How to Find Your Purpose in The Third Age

Don't choose stagnation, treat life as an adventure

Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash

How To Find Your Purpose

What is your purpose in life? What gets you out of bed in the morning? Science has found that people with a sense of purpose tend to live longer than those without. Research shows that having a purpose leads to positive health outcomes, such as fewer strokes and heart attacks. The long-living people of the Blue Zone regions all had a reason for getting up every day; for some, it was simply to tend to the gardens where they grew their food, for others it was to spend time with family and make themselves useful.

The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for. Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Retirement from a job that is looked on as a drudge and just a way to pay the bills is eagerly anticipated. Yet, often when it arrives, the new retiree has no idea what to do with the seemingly endless time. With a loss of structure to each day and week, boredom and loneliness can soon set in. If you see retirement on the horizon, making preparations will prevent this from happening. Plan what to do with your time in advance.

Doing some self-reflection would be a first step. Who am I? What do I like to do most? What am I good at? Is there something I’ve always wanted to learn? A new skill, craft or hobby, perhaps. Explore your passions. What makes you feel most alive? If you want to investigate the first question in more depth, what about genealogy? Tracing your family tree would enable you to see your place in a long line of ancestors; where they lived, their occupations, their health issues, and more. It’s a time-consuming and engrossing activity that would give purpose to your life and benefit your family.

When I spent time tracing my family tree in my sixties, I found many other people from my extended family that I never knew existed, all researching our common ancestors. This resulted in the exchange of photographs and information they had already found. It helped fill in the blanks and the photographs suggested where the looks of current family members might have come from. I grew my tree on Ancestry.com and did most of my research online.

Still on the question of who am I? Another avenue to explore is that of psychology. Universities offer free courses if you are interested in delving into what has made you who you are. Here are a few links to some, The Open University and 9 top universities in the US. Or even become a full-time student and learn the subject in depth. You’re never too old to learn. Is the unexamined life worth living? This is a question that curious people have been asking for centuries. Philosophy is the key to this question. If you’re interested in understanding fundamental truths about yourself and life in general, the study of philosophy could be the answer.

There’s also the University of the Third Age (U3A), an international movement whose aims are the education and stimulation of the mainly retired members of the community. It’s a network of learning groups encouraging older people to share their knowledge, skills and interests in a friendly atmosphere, more learning for fun rather than the taking of exams. There’s no qualifications needed to join. Search online for your local group if you’re interested.

Put Your Values into Action

Recognise your strengths and talents. How can you put your values into action? Could you see yourself, perhaps, as supporting your community by becoming a volunteer? There are many ways to become involved in volunteering. Charity shops, animal shelters, wildlife conservation charities, supporting international aid work, local libraries or hospitals, working with a group that looks after the local environment, helping out at a food bank, or soup kitchen. The list is endless.

Another passion might be politics, so becoming politically active with your local party branch or even with your local council by becoming a councillor would be a fulfilling way to spend time. If you enjoy reading, helping illiterate adults to learn to read would be a useful and rewarding voluntary activity. Do you like to write? Have you thought of writing a book? Retirement is a good time to do that. We are all supposed to have one book in us. Or maybe write a blog. Do both. Start a Substack newsletter and write about writing a book and how you manage your time.

Get enthused by a new project. Perhaps grow your own plant-based food in your garden, an allotment or even in pots or tubs, in or outside of your home. You don’t need a huge amount of space to grow healthy salad ingredients, just some pots and soil. Join the local gardening club to find others sharing this project, or start a group yourself. Eating food you have grown with your own fair hands is very satisfying and saves money. If you grow more than you need and find yourself with a glut, give or sell to others.

Another project that would benefit you and your loved ones is your own health. Learn how to stay healthy and fit in your older years, what exercises you can do and how to get involved with others locally, doing the same, such as walking or running groups. Take control of your health. What diet should you be eating for your wellbeing, and how to manage stress? Start by reading an earlier post of mine about 12 healthy habits to slow ageing that will give you a basis for your learning.

Being in the third stage of life doesn’t mean giving up and vegetating. We don’t have to allow ourselves to go into decline. There are so many ways to stay active that will benefit ourselves and others that there’s no excuse to do nothing. Being busy and healthy can stave off chronic illnesses, allowing us to lead a more fulfilling and rewarding life way into older age.

It’s all about choice, of course. If you choose to spend your retirement doing as little as possible, that is your prerogative. However, why not spend it becoming the best version of yourself and live life as though it’s an adventure, with new experiences to enjoy?

Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose. Viktor Frankl

What’s your purpose in life? Perhaps you already do several of the above suggestions, if so I’d love to know what you do. Share your thoughts with us in the comments. Hit the heart icon and leave a like if you enjoyed the post.