When Robin Burk retired from executive management at 63 years old, she was relieved. But the next 2.5 years left her bored to tears.
“I wondered what I really needed in my life at this stage,” Burk told Financial Advisor magazine.
After some soul searching, Burk wrote a book on executive management: "How to Thrive in an Uncertain World." The Virginia resident also began consulting work and lecturing.
“Although I had retired, I still had a lot to give,” said Burk who turned her work skills and life experience into a side business. “I am earning at what started as a hobby and more importantly I am busy and in demand again, but this time it’s on my own terms.”
Dealing with unstructured time, addiction and a shortage of geriatric medical professionals to treat the elderly are among the non-financial aspects of retirement that financial advisors are in a position to address in helping their pre-retiree and retired clients as they progress through the stages of retirement.
“Most baby boomers are unaware of and unprepared for what lies ahead,” said Kathryn Avery, a retirement readiness coach and author of "Your Countdown to Retirement," in a webinar last week called 10 (Non-Financial) Aspects of Planning Every Boomer Needs to Know. “People don't understand the grief process that comes with ending a career. It is an enormous loss.”
There is also evidence that people who stop working could be impacting their health, with one study by Oregan State University indicating that people who work after "retirement" lower their risk of death.
Addiction is another risk as retired seniors have more time on their hands, advisors say.
“Whether the client picks up alcohol, drugs, gambling or overspending, all of these addictions can have an impact on the financial plan we’ve built for them,” said Lisa A.K. Kirchenbauer, a certified financial planner in Arlington, Va.
Before recreational sales were legalized in Colorado, marijuana use increased nearly 60 percent from 2006 to 2013 among seniors 50 to 64 years old, according to a study by the Society for the Study of Addiction, while alcohol and doctor-prescribed opioids are readily available in states that have not yet legalized recreational cannabis.