Don't let age slow you down
While some may associate retirement or impending retirement with slowing down, others are using the change of pace to do something new.
Whether it is going back to university, taking a course at community college or taking on a new career, more and more of the over fifties are upskilling and finding the change rejuvenating.
Get busy and start a business
Melbourne based Mary Harnan was 50 when she made the monumental decision to resign from the job she had been doing for 34 years and start her own business, helping people to reorganise their homes. “The first few years were really tough,” she says. “But now I'm so happy. I wish that I had done it years ago.”
Now that business is going well Mary plans to tick of another of her life’s ambitions and put pen to paper to write her first book. “It’s something that I have always wanted to do,” she says.
A career change
Similarly, 51 year old Sydney-sider John Milham changed the direction of his career path from corporate IT Manager to Life Coach. Having lost his wife to cancer, John took some time out to re-evaluate.
After deciding to embark on a new career in life caching, John took a course at the Life Coaching College to learn the new skills he needed. It is a step that he is very proud of. “I am really passionate about coaching,” he says. “It is incredibly challenging and very worthwhile.”
Not only has John inspired himself, he now has the opportunity to do the same for others.
Go back to school
You don’t need to change your career in order to learn a new skill. There are community colleges all over the country offering a variety of fun and engaging learning experiences from languages to gardening. And if upskilling doesn’t appeal then another way to expand your horizons is to volunteer with a charity or not for profit organisation.
If like Mary and John you are ready for a change of scene then remember that there is no need to let age slow you down. Why not follow their example and think about taking the plunge?
Republished with permission of Wyza.com.au.