Here is the full text and summary of Dr. Riley Moynes’ talk titled “The 4 Phases of Retirement” at TEDxSurrey conference. In this talk, Dr. Riley discusses the four phases of retirement, and emphasizes the importance of maintaining a meaningful lifestyle throughout the different stages.
Listen to the audio version here:
TRANSCRIPT:
Everyone says you have to get ready to retire financially. And, of course, you do. But what they don’t tell you is that you also have to get ready psychologically. Who knew?
But it’s important for a couple of reasons. First, 10,000 North Americans will retire today and every day for the next 10 to 15 years. This is a retirement tsunami. And when these folks come crashing onto the beach, a lot of them are going to feel like fish out of water without a clue as to what to expect.
Secondly, it’s important because there is a very good chance that you will live one-third of your life in retirement. So it’s important that you have a heads-up to the fact that there will be significant psychological changes and challenges that come with it.
I belong to a walking group that meets early three mornings a week. Our primary goal is to put 10,000 steps on our Fitbits, and then we go for coffee and cinnamon buns, more importantly.
So as we walk, we’ve gotten in the habit of choosing a topic for discussion. And one day the topic was, how do you squeeze all the juice out of retirement? How’s that for seven o’clock in the morning? So we walk and we talk, and the next day we go on to the next topic, but the question stayed with me because I was really having some challenges with retirement.
I was busy enough, but I really didn’t feel that I was doing very much that was significant or important. I was really struggling. I thought I had a pretty good idea of what success looked like in a working career, but when it came to retirement, it was fuzzier for me.
So I decided to dig deeper, and what I discovered was that much of the material on retirement focuses on the financial and or the estate side of things, and of course they’re both important, but just not what I was looking for.
So I interviewed dozens and dozens of retirees, and I asked them the question, how do you squeeze all the juice out of retirement? What I discovered was that there is a framework that can help make sense of it all, and that’s what I want to share with you today.
You see, there are four distinct phases that most of us move through in retirement, and as you’ll see, it’s not always a smooth ride. In the next few minutes, you’ll recognize which phase you’re in if you’re retired, and if you’re not, you’ll have a better idea of what to expect when that time comes.
And best of all, you’ll know that there is a phase four, the most gratifying, satisfying of the four phases, and that’s where you can squeeze all the juice out of retirement. Phase one is the vacation phase, and that’s just what it’s like. You wake up when you want, you do what you want all day, and the best part is that there is no set routine. For most people, phase one represents their view of an ideal retirement, relaxing, fun in the sun, freedom, baby!
And for most folks, phase one lasts for about a year or so, and then, strangely, it begins to lose its luster. We begin to feel a bit bored. We actually miss our routine. Something in us seems to need one, and we ask ourselves, is that all there is to retirement?
Now, when these thoughts and feelings start to bubble up, you have already moved into phase two. Phase two is when we feel loss, and we feel lost. Phase two is when we lose the big five, significant losses, all associated with retirement. We lose that routine. We lose a sense of identity. We lose many of the relationships that we had established at work. We lose a sense of purpose, and for some people, there is a loss of power.
Now, we don’t see these things coming. We didn’t see these losses coming, and because they happen all at once, it’s like poof, gone. It’s traumatic.
Phase two is also when we come face to face with the three Ds: divorce, depression, and decline, both physical and mental. The result of all of this is that we can feel like we’ve been hit by a bus. You see, before we can appreciate and enjoy some of the positive aspects associated with phase three and four, you are going to, in phase two, feel fear, anxiety, and quite even depression. That’s just the way it is. So, buckle up. Get ready.
Fortunately, at some point, most of us say to ourselves, hey, I can’t go on like this. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life, perhaps 30 years, feeling like this. And when we do, we’ve turned a corner to phase three.
Phase three is a time of trial and error. In phase three, we ask ourselves, how can I make my life meaningful again? How can I contribute? The answer, often, is to do things that you love to do and do really well.
But phase three can also deliver some disappointment and failure. For example, I spent a couple of years serving on a condo board until I finally got tired of being yelled at. You see, one year, the board decided that we were going to plant daffodils rather than the traditional daisies. And we got yelled at. Go figure.
I thought about law school, thinking, perhaps, of becoming a paralegal, and then I completed a program on dispute resolution. It all went nowhere. I love to write, so I created a program called Getting Started on Your Memoirs.
That program has met with limited success.
It’s been a rocky road for me, too, and I told you to buckle up. Now, I know all this can sound bad, but it’s really important to keep trying and experimenting with different activities that’ll make you want to get up in the morning again, because if you don’t, there’s a real good chance of slipping back into phase two, feeling like you’ve been hit by a bus, and that is not a happy prospect.
Not everyone breaks through to phase four, but those who do are some of the happiest people I have ever met. Phase four is a time to reinvent and rewire. But phase four involves answering some tough questions, too, like, what’s the purpose here? What’s my mission? How can I squeeze all the juice out of retirement?
You see, it’s important that we find activities that are meaningful to us and that give us a sense of accomplishment. And my experience is that it almost always involves service to others. Maybe it’s helping a charity that you care about. Maybe you’ll be like the old coots. Yeah, these folks took a booth in the local farmers market and were prepared to give their advice based on their vast years of experience to anyone who came by.
So one of their first visitors was a kid who wanted help with his math homework on his tablet. They did the best they could. Or maybe you’ll be like my friend Bill. I met Bill a few years ago in a 55-plus activity group. In the summer we golf together and walk together and bicycle together, and in the winter we curl.
But Bill had this idea that we should exercise our brains as well. He believed that there was a tremendous pool of expertise and experience in our group. And so he approached a number of folks and asked if they would volunteer to teach some of the things that they love to do to others. And almost invariably they agreed.
Bill himself taught two sessions, one on iPads and one on iPhones, because we were smart enough to know that a number of our members had been given these things as gifts at Christmas by their children and that they barely knew how to turn them on.
The first year we offered nine programs and there were 200 folks signed up. The next year that number expanded to 45 programs with over 700 folks participating. And the following year we offered over 90 programs and had 2,100 registrations.
That was Bill. Our members taught us to play bridge and Mahjong. They taught us to paint. They taught us to repair our bicycles. We tutored and mentored local school kids. We set up English as a second language programs for newcomers. We had book clubs. We had film clubs. We even had a few golf clubs. It was exhausting but exhilarating. That’s what’s possible in phase four.
And do you remember the five losses that we talked about in phase two? Loss of our routine and identity and relationships and purpose and power? In phase four these are all recovered. It is magic to see. Magic.
So I urge you to enjoy your vacation in phase one. Be prepared for the losses in phase two. Experiment and try as many different things as you can in phase three. And squeeze all the juice out of retirement in phase four.
Dr. Riley Moynes, in his talk on “The 4 Phases of Retirement,” highlights the psychological aspects of retirement that often go overlooked, emphasizing the need to prepare for the journey beyond just financial readiness. He identifies four distinct phases of retirement and offers valuable insights into each phase:
1. Phase One: The Vacation Phase
In this initial phase, retirees enjoy newfound freedom, relaxation, and the absence of a structured routine.
It represents the idealized view of retirement, where individuals wake up at their leisure and engage in activities they desire.
Phase one typically lasts for about a year, but it can lose its appeal as retirees begin to miss routine and question the depth of their retirement experience.
2. Phase Two: Loss and Challenge
Phase two is characterized by significant losses associated with retirement, often experienced suddenly and traumatically.
These losses include the routine, a sense of identity, work-related relationships, a sense of purpose, and, for some, a sense of power.
Individuals in this phase may grapple with feelings of fear, anxiety, depression, and even face challenges like divorce, depression, and physical or mental decline.
3. Phase Three: Trial and Error
In phase three, retirees embark on a journey to rediscover meaning and purpose in their lives.
They explore various activities that align with their passions and skills, often through trial and error.
Despite facing disappointments and failures, this phase encourages retirees to continue experimenting with different activities to regain a sense of purpose and fulfillment.
4. Phase Four: Reinvention and Rewiring
Phase four represents the most gratifying and satisfying stage of retirement.
Retirees in this phase find answers to essential questions, such as their life’s purpose and mission.
They engage in activities that are meaningful and provide a sense of accomplishment, often involving service to others.
Relationships, routine, identity, purpose, and power, which were lost in phase two, are typically recovered, leading to a magical transformation in retirees’ lives.
Dr. Moynes urges retirees to embrace their vacation in phase one, be prepared for the losses and challenges in phase two, experiment and explore in phase three, and strive to squeeze all the juice out of retirement in phase four. He highlights the potential for personal growth, fulfillment, and the recovery of lost aspects of life in retirement’s later stages, emphasizing the importance of perseverance and adaptability.
In conclusion, Dr. Riley Moynes’ talk provides valuable insights into the psychological journey of retirement, offering a framework to understand and navigate the four phases. By recognizing and preparing for the challenges and opportunities in each phase, retirees can make the most of their retirement years and find a sense of purpose, satisfaction, and fulfillment in the later stages of their lives.
