Have you heard the phrase “encore career”?
The definition is still evolving, but for now, Wikipedia calls this “a term used to describe work in the second half of life that combines continued income, greater meaning and social impact. These are paid positions often in public interest fields such as education, the environment, health, government sector, social services and other nonprofits ... a substitute for retirement.”
I’d like to see the definition evolve further. As a career strategist, I tend to think of the encore stage of one’s work life more generically.
The overall concept of planning for a final stage of work makes a lot of sense to me. I think of it as a choice between “gearing up” or “ramping down,” depending on what one has already been doing. I’ve long noticed, for example, that women (and men) who delay career development to raise children early in their lives may be hitting their professional stride in their 50s or even 60s. For them, an encore career stage might be most satisfying if it involves a full serving of responsibility and leadership.
On the other hand, men and women who have been running at full throttle for three decades may yearn for a period of work that requires less of them, or at least uses a different skill set. It’s easy to imagine a ramping down for these folks as they prepare to ease out of the workforce.
Whether you find yourself working “post-retirement” from financial need, personal need or both, you’ll do better with some strategies in hand.
1. Start with what I call the three R’s of post-retirement planning: Refine your bucket list, review your finances and rebuild your skill set. When it comes to bucket lists, most people gain a keen awareness as they age of the things that matter most to them. You’ll want to keep your own goals top of mind as you decide the work that will best suit your later years. Likewise, the financial review is essential to understand how much income you need. And if you choose a new career, new skills will almost certainly be needed.
2. Reduce or eliminate your debt. By doing so, you will free yourself for a wider range of work, including volunteer positions.
3. Consider your housing. Should you downsize to free yourself from maintenance duties? Perhaps you just need to refinance to lower your monthly payments.
4. Decide your timeline.
5. Build skills and contacts.
6. Talk with a career counselor, preferably at the beginning of your process.
Amy Lindgren owns Prototype Career Service, a career consulting firm in St. Paul. She can be reached at alindgren@prototypecareerservice.com or at 626 Armstrong Ave., St. Paul, MN 55102.
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