The Spirit of Retirement: Creating a Life of Meaning and Personal Growth

by James A. Autry

Your retirement years should be the best of your life. Free from the burden of making a living, in front of you lies an opportunity for personal development and a time for spiritual growth. These are your years; it is up to you to embrace them and ensure that you enjoy an enriching journey.
The Spirit of Retirement is your guiding light to creating and sustaining the post-work life you have always envisioned. Bestselling author and retired Fortune 500 executive James A. Autry illuminates a fulfilling path of meaningful endeavors, healthful reflections, and positive outlooks that will help make these years your most treasured. This engaging book highlights many important aspects of your new life,
·Preparing for the transition
·Determining who you want to be for the rest of your life and how to get there
·Reconnecting with those you love, appreciating your roots, and reinvigorating friendships
·Allowing time to develop your inner self
·Plus many other valuable insights
Included are moving anecdotes from people whose retirement years are filled with beauty, deep meaning, and purpose. Their stories illustrate the good life and special time that retirement should be and what it can be for you when you follow the guidance and apply the principles presented in this book.

Genres: Nonfiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Poet, lecturer, and management consultant James A. Autry was born March 8, 1933, in Memphis, Tennessee, but he grew up in Benton County, Mississippi, and in 1955 received a B.A. degree in journalism from the University of Mississippi, where he was later named a Distinguished Alumnus and elected to the Alumni Hall of Fame. A former president of the Meredith Corporation’s Magazine Group, publisher of such magazines as Better Homes and Gardens, Ladies’ Home Journal, and Successful Farming, he took an early retirement in 1991 to focus more on his present career as speaker and management consultant.

Autry has published ten books, two of which are volumes of poetry. In 1991, the Kentucky Poetry Review published a special issue devoted to Autry’s poetry, and he received national prominence as one of the poets featured on Bill Moyers’ special series The Power of the Word on PBS.

He and his wife, Sally Pederson, live in Des Moines, Iowa.

Reviews

[Raymond Parish · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are introspective and drawn to journaling, you may find value in this guide to finding meaning in retirement.

[Douglas Lord · Rating 5 out of 5]

Autry 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 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 spiritcheerfully as that “last one-third of life that no longer has the restrictions of the first two-thirds.” Autry, a former Fortune 500 executive, champions the notion that living healthily, volunteering, and growing spiritually in retirement “can become a liberating path toward a life of opportunity and personal and spiritual growth.” An overarching focus on connecting with the people who love and need you, with nature, and with your inner self permeates his book. Offering heart and authoritative how-to advice, Autry’s book is recommended for public libraries.
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