At retirement, it’s only natural to reflect on what you’ve achieved in your career. Your work has been a major part of your identity and how others see you too. A big question many women have is how to build a retirement that replaces the sense of achievement you had during your career. I’ve faced this question myself. Here’s what I’ve learned: you need to redefine success for retirement in a way that’s completely different from what it meant during your career.
What Women Really Want in Retirement
A few years ago, I surveyed women approaching retirement about how they wanted to feel. They told me they wanted to feel energetic, stimulated, contributing and above all, fulfilled. A study by MIT AgeLab revealed that women envision their ideal retirement as a time to focus on themselves, be happy, and feel fulfilled.
Fulfillment comes from finding satisfaction in activities that are meaningful to you. Retirement is about shifting your mindset from meeting others’ expectations, especially during your career, to focusing on activities that matter to you and are personally rewarding.
Fulfillment is the Foundation
Fulfillment grows when you engage in activities that reflect your values, purpose and passions. Psychology confirms that people who have a purpose and participate in engaging activities don’t just get by – they thrive. So, you want to spend your time in ways that feel rewarding and satisfying to you.
Focusing on what matters is the foundation for a fulfilling new chapter. But that intention won’t be enough – you need direction. That’s where accomplishment comes in. If fulfillment is the foundation, accomplishment is the path.
Accomplishment is the Path
During your career, success was measured by achievement, including meeting expectations and delivering results. But the path forward can be uncertain when that’s been your primary measure of success. Here’s how one woman in my retirement program described this predicament:
“I need to say goodbye to the corporate world where I was valued by my title. I want to adjust my priorities and focus more on myself. But I still want to contribute. Now I need a new yardstick to measure my progress.”
On a cautionary note, if you carry an achievement mindset into retirement, it can become a trap. You may feel like you’re always striving but never arriving.
Satisfaction in retirement comes from defining success on your own terms rather than letting others define it for you. Instead of chasing achievement, focus on accomplishments. Your sense of accomplishment comes from the the satisfaction of making progress in activities that are meaningful to you.
Accomplishments also involve taking action , but now the focus is on your experience. It’s about the effort, skills and persistence you use to see something through. More than checking off a goal or seeking recognition from others, a sense of accomplishment comes from the progress you make along the way.
Think of it like a bucket list trip: if you only focus on reaching your final destination, you’ll miss incredible places and memorable moments along the way.
When you prioritize a sense of accomplishment, retirement isn’t about results. Instead, it’s about making progress in what matters to you and finding fulfillment along the way.
Why Accomplishments are Key to a Fulfilling Retirement
Here are 3 reasons prioritizing a sense of accomplishment leads to a fulfilling retirement.
1. Accomplishments Keep You Motivated
Engaging in meaningful activities strengthen your purpose. You feel that you’re contributing to something greater than yourself. This fuels your motivation to carry on.
2. Accomplishments Open New Doors
Paying attention to what excites and engages you can reveal passions you set aside during your career, or discover new ones you never knew before. This awareness usually sparks fresh ideas to expand your vision of what could be next. This is good news because this means you don’t need to have a fully formed plan for your retirement to get started.
3. Accomplishments Boost Your Well-Being
Recognizing progress builds you sense of mastery and strengthens your self-esteem. Feeling deep satisfaction with what you’re doing promotes a more positive outlook on life.
How to Have a Successful Retirement: Essential Advice
You need to redefine success in retirement in a way that’s completely different from what it meant during your career. The keys to a successful retirement are to focus on what makes you personally feel fulfilled and your sense of accomplishment. This paves the way for a modern retirement – where you live life on your own terms and thrive.
Interested in a fulfilling next chapter? Find out how we can work together here.
