of the game, it’s about letting go. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. As creatures of midlife, we’re uniquely suited to the intractable. What do we know at this age? A lot! We rarely celebrate it, and we should.

We’re creative.

We’re calm.

We’re resilient.

For many of us, these years bring a clarity that we may not have been able to access before. Chances are that from this place we’ve seen some variation of whatever now presents itself, have navigated it to its rocky shore, and have lived to tell the tale. We can see the long game now, and we can be present with the present.

It is what it is. And that’s okay.

Your Plan for National Retirement Security Month

October is National Retirement Security Month! Congress came up with this idea in 2021 to raise public awareness of the financial elements of retirement planning.

Here’s what you should do:

Start thinking about the non-financial elements of retirement planning.

Why?

Because we have a lot of blind spots about what lies ahead. Based upon a recent survey of retirees done by the Retirement Coaches Association,

• A whopping 91% of retirees surveyed said that “Having specific plans and goals for everyday life would have been helpful.”

• 76% of retirees have seen someone struggle with the transition to retirement.

• The top three reasons for struggling in retirement shared by retirees are: loss of identity (53%), lack of a daily routine (32%), and having few friends (24%).

In other words, it’s truly not just about the money.

If you want to start thinking about this, start with this simple exercise:

1. Imagine your last day of work was Friday. Today is the first Monday of your retirement. Many of your friends, family, and neighbors are still working and have left for the day. What’s your plan?

2. Now it’s Monday night. How did you feel about the day? What was hard? What was easy? What was fun?

3. Now it’s Tuesday morning. What’s your plan for today through Friday?

4. Last, what’s your plan for the month? Think about how each month will look to you through the lens of retirement. Will you travel certain months to see family, or follow good weather?

This is just a start. You can create your own questions too, to help you focus on what you’re excited about or what’s worrying you. This could be a good time to pull out one of those blank journals you bought with great hopes and dreams of daily journaling. 😂😏😉

Celebrate National Retirement Security month by subscribing to this newsletter!

The Weekly Roundup

Worth your time to watch, read, and listen.

🎞️ Life Lessons From 100-Year Olds. Delightful. That is all I have to say. (13 min.)

🔊 Crow’s Feet Podcast: Don’t Sweat It! Staying Physically Fit Doesn’t Have to Be Painful or Unpleasant. Okay hear me out: the introduction is a little awkward. Hang in there! Great conversation about staying fit without being miserable, and keeping a growth mindset. (20 min.)

📰 The Retirement Challenge that Nobody Talks About. Spoiler alert: it’s staying connected. Research from Harvard backs this up. (3 min.)

🎞️ Bonus just for fun: Autumn Rainy Day Witch Coffee Shop. Autumn is here! Put this on the laptop or TV and enjoy imagining that you are hanging with the (offscreen) good(?) witches (who are also baristas? I dunno) in this lovely cozy coffeeshop. (8 hours).

🌟💡🌟Anything that you’d like us to share in the Weekly Roundup? Any burning topics you’d like us to write about? Let us know.

Just imagine how much fun it would be to read this every 1-2 weeks!

🍂 PS: We’re trying to spread the word about thriving in midlife and retirement! If you know anyone who might enjoy this, we’d greatly appreciate if you’d share this newsletter. Thanks for reading. 🍂