There are more than seven million Canadians in their prime. I am one of them.
Almost a fifth of the nation's population is over 65. And another 20 per cent of Canadians are between 55 and 64 and approaching their prime. (The average age of a Canadian is 40.)
The prime generations are healthier than their grandparents and can expect to live well into our 80s or longer. Almost six per cent of Canadians are over 85. Statistics Canada says the number of Canadians aged 100 or older was 9,545 in the 2021 census.
People in their prime want to enjoy every minute of life they have left and to make every day count. If not wealthy, they want to be healthy and happy. In this article and future ones for Sudbury.com, I plan to write about how to have a satisfying second act.
More than 20 per cent of Canadians aged 55 to 59 are in semi- or full-retirement but the average retirement age is 64.6.
About six per cent of Canadians in their prime say they have no plans to stop working and a good number of seniors continue to work part-time into their 70s.
For those who plan to retire, a successful transition from the working world takes work.
Will you be ready for when the alarm goes off in the morning and you don't have to be anywhere? What are you going to do after you have ticked off all the "to do" things on your list?
When you have all the time in the world, what are you going to do with it?
Rona Maynard was editor of “Chatelaine” for more than a decade. She had a busy career with lots of appointments and social invitations. When she retired, she found many days long and unfulfilling.
“It is easy to stay inspired when you have lots of tangible evidence every day that you are inspiring people,” Maynard told “The National Post" recently.
“After I left, that was gone and I had to find inspiration myself, make it happen myself, look for wellsprings of satisfaction every day.”
She longed for her next big project. Then she got a dog and found the experiences of walking her rescue pet slowed her down and allowed her to observe the world around her.
Maynard found a new passion and wrote a book about it, "Starter Dog: My Path to Joy, Belonging and Loving This World."
In an interview with Healthing.ca, Maynard said, "I very much missed (work) colleagues. I did not miss editing a magazine, but I missed making something happen every day with a team. With a dog, I went out with a team of one. And I didn’t have to initiate things, I didn’t have to lead anything, things happened to me. I saw things and found things and marvelled at things.
"And I learned something that had escaped me until the advanced age of 65: that you create your mood with how you direct your attention."
Maynard calls retirement "the Discovery Years," a time to find new passions.
You may have a long list of lifelong hobbies, but others who have been busy with career and family commitments may not have had time until retirement.
Best not to fill the first week or first year of retirement with painting lessons, golf and exercise classes, and hours of volunteer work. Pick one or two and enjoy them. There will be time for other activities that will give you purpose.
The Parkside Centre on Durham Street is a hub of activities for people over the age of 50. Sign up for the centre's newsletter for information on activities such as dance classes, euchre, chess and bridge, and special events such as summer concerts. The centre also always needs volunteers.
Studies have shown that learning in later years can help people stay independent. Consider taking a university or college course. There are also some interesting free online learning opportunities you can enjoy without worrying about marks or completing assignments if you don't want to.
Coursera offers course in everything. Learn about Roman architecture or upgrade your computer skills. I studied the "History of the Rolling Stones" through the University of Rochester.
The University of Oxford also offers free online special interest courses.
Both Coursera and Oxford are legitimate and too-good-to-be-true. You don't need to provide a credit card to sign up for a course and no one will phone you with scam offerings.
Vicki Gilhula is a freelance writer. Prime is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
