Elderhood
When you hear the phrase “old age,” what does it bring to mind? Do you think of your aging grandparents? Recently, as we expected our first grandchild, we began throwing around names that we’d like to be “called” by them. All of a sudden, we felt old!
So again, what is considered old? Possibly the opposite of childhood? Elderhood? Do you conjure up images of those few short years just before your death? Certainly not now, in my mid-fifties!
What is Elderhood?
Author and physician Louise Aronson, along with geriatric specialist William H. Thomas, share their perspectives on this stage of life:
Louise Aronson is quoted as saying: “I define elderhood as one of the three main phases in life – what comes after childhood and adulthood. It captures the years that begin between ages 60-70 and continues until a person’s death. And if a person lives until the age of 100, then that means elderhood lasts almost half a century.” She goes on to state that, “because people don’t like hearing that it starts so young, they’ve pushed that to the extreme, whereby people think of ‘old’ as a debilitating phase that only last the very few short years right before death.”
William H. Thomas, M.D., an international authority on geriatric medicine, emphasizes the cultural impact of the baby boom generation: “When Shakespeare looked at the world, he saw a life with seven acts. Today, we view our life in three stages: childhood, adolescence and adulthood. About sixty years ago an enormous generation was born into American society and it was so massive and dense that really from the very beginning, this baby boom generation had the ability to bend our culture.”
How do we best prepare for our later years financially?
There are so many unknowns. Far more important than our death is the quality of the life years that precede them. We often joke with our clients that if you could give us your date of death, it would really firm up our future projections for you. We find that you need to manage that tension between living too much for today and/or saving too much for tomorrow. That “sweet spot” looks different for all of us. The key is to develop a plan beforehand.
The National Council on Aging published a helpful article, “14 Steps to Get Ready for Retirement” by Lyle Soloman:
- Determine how much you require for retirement days
- Assess your finances
- Form a budget for post-retirement time
- Use a retirement calculator
- Develop a plan beforehand
- Create an emergency fund before retirement
- Know how big an emergency fund you require for retirement
- Seek financial planning help from a pro
- Take advantage of your workplace retirement fund
- Revisit your insurance policies
- Wait a long time to claim Social Security benefits
- Manage your financial obligations
- Identify all the sources of retirement income
- Invest your money wisely
What if the phrase “the world is your oyster” applies not only to recent college graduates, but to those of us who are steadily headed toward Elderhood? The meaning behind it is that you can achieve anything you wish in life or go anywhere because you have the opportunity or ability to do so. No matter your current age, take some time to consider what you’d like your later years to look like. Our team at Stewardship Advisors is happy to help you effectively prepare for retirement, so you can enjoy your later years with peace of mind.
Going forward, this “Mimi” is embracing Betty Friedan’s famous words: “Aging is not ‘lost youth’ but a new stage of opportunity and strength.”
Schedule an introductory phone call at this link: Stewardship Advisors – Introductory Phone Call
Like this article? Check out our Personal Finance Archives where we’ve compiled helpful articles to help you plan for life’s transitions.
