Anne Robinson helps a man who thinks his life doesn't feel important after retirement, and asks how to find purpose again.
I keep reading about how important it is to find “purpose” in your life – including in Saga Magazine. My question is, how do you go about it?
I retired ten years ago and have hobbies and friends and fill my days nicely, but there’s nothing in my life that feels “important” enough.
I’m clearly missing something, but what?
Oh golly, I don’t think I know what you are missing. Do you want to speak fluent Mandarin, or explore the Galapagos Islands, or appear on the panel of Question Time?
If you could spend a day doing something you adore, what would it be? If you are not already doing it, what is holding you back?
I was staying with friends in the countryside last year and leisurely reading when my host suddenly said, “I must dash, I’ve got a jigsaw to finish”.
It stopped me in my tracks, because whereas I think reading is very important, I realised I was with someone for whom making one bit of mis-shaped cardboard fit into another bit of mis-shaped cardboard was a matter of urgency and great satisfaction. And why not?
Each of us has our own different aims and ambitions.
These might include baking puddings that turn out the right shape, taking a master’s degree, or beating an annoyingly skilled neighbour at table tennis.
Some people are artful at making their activity seem superior to the pursuits of all others. Don’t be too easily influenced.
Whatever rocks your boat, trust me, has purpose.
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