Transitioning to Retirement: Be Ready for It!

From childhood to adulthood, I would often hear my parents discuss their upcoming retirement. Taking its cue from an advertisement, the phrase “Freedom 55” was popular at the time to depict the ideal in terms of retirement. People aspired to stop working at 55 and travel, play golf, spend time with family, and so on.

Yet, when the time came, I distinctly recall my father’s reluctance to leave the company for which he had worked so hard. He did not see how he could pass on 36 years of practice. He appeared to be looking for a specific successor who would allow him to leave contentedly.   

A happy retirement is more than just a financial matter

Admittedly, the years leading up to retirement can be challenging: decreased motivation, mounting stress, a search for meaning, insecurity, a need for recognition, etc. Retirement planning is frequently addressed in terms of monetary aspects, and little is said regarding the social and psychological needs that are bound up with it. While there is still a tendency to idealize retirement, the scope of this change is no less significant.

Many retirees are experiencing dissatisfaction. According to a 2005 Statistics Canada study, 20% of people aged 65 and over suffer from depression. According to Sylvie Lapierre, director of the Laboratoire de gérontologie de l’UQTR, it is common for people to experience depression after one, two, or five years of retirement due to a lack of success in realizing their retirement plans (Diotte, Bel âge). Therefore, as we approach this transition, broader retirement planning is important. We need to take stock of our lives by asking ourselves about our values, interests, motivations, strengths, and aspirations.

Today, retirement is no longer considered an end, but rather a process. Rather than seeing this new stage as avoidance, it should be seen as a continuous process. Many questions arise: What competencies and knowledge have I acquired during my years of work? What do I have to pass on to the next generation? What will my daily life be like in the next few years? And so forth. It is a matter of planning one’s departure from work, of making the most of these last years and of mapping out a path for the future.

In this context, several actions can be taken to facilitate your reflection. You can be accompanied by an expert, such as a guidance counsellor, in order to optimize this process. There are also some retirement planning courses available. For example, after seeing “experienced people who were leaving badly” in the federal public service, Diane Doyon came up with the idea of Legacy Circles (Jobboom). This is a group process that aims to develop what she defines as the ability to stay and the ability to leave. Support during the preparation for retirement, such as the Legacy Circle, allows the individual to clarify their needs and sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction in life. The goal of the process is to help the person to give meaning to their daily life and to get more satisfaction from it.

Irrespective of the means used, preparation for retirement is a process that aims to find balance for this new chapter in your life. Retirement is an opportunity to reassess and find meaning in life. 

A wealth of possibilities

Retirement brings with it a certain kind of freedom. You become the actor of your retirement, and the goal is to live an experience that mirrors your own. What is my retirement plan? Two people will respond very differently to this question. Part-time work, self-employment, volunteering, mentoring, family, there are as many ways to give meaning to your life as there are retirees!

For the first 10 years of their retirement, my parents were always engaged in projects that sustained them. In addition to taking care of her grandchildren, my mother had a penchant for giving back to the community by volunteering at a seniors’ centre. My father, apart from taking up painting, has always held a few clients as a financial planner. He also spent many years involved in the neighbourhood committee. Today, they have chosen to move closer to the city in order to get involved in new projects. My father announced to me that he was looking for a new part-time job.

The prospect of career development is still relevant to retirement. The days when workers were offered retirement at 55 are over. The labour participation rate of people 55 and older has increased significantly since the turn of the century. Factors have contributed to this increase. These include increased life expectancy, rising costs of living, a shortage of labour, and a focus on performance.

Nowadays, work is no longer exclusive to people who want to make up for lost income. It welcomes all those whose need for fulfillment and accomplishment is essential and a priority. However, once you reach retirement age, it is normal not to reenter the work force at the same pace and under the same conditions as before. To achieve a successful work-retirement balance, you must define what you want to offer and the working conditions that suit your current life. Then, you need to determine the sector of activity that will meet your needs.

Knowledge transfer 

From an organizational perspective, many companies appear to be unconcerned with preparing workers for the transition to retirement. When a transition period does occur, it is often short-lived. However, the generations that are leaving have accumulated years of experience and, consequently, many skills and competencies.

Passing on this expertise from generation to generation is important for the performance of the organization in today’s work environment. Moreover, the fact of having to leave a legacy provides motivation for the worker at the end of their career and will be stimulated by this transfer project. According to Maxime Chouinard, an organizational development consultant at HDO, the retiree can leave with part of the company’s competitive advantage (Tremblay, La Presse). Some learning must be passed on and cannot be done through training. The absence of a transition plan also has a negative impact on the next generation of employees who are under pressure to take over. In short, this transfer of knowledge is beneficial for the individual, the organization, and the next generation. It is an essential process that ensures the retention of organizational knowledge and the wealth of experience acquired.

Sharing knowledge requires a great deal of rigour and collaboration. It is therefore important, as a manager, to support resources by providing the tools and environment that are conducive to their success. The transfer must be carried out with a detailed plan and must be given sufficient time.

To conclude, unlike other countries where there is a mandatory retirement age, in Québec, this law was abolished in 1982. Each individual can now determine when they want to retire. Increased longevity and improved health status allow workers to see retirement as a new period of life. However, retirement is a major transition that cannot be improvised. That said, it is critical to take the necessary steps to prepare for it in order to have a harmonious transition period. Employers benefit from investing in the retirement preparation of their workers to gather their perspectives and knowledge. To remain competitive and mitigate negative demographic consequences, the process of preparing for retirement must be an integral part of an organizational approach.

 

Stéphanie Crites, C.O

Leader in Professional Development, Coach and Guidance Counselor at EPSI