Is the word 'retirement' now redundant?

My late father-in-law, Jim, retired at 60 and spent the next 38 years pottering happily — gardening, grand-parenting and living life at a gentler pace. He represented the end of an era.

For most people leaving work in their 50s or 60s today, the old model of work → stop → leisure no longer fits. Many don’t want to retire — and most simply can’t afford to fund a life-stage that could last 40 years.

Welcome to the age of ‘the 100-year life’, the subject of a fascinating book by London Business School academics Lynda Gratton and Andrew Scott. We’re living longer than ever, which means careers and finances must evolve too.

At 50, most of us are still in work — 86% of men and 80% of women (IFS) — but participation drops sharply in our 60s. And only 9% of those aged 50-54 who’ve left work since the pandemic described it as “retirement” (ONS).

Careers are no longer straight lines ending in a full-stop. They’re multi-stage, flexible, often reinvented mid-way, and of course, often a lot longer.

These transitions we face during our 50s and 60s can be challenging. On the one hand we can be faced with helping with grandchildren, whilst at the same time caring for elderly parents.

If at the age of fifty we thought we had it all sorted, all this can come as a bit of a shock.

It’s not all negative of course. Our 50s and 60s can offer up new careers, new interests, new friends and new experiences.

If it all seems a little overwhelming, please get in touch with me at www.staycuriouscoaching.com where I can help you navigate all the opportunities and challenges you face once you leave your full-time career.

#midlife #50+ #career transition #redundancy at 50