When I started investigating the whole concept of second careers for boomers a couple of years ago, Marc Freedman had just written his book entitled “Encore”. He founded Civic Ventures and has created a community of energetic, motivated, and intentioned folks who are finding rewarding, meaningful ways to contribute to their communities in the second half of their lives.  

As I started talking to friends and acquaintances about my vision of helping others to find their passion in life, most had no idea that this was a concept that they could embrace in their own lives.  Fast forward just a few short years, and the Encore Career movement is catching on and the buzz is getting louder.  

Two recent columns in the NY Times by Nicholas Kristoff called Geezers Doing Good and another by Jane Brody on the health benefits of “doing work that matters”  have highlighted the increasing awareness of the endless possibilities that are available to those of us who are approaching retirement age but have no intention of retiring. 

Retirement is no longer just an extended vacation of travel, golf and bridge games.  The need for income for many, and the desire to do something meaningful for lots of others is fueling a whole new world of opportunity.  If you want to  learn more about what others are doing and to find ways to generate ideas about what you might do, check out the Encore web site. 

Now about this GEEZER thing.  That has always implied a grumpy old person to me, and I’m definitely not grumpy and not all that old.  On the other hand, I really don’t like the name BOOMER either.  Can someone please come up with a new name for us???    If you have a good suggestion, send it to me by commenting below.   

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