Purpose and Power in Retirement: New Opportunities for Meaning and Significance

by Harold G. Koenig

Eighty million baby boomers are heading toward retirement. Some are retiring now, either out of choice or because they have been laid off. Others will work for a few more years until their retirement plans kick in, until they feel they can retire, or until they’re forced to retire. Whatever their age at retirement, they will have better health and live longer than their parents. And each of them will face these Do I want a reason to get up in the morning and be excited about the day ahead?
Do I still want to make a difference in the world?
They need a vision—a goal that takes into account their experience, wisdom, strengths, and limitations, and gives purpose to their lives. Dr. Harold G. Koenig, with expertise in the fields of geriatrics, mental health, and religion, explains that the notion of retirement was in fact a marketing tool developed in the post-World War II period. Continuing today, society’s image of retirement is based largely on myths, such things will get better when you retire—you’ll be able to do everything you wanted to but couldn’t when you worked. In fact, these beliefs can be harmful, leading to emotional issues, identity crises, and problems with physical health. Citing current scientific and medical research, Koenig illustrates how having a purpose motivates and energizes people in their retirement years. He presents a step-by-step guide to identifying a goal toward which they can strive. And he shows how striving for that goal in itself brings meaning, satisfaction, and a sense of reward to retirement years. "Finding purpose is more urgent than ever during the retirement years, when the search for purpose becomes one of the deepest of human longings," says Koenig. His Purpose and Power in Retirement is an invaluable resource for everyone heading toward retirement, and for anyone seeking meaning in life.

208 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2002

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Harold George Koenig

Reviews

[Douglas Lord · Rating 3 out of 5]

Koenig explores the spiritual and developmental aspects of retirement from a Christian perspective, noting that people underestimate how difficult it is to switch from the working world to "the land of no boss." A solid plan for retirement, [he claims], will provide happiness and a seamless transition from one's career. Far from being the end of one's life, retirement should instead be seen cheerfully as that "last one-third of life that no longer has the restrictions of the first two-thirds." Koenig (psychiatry and medicine, Duke Univ. Medical Ctr.) will appeal to eggheads. Well researched and packed with statistics and studies (and 286 end-notes!), his book observes that "baby boomers will be the healthiest, most physically active, best-educated group of retirees in history." In an academic tone, he encourages retirees to "make a meaningful difference for at least one other person" in the world. Yes, retirees have earned the right to relax, but while "recreation and a little self-indulgence are definitely part of the picture.... They are not at the center of the picture." ... Koenig writes more as a social scientist than a guru, and thus his book is more suitable for academic libraries. For the cut-and-dried crowd, try Lynn O'Shaughnessy's The Retirement Bible.

Find reviews of books for men at Books for Dudes, Books for Dudes, the online reader's advisory column for men from Library Journal. Copyright Library Journal.

[Wren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book about rejecting the liesure model of retirement in favor of finding one's vocation. Koenig frist traces the history of retirement and then presents research on the effects of retirement on the mind, body and spirit. He directly invites readers to adopt a vocation, a purpose, a divine call to find greater purpose than amusing oneself. He brings together a combination of evidence from science, economics, health care with quotes from religious leaders. It's an odd jumble of approaches, but it makes a clear argument: Turn off the TV, scale back on the golf and the bridge games and loan your wisdom and labor to others.