After retirement, do you know it all and have wisdom to boot?  Why wait, use them now!

People often retire.  On the surface it seems normal, but too many times it is only at that point that there is a consideration for what comes next.  Often what comes next is a thought to giving back that is past its time, we waited.

With retirement comes “giving back”, and that is an interesting phrase.  It implies that you have something (a skill, commodity, item, or otherwise) and that you want others to benefit .  You share your time physically or mentally, you share your goods or money, or you do it all in various combinations.  It is great to give back, don’t get me wrong, but how about recognizing what altruism gives back.  I’m not talking about warm fuzzies, I’m talking about change and impact.

You hear a lot of first time volunteers say “I had no idea!”.  The first exposure to a world of difference is often overwhelming and we run away having seen something that is so large we don’t even know where we would start or that it seems so overwhelming that no amount of giving would even make a dent.  That sudden person realization is one of the most important ‘feelings’ you will ever receive.  The explosion of exposure and the rush of chemicals to your brain that both excites and scares you at the same time.  The bust of colour as you process the stimulus for the first time.  The feelings that motivate you is what you get back, and they will drive you forward.

Why does this have to happen so late in one’s life?  Why do we not decide to have impact in all stages of our life, using the energy we had as youth to change the world (or just our corner)?  It often seems we forget that life can be fun and we see others having that fun but somehow not us.

You do not have to retire to give back.  Giving is not a time limited or defined situation.  You must however, commit to giving and in a form that is truly yours and not defined by others.  This is not a race or a competition. This is life, and we are all part of it.