Written by: Eva Navrot BC CRN, Regional Mentor for the Cariboo Chilcotin and Community Connector Williams Lake Seniors Activity Center. Hello and Happy New Year everyone, 2025 is upon us and I’m so excited. I’m going to share some exciting insights on goal setting and gearing up for a new year of adventure and change. I’m reading a great book called “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. The book has motivated me in so many ways and I can hardly wait to share some ideas with you. But before I do that, I want to share a bit of my story about retirement with you.
This year I will be turning 67, I like to think of myself as a “junior” senior. I’ve been working either at home raising my family or out in the world since I got married in 1979. I raised three wonderful children, and they have amazing families and full lives. Now to the retirement part. When I reached the age of 60 I thought it would be great to retire early, no thought or plan, it just seemed like something a lot of cool “junior” seniors were doing. So I left my job (that I loved, although I was feeling a bit tired) and decided to retire! The first little while was great, it was summertime, I was in the sunshine, I was helping out with my grandkids, my parents were moving to Williams Lake. All was well and I was busy in a new way. Summer led to fall and things were still going well, and then it happened…I had a day or so of restlessness that turned into a couple of weeks…then months. I started to feel a bit out of sorts and a bit purposeless, everyone was getting on with their lives, kids, parents, husband, friends and I was sitting. I took on a couple of volunteer jobs but still wasn’t feeling super motivated to do much. So, I decided to go back to work. I found a great job that I loved until I didn’t. I was tired once again and struggling to find my groove. I again left work and thought, well I’m 65 maybe now I’m ready to retire. Wrong!!!!! I started volunteering at the Seniors Activity center and then started doing a bit of work for the BC Community Response Network (adult abuse and neglect awareness). Then it turned into a job and I was in my glory until…I wasn’t. I got tired again and cut back on my days of work until I felt rested (are you seeing a pattern?). That brings us to today. I still don’t have it quite right, but I’m accepting that I’m not a putter around at home kind of person (yet). I like to be busy; I like people and I like helping people. In this new year I’m starting off with gratitude that includes some work at the seniors activity center, some contract work and a bunch of volunteer work that I have a passion for. Seniors housing is something that I am passionate about and have been able to learn new skills and use some old rusty ones to help apply for funding for a new seniors housing project in Williams Lake. Another one of my favorite volunteer positions is working with new Canadians tutoring one on one English lessons. I have learned so much about cultures other than my own and have also discovered that English is a complex language! I never really thought about our language too much until I was helping a student learn about the hospitality industry and we started taking about beverages; also known as - drinks, alcohol, booze, highballs, soft drinks, aperitifs non alcoholic beverages, and so much more. It really is complicated sometimes. Part of my work at the Seniors Center is helping individuals with forms and paper work to receive benefits either on paper or online. Most forms are online now so technology support is so important and I’m happy that I kept up with my computer literacy over the years. I have always enjoyed reading, to my children when they were young, my grandchildren and for my own pleasure and growth. I read physical books, online articles and listen to podcasts. I have a great appreciation for the literacy skills that I have and that my parents encouraged me to read and love books. The other bonus of having more time off is that I can take daily walks, go to fitness classes and work on my art projects. As you can see the journey is not over, retirement is tricky, and I hope that some of you can relate. Happy New Year 2025 New year – new goals and the amazing things I’ve learned from the Atomic Habits Book by James Clear. I was hooked in from the very beginning of the book. But first I have to tell you that New Years is one of my favorite times of year. New beginnings, new ideas, starting fresh; I’m a sucker for all of them. I always wondered why it was so hard to have a new idea or goal, try it with about 3 days of success and then after a few more attempts go back to my old ways or habits. It is explained very well in the book. One of the highlights is to work towards goals by changing systems and creating new habits that will change your life. For example, my goal might be to get into shape. What does that really mean? Is it a certain weight, a certain amount of muscle tone, respiratory health, being able to run a marathon? Here is how James Clear from his book “Atomic Habits” breaks it down at the end of chapter one;
A change in habits leads to a change in lifestyle which leads to achieving goals and living a better life. An example for me is; I do a gratitude list every morning with 5 other people, I start the day being thankful, I have a positive attitude and complain less. My goal is to have a life free of Gossip, criticism and complaining, (it’s a process). Thanks so much for reading and please feel free to come and chat about these ideas and the book (Atomic Habits).
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