Instead of preparing for retirement and an end date to our careers, shouldn’t we be finding a career that we love and would never want to give up?
For some, this is already the case (such as those highlighted by The Guardian in their recent article on the subject). But for most, it isn’t.
Why focus on finding a job that may see you through for the next 10 to 15 years, when you could invest a little more time and actually extend your career by 20 to 30 years? Why retire if you love what you do?
It’s not just workers who are rewriting traditional ideas of retirement. Companies are also embracing the aging workforce, and using it to their benefit. Asda is extremely proud of their diverse team, which spans five generations. They believe that by matching their customer demographic, they can provide a more efficient and tailored service, keeping their customers happy. Asda also has a ‘reverse mentoring’ scheme in place, which is having great results.
Reverse mentoring concentrates on using every individual’s strengths and weaknesses, no matter what their role in the company. A young member of the team may have a better grip on new technologies, however a long standing member of the team may have better product knowledge, or experience in conducting meetings. By pairing employees with different skills and levels of experience, both can benefit and add value to the business.
Today’s workforce is rewriting the retirement rulebook. Are you embracing the change and ready to write your next exciting chapter?
Future Proofing Careers is something the Career Ambition’s team passionately helps professionals do (read more about this on the Career Ambition's Event Page).