Lifestyle Changes and Well Being
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By Martin F. Kaplan, Ph.D., Director, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
As we age, things change - careers, family and friends, financial status, and more. Changes can impact our lifestyle, and more fundamentally, our self-identity. We should be proactive in changing our lifestyle while retaining our broad life goals and values. Changing conditions may not permit fulfilling personal satisfaction and identity via the same lifestyle as in the past, but we can continue to nurture our core identity.
What can we do when circumstances on which self-esteem is built change? Pride is often tied to youth, careers, families, and learning new things. When these change, we risk losing self-esteem.
We can continue using our skills and knowledge but in different ways, for different purposes. Not to advance a career, raise children, or “prove something”, but to practice what we have learned in new settings, with new goals. I propose three avenues for transferring our lifestyle to different ventures. We can find new occupations (or improve on old occupations). We can continue to learn, but not for the same career-related goals as before. We can continue to serve others besides our families. The key is to find new ways to use our powers to retain the identity of who we are.
For many, occupations define us, providing meaning. We think of ourselves in terms of what we do and how we earn our living, in the deepest sense. As we age, and as the work world changes, how do we continue to define ourselves? The key is to continue using the underlying talents that characterized our occupations. Find activities that feed on our skills and values, but cover new ground.
A sense of self need not be based on a particular occupation, but on the set of skills and motivations we bring to tasks requiring those qualities. When we take stock of our strengths, we can shift to new, unanticipated opportunities to remain “us” when occupations change or disappear. Skill training opportunities exist locally. California State University Channel Islands and California Lutheran University both offer career counseling for upgrading existing skills or finding new occupations, and classes for specific skills, with or without University degrees.
Mature adults can take advantage of education that nurtures specific interests, skills and personal enhancement. Personal growth classes are readily available in community education programs at local community colleges.
If training is no longer needed for a career, mature adults may sit in on regular classes at local universities and colleges through “open university”. The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, OLLI at Cal State Channel Islands provides classes for persons over 50 – shorter university-quality courses for intellectual enrichment without grades. These resources enable mature adults to learn without the pressure of preparing for careers.
Personal needs met by volunteering include altruism, responsibility to others, learning new skills, and meeting interesting people. More relevant to lifestyle is the opportunity to use one’s skills in new ways, and to enhance self esteem and confidence. In volunteering, we may exercise the qualities that have defined our work life. Opportunities abound; look at local newspapers, contact the Area Agency on Aging, or RSVP
The key to dealing with changing circumstances is to continue using and developing those qualities that uniquely define you, whether through an occupation, continuing education, or volunteering.
Dr. Martin F. Kaplan is Director of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, California State University Channel Islands, and Distinguished Research Professor of Social Psychology, Emeritus, Northern Illinois University. You can contact him at marty.kaplan@csuci.edu. For more information about the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, Channel Islands www.csuci.edu/exed/osher.htm or national website http://www.osherfoundation.org/index.php?olli
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