This last week I happened to find and listen to an online interview of a woman named Karen Sands who calls herself a positive aging futurist. While I’ve never really thought of myself as a one, and I’m guessing you haven’t either, she made a convincing argument for why we should all at least think about it. Why? Because as I’ve written about before, and she confirmed in her own way, if we want to know where we are headed in life, having a clear destination is critical. That doesn’t mean you can’t adjust or change as life unfolds. But it does offer a target that will likely include a future we want to experience.
First let’s define what a futurist is and why we might want to become one. According to Sands, a futurist combines insights and foresight in order to predict the years to come for ourselves, our families and our world. A “professional” futurist studies trends, data and possibilities concerning different topics and then imagines and future-casts possible alternate paths forward—usually for a business or organization. An “amateur” or everyday futurist does the same thing, except for their own lives. The goal? To create and then design a future for who we want to be, and what we hope to experience, as time goes by. Can’t you see why this could be helpful?
I personally believe we are the co-creators or the designers of our future. Another way of saying that is “you get to make it up.” Again, I realize we all have different circumstances and we can’t change where or when we were born. I can’t change the color of my skin or any other number of aspects to my life. But I, and think we all can, alter and effect the details of what comes next in our lives. Harder for some of us? Absolutely! But even with that said, we each have more ability to future-cast what comes next than we normally consider. And as Sands says, by combining our particular insights with foresight, we can plan where we want to aim.
While I think the ability to be an everyday futurist is particularly important at every stage of our lives, it may be even more essential as we get older. I say that because I also happened to read an article by a man named Ken Dychtwald. Dychtwald, who is an educator, author, psychologist, and aging expert firmly believes that we must rethink and redefine what “old age” and retirement means in the 21st Century.
Dychtwald points out what many of us have discovered, “People don’t usually consider themselves old at age 65.” In fact, evidence now shows that most of us are living far longer. However, as Dychtwald claims, even though the vast majority of people 62-75 years are adamant that they don’t consider themselves old, if you mention limiting or delaying benefits that were set up for old people years ago—no one is in favor of that! I’m the same. I’m very happy that I will begin Medicare next year and will claim Social Security a year and two months later.
So, then what? If at age 65 most of us can still reasonably expect to live another 20 years, plus or minus a few, what is the purpose of all that living? What is the “goal” of a longer life? Surely it isn’t to just add on more years? Dychtwald says, “Few people would say, ‘If I could live longer, what I’d really like is to be old for twice as long.’” Unfortunately, that is what many of us have just slid into experiencing. He contends that while we have mostly eliminated the majority of health challenges and diseases that shorten the lives of our ancestors, our current healthcare system is “woefully inept at preventing or treating the chronic health problems that arise in later life.” In other words, we might be living longer but at more advanced ages we are dealing with chronic and debilitating conditions like arthritis, Alzheimer’s, heart issues, diabetes, etc.etc. that clearly make our longer years less desirable than before. We might have quantity (long lives) but it doesn’t always include quality. Until we address that reality and face that problem earlier than when we find ourselves in the middle of it, it will likely grow and continue. So no, just adding more years to an already long life is not the “future” most of us want to forecast.
So what does Dychtwald recommend? He obviously has a lot of suggestions, but a few that stood out for me are:
- We must come up with a new map for aging—a new plan for older lives. If most of us have 20+ more years once we hit our 60s, then what do we hope to be and experience with the gift of that time? Dychtwald is convinced we have far too much wisdom and creativity to spend our futures merely entertaining ourselves or watching enormous amounts of television.
- Make staying as physically healthy as possible a goal at all ages. Instead of believing that medicine will save us and keep us alive until we are 90, let’s realize that health is a partnership that starts the moment we are born. We are hugely responsible for our own health, and we simply can’t wait to participate in it until we get sick.
- Make staying financially healthy, and as prepared as possible, another goal at all ages. Social Security was set up in a time that no longer exists. While it was meant to supplement income for those who really needed it at old age, it has now become what many people expect and rely on to support themselves as they age far beyond original projections. Instead, by learning to live within our means, and monitoring our spending to fit our circumstances while younger, we will be far better prepared to stay fiscally healthy at older ages.
- Use our extra years to renew and reinvent ourselves and try things we either were afraid to do when we were younger, didn’t know how to manage, or didn’t have the freedom to pursue.
- Plan to continue working or participating in life far longer than was traditional 50 years ago. No that doesn’t mean grinding it out at work we don’t like just to bring in a few bucks. What it does mean is to explore new passions, stay involved, keep learning and growing, stay connected with others and share who we are with others. Dychtwald encourages us to develop our “human potential rather than just sitting in the rocking chair and watching TV.”
- Remember we are part of a continuum of life—in other words, we are all in this together. While it might be tempting to only support and encourage immediate family members, everyone in generations younger than us will be part of our co-created future. In other words, if we are envisioning a certain type of world in the days ahead, wouldn’t it be nice for all people to have enough food to eat, water to drink, air to breathe, education, a roof over their head, good healthcare, etc.?
Dychtwald has so much more to say about reinventing ourselves in older years that I’m sure I will be writing more about in the future. But one of his best quotes is, “Most discussions about increasing longevity have been focused on how to live longer rather than on why.” I don’t know about you, but merely tacking a few more years on to my life when I no longer have purpose, or am no longer happy or fulfilled, isn’t something that excites me. Why I want to live is far more important to me than how long. And that brings me back to why I believe it is so important to become an everyday futurist. I’m convinced if we don’t start thinking, discussing, considering and exploring our potential alternative futures, our possibilities will be limited.
As I mentioned at the start of this article, Karen Sands believes that futurists are those that combine insight with foresight to discover alternative futures for themselves and others. Based upon the tends and information I’ve been reading, there are a number of possible scenarios for each of us. Where will I, or you, be 10-15-20 years from now? Let’s not leave that to chance. The SMART approach is for each of us to become an everyday futurist starting today.
soy atquitecto de profesion tengo 78 años y continuo trabajando en la planificacion y construccion ,creo que mantenerse activo fisica e intelectualmente , es la mejor terapía de vida.
trabaje algunos años con el arquitecto brasilero OSCAR NIEMEYER recibi muchas influencias positivas del ambito de la arquitectura.de la identificacion social de nuestra profesion pero principalmente me marco el amor por el trabajo , murió a los 104 años de edad con plenitud y lucidez mental, ese es mi camino futurista,emularlo.
felicitaciones KATHY fue una suerte encontrarla pues sus conceptos de vida dan mas vida.
German Delgado
Hola German
Mucho gusto. Y felicitaciones por mantenerse activo, saludable y decidido en su vida. Gracias por tu comentario. ~ Kathy
Great article, Kathy. It matters to me to be useful, engaged, and contributing, which was a big mental barrier as I began to consider retiring. In order to make the decision to retire, I had to first plan how I would be able to do those things. You might be interested to know that the novel series I am writing explores scenarios in the future, extrapolating our current trends in technology, climate change, politics, food trends, and social values.
Jude
Hi Kathy, I had not given the term “futurist” any thought in the past. Yet, I think I fall into this category. I researched careers (a new career) about thirty years ago. To make a long story short, I visualized myself in the career, right down to the clothes I would be wearing. I had a seven year returning back to school plan. I had also researched career and job market trends.
I like your words, “co-creators” “designers” of our future.
The phrase that resonated with me is “a new map for aging.” I devoted significant energy and time planning a new career. I should devote focused energy on planning the rest of my life, too.
A thought-provoking article, Kathy. I usually end up reading your posts, thoroughly a few times and I let the concepts percolate.
A great post! Thank you!
The rocking chair shall accumulate dust:)
Hi Erica! It reminds me of that saying that more people spend time planning a wedding…or a vacation…than they do planning their future. And while I do believe it is critical that we stay flexible and willing to change the course when necessary, if we don’t know where we are headed how on earth can we hope to arrive? And yes, let’s let those rocking chairs gather dust!!! ~Kathy
So much to think about here! I guess I’ve been a ‘futurist’ ever since I read ‘the Popcorn Report’, by Faith Popcorn, in the ’80s. Her slant was thinking about the technological developments that would change our world, and she was spot on, in many cases. But as you say, being a futurist is more than that—it’s how we see the future, and ways that we can develop to fit into it, and grow our very best life. Thanks—a super post, as usual!
Hi Diane! Yes! I forgot about the Popcorn Report! I agree with you about her forecasting the technological development underway. But I one thing I appreciate about Dychtwald is that he says the Age wave that is happening now (and in the days to come) will impact our country and our planet far more than the technology (as amazing as that might be.) Something to think about it for sure and how we fit in it all. Thanks for your input on this! ~Kathy
Great points!
“Remember we are part of a continuum of life.”
Hey Gary! I KNOW you know this! But a reminder now and then never hurts right? ~Kathy
Kathy, great reminder that life goes on well beyond the day we retire. When you think about it, planning for the future never ends. We just keep learning, evolving and adapting in ways that bring contentment. Each of us has our own definition of what that looks like. My contentment definitely does not include a rocking chair.
Hi Suzanne! I’m guessing that the messages in this article are pretty much “preaching to the choir” as they say. I think most of us that are drawn to messages that are designing a positive future are also reading articles like this and listening to people like Dychtwald. But I’m also hoping that others out there, especially those young enough to still have LOTS more options available are reading and paying attention to some of the choices they will face as they age. Let’s keep remembering and reminding each other that we have much more life to live! ~Kathy
Great post! Like you — and Dychtwald and Sands — I believe that for the most part we make our own lives, and the time to start is now while we’re still going strong. And the time to stop is … never, not even when we’re barely going. Out of all the days of our lives, there’s only one day when there’s no tomorrow. So we should live today, and plan for tomorrow.
Hi Tom! Very eloquently said. Let’s remember that and keep reminding each other as time goes by, okay? ~Kathy
My mom is 92 and still going strong…most days. But when I was a child and young adult, she was far less physically active than my dad who died at 86. Sadly, I think my dad died with lots of regrets but I think my mom has been content in her life. I have tried to follow my father’s good lead with exercise and activity. But I want to be content with my life as I look back over it moving forward. There are still so many things I want to do! Have no plans of slowing down.
Hi Leslie! It sounds like you might be able to take the best lessons from both of your parents–what a gift. Personality-wise, which do you think you most closely resemble. I’m guessing I’m more like your dad was but I want to do what I can to NOT have those regrets. Perhaps all of us are part of each of your parents. Finding what works best for anyone of us is so beneficial. Thanks for sharing that! ~Kathy
love all of your bulleted points, but the one that resonated the most was “Use our extra years to renew and reinvent ourselves and try things we either were afraid to do when we were younger, didn’t know how to manage, or didn’t have the freedom to pursue.” I think that it’s important to realize that – even at our age – we are not finished products. We have the ability to change and adjust, and to follow dreams that have been buried under all of the “shoulds” and “can’ts” we and society heaped on us.
Hi Janis! So true! I think it is resisting that inertia that often comes from feeling so comfortable, don’t you think? That’s why I think it is so important to encourage each other to be welcoming of change and KNOW that we aren’t done, until we’re done! ~Kathy
Great post. The irony of our lives (take skin for example) is that when we realize the damage and how it ages us, it’s too late to go and fix it. But we can always use our intellect to read and get information on various “spots” we find ourselves in, so that we can change our habits, switch to a better pathway, one that will take us farther than our original choices.It’s a day to day choice.
Hi Beth! I agree. Wouldn’t it be great if we started paying more attention to those things LONG before they become and issue and we are forced to do something about them? I’ve heard/read that we either change by pain or by inspiration. I would sure like to do it by being inspired but sometimes I just wait until the pain insists. Hopefully I’m doing better now that I have an idea of what to keep an eye out about? And you KNOW I’m a big fan of day-to-day choice. Thanks for your thoughts on this! ~Kathy
Back when I was working I spent a lot of time with future trends thought leaders and scenario planning. When you are trying to develop products that take 3-5 years to get through invention and development cycle, you need a strong sense of what the future might be like. I have not thought about that for a while.
When I first retired, I wrote 5 years-in-the-future short stories, tapping into various aspect of how I wanted my life to be. I recall looking at them at my 3-year retired mark and being surprised how much had come true. Perhaps it is time to do some future thinking again. I am a firm believer in designing your future.
Hi Pat! Yes, isn’t it funny how we can sometimes forget the things we KNOW are helpful especially if we haven’t done them for awhile? I’m guessing that you would make a semi-pro futurist if you put your mind to it. ~Kathy
HI, Kathy – Once again, you have included many gems here. What especially stands out to me is:
1. We are responsible for our own physical health. This means being proactive, diligent, not waiting until we are sick to spring into action, and not expecting our doctors to be miracle works.
2. Ditto for our financial health.
3. We are all in this world together and need to take care of each other (not just those whom we love).
Great post!
Hi Donna! I got it. Sorry my spam catcher is acting up again! That’s so strange it let the 2nd comment through…but not the first. Oh well…it was in the “trash.” For some reason it does that with Deb’s EVERY SINGLE TIME. 🙁 Thanks for persevering! And YES…you got an A+ because those are definitely highlights I hoped I communicated. Of course you managed to say it in much fewer words. Thank you! ~Kathy
My favourite of Dychtwald’s suggestions (no surprise here): “Use our extra years to renew and reinvent ourselves and try things we either were afraid to do when we were younger, didn’t know how to manage, or didn’t have the freedom to pursue.”
Great post, Kathy – thanks!
Hi Deb! Like I responded to Haralee, in some follow up lectures I’ve listened to from Dychtwald, he is very clear about how it’s time for us all to be reconsidering what we plan to do with ourselves as we get older. 50 years ago people didn’t have that many years left so it didn’t matter as much. But the more we add years on to our lifespan, the more it needs to be considered. He gives me so much to think about that I’m glad to share a bit of it with others. 🙂 ~Kathy
Fascinating Kathy! Yes we all can speculate as futurists in buying our health insurance or setting up a savings/retirement plan or in buying stocks. I think some people have a knack, some are very conservative and some are reckless. Oh to be just right would be great!
Hi Haralee! Thank you too! I’ve been listening to a couple of more lectures by Dychtwald and he is a BIG advocate for frugal and simple living as well as doing our best to take good care of ourselves. He doesn’t put all the responsibility on each of us, but he does believe it is a partnership that we are all in together (like it or not!) And YES to doing it as “right” as we can. ~Kathy
Such great thoughts! I’m going to past them on Facebook so others will see
Hi Nora! Thanks. I’ll admit that the more I read and hear about what it means to be a Baby Boomer as we age, the more I am aware of how complicated and integrated it all is. This guy Dychtwald is fascinating to me on several levels. ~Kathy