Book Report: "What Color Is Your Parachute? For Retirement"

Occasionally I'll be sharing with you a book that I found rewarding.  I had hoped for this to be a Book of the Month, but that would mean I need to do much more reading than I do!  So let's start out with one of my favorite nonfiction books.

 You might be familiar with other "Parachute" books.  They are written by Richard N. Bolles and deal with finding a fulfilling job/career.  This book is different.  Bolles wrote the preface, but the rest of the book was written by John E. Nelson, who did pioneering work on retirement planning.  It is valuable to read no matter what your age, so don't be put off by the word "retirement" in the title.  In fact, the sooner you read it, the better.

The essence of the book is The Retirement Well-Being Model.   It is visually represented by three slightly-overlapping circles labelled Happiness, Health, and Prosperity.  

Happiness = Social (relationships) + Psychological (strengths)

Health = Biological (relaxation, diet, exercise) + Medical (health care)

Prosperity = Financial (money) + Geography (where you  live)

The way he explains each one, the examples he gives, the insights he offers, and the exercises he presents, are all going to be the fun part of you reading the book.

For just a sneak peak, let's look at what he has to say about the three levels of retirement happiness.  (This is part of the chapter on discovering your strengths.)  The first level consists of Pleasant activities.  They are of short duration, such as spectator sports, dining out, or watching a movie.  They are fun while you're doing them, but the good feelings tend to fade soon after the activity ends.  They are useful in balancing the stress of work, but might not be rich enough to to be a sustained diet during retirement.

The second level consists of Engaging activities.  These are challenging - you're either learning a new skill or you are so immersed in one that you don't notice time passing.  Find an activity that is a good match for your skills and strengths.  Not challenging enough and you'll get bored; too challenging and you can get frustrated.

The third level is meaningful activities.  These involve making a connection with something outside yourself - serving a greater good, volunteering for a cause you believe in, etc.

As he puts it "If pleasure is most closely related to your interests, and engagement is most closely related to your strengths, then meaning is most closely related to your values."

What Color is Your Parachute? For Retirement is extremely easy to read.   I've read it twice in the last two years.  Now that I know there's a new edition out, I'm ready to read that one too.  Or maybe I should move on to a different book?!?!