Turning a Midlife Crisis into a Second Act
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Here's your Money Briefing for Monday, August 21st. I'm J.R. Whelan for The Wall Street Journal.
How are Americans rethinking their 40s, 50s, and 60s as a second act?
Entering your midlife years doesn't have to be the gateway to a crisis, with more Americans seeing their 40s, 50s, and 60s more as a second act.
As you get older, it starts to dawn on you that some of the transitions that you're seeing, whether it be changes in your career, changes in your family life with the empty nest, more and more people are getting divorced. So these programs really try to help people better manage stressful transitions in their lives.
What life changes prompt people to pursue a midlife restart?
We'll talk to Wall Street Journal reporter Anne Tergesen after the break.
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What types of 'second act' programs and experiences are available?
That's R-E-L-I-A-Q-U-E-S-T.com.
Many Americans going through their midlife years are looking for a restart and ways to be more productive. WSJ retirement reporter Ann Tergesen joins me. So, Ann, for generations, people's 40s, 50s, and 60s were seen as a period of reevaluation and what society often calls a midlife crisis. What's caused them to instead want to start a new chapter and take on something more meaningful? And what does that look like?
What topics and exercises are covered in virtual midlife transition classes?
there's more of an awareness of midlife as an opportunity to kind of reinvent or recreate some aspects of your life. For people who live or expect to live well into their 80s, you know, some people end up retiring voluntarily. Other people end up retiring not so much by choice, but a lot of people feel like physically able to move on and do something else that provides meaning in their life. And a lot of people at that point in the age spectrum are seeing a lot of the demands that they had on their lives previously due to raising children and building careers fall away. So there's a bit of a shift in identity that can also occur that may prompt people to think about, well, gee, You know, all of a sudden my time is freed up and I have a lot to offer.
So what is it that I really want to do?
And in your reporting, you write about businesses that are aiming to capitalize on people's desire for a second act. What kinds of services do they offer?
There's a pretty wide range of these services. Some of them offer in-person kind of retreat type of experiences. In some cases, combining that with elements of a luxury vacation, such as beachfront accommodations. In other cases, probably thanks to the pandemic, these are virtual experiences. I took one such class that was three 90-minute sessions online. offered on Zoom.
How much do these midlife reinvention programs cost and are scholarships offered?
It was really interesting and fun. There were breakout sessions. It was all done virtually. And some of these organizations or companies offer both in-person experiences and online experiences. You can pick and choose your price point as well, because as you'd expect, the online programs are much cheaper.
What kinds of topics did you discuss in the Zoom session you were in?
There was a big emphasis on discussing the changes that people were going through. And for some people, they were voluntary.
How do transition-planning programs prepare people for retirement and life changes?
For some people, they were not. And a lot of the purpose to these programs is to get people to realize that psychological studies show that actually people get happier as they get older, and they become more socially adept and more aware of their own priorities. And a lot of this is very positive. So there were exercises designed to jumpstart kind of self-evaluation process because that's something that can be difficult for people.
What sorts of activities would people maybe take on in their midlife years in an effort to be more productive?
I'm not sure that productive is the key here. What people kind of want is something that's going to be very fulfilling for them as a person.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:02–0:10
2
How are Americans rethinking their 40s, 50s, and 60s as a second act?
0:10–0:39
3
What life changes prompt people to pursue a midlife restart?
0:39–1:15
4
What types of 'second act' programs and experiences are available?
1:15–1:53
5
What topics and exercises are covered in virtual midlife transition classes?
1:53–3:21
6
How much do these midlife reinvention programs cost and are scholarships offered?
3:21–3:47
7
How do transition-planning programs prepare people for retirement and life changes?
3:47–6:35
Speakers
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