Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
Practice Perfect Editor
Assistant Professor,
Dept. of Podiatric Medicine,
Surgery & Biomechanics
College of Podiatric Medicine
Western University of
Health Sciences,
St, Pomona, CA

What Does Retirement
Mean To You?

I just had an unfortunate reminder from the universe about preparation. My family and I just returned from a trip to Phoenix. Apparently, when we left three days ago, I didn't take out one of our trash bins. As a result, a local colony of ants smelled our tasty trash and decided to raid my home. We came home an hour ago (at the time of my writing this) to find our tiny neighbors happily enjoying the fruits of my lack of preparation. That will teach you, Shapiro. Next time prepare yourself for the unexpected, including ant invasions!

Actually, what I really want to talk about is the reason for my above-mentioned trip to Phoenix. We had the happy pleasure of celebrating my father's seventieth birthday. This year also happens to mark my father's impending retirement after about fifty-five years of working. My father spent much of his working life as a truck driver and is looking forward to his retirement. This milestone birthday had me thinking about retirement in general. Obviously, I have a long time before I retire from podiatry, but adapting the words Meg Ryan said in When Harry Met Sally, I'll be retired…"SOMEDAY!"

One aspect of retirement I've wondered about repeatedly is the generational nature of this activity. I'm not certain if it's a personal aspect or truly generational, but my view of retirement is somewhat nuanced from that which my father intends. Simply put, he desires to rest and relax during his retirement, and he actually has no specific plans for his "golden" years. I've asked him about this repeatedly but have unfortunately received this same answer every time. I say "unfortunately" because my view of retirement is quite different from his.

Tonight's Premier Lecture is
Topical Oxygen Therapy - Breathing
New Life into Chronic Wounds
Giacomo Clerici, MD

Granted I haven't spent as many years in the workforce as my father (twenty-five years for me), and granted my desire for "rest" during my retirement might change after more time working. Having said that, I view retirement not as a time to essentially stop everything, grab a chair, and watch all my favorite movies until I die, but rather to learn new skills and have new enriching experiences. Perhaps I'll go back to school, or I might travel to a new country. Maybe I'll start a new job in a podiatry-related field. Who knows?

I'm not sure if this idea is generational or personal. How many commercials do you now see on television showing white-haired baby boomers living it up in some new retirement community ? It seems it's the active life for them! Similarly, I know quite a few physicians who, it seems, would rather go down fighting than stop their clinical practice. I spoke to one physician recently who retired after many years of practice, only after a debilitating medical issue cropped up. I'll wager this is an only too common occurrence among physicians. We spend a significant amount of our lives training and then practicing our art, and it would be, I imagine, exceeding difficult to give up something that you've not only devoted your life to, but also positively affected the lives of so many. Clearly, it must be a hard decision to make.

On the other hand, we do consistently hear about a difference in generational emphasis. One might read, for example, the ever increasing number of articles about newer physicians who shy away from certain specialties because they desire more personal time. Older doctors might bemoan the times when their younger cohort put in the same number of grueling hours they did. I too put in my share of eighty hour work weeks, but I can understand these individuals wanting to spend quality (and quantity) time with their families. Quality of life is important, and I can easily see these younger doctors determining the importance of an active retirement rather than working oneself to the grave.

For me my current goal is to retire from podiatric medicine around fifty-five years old in order to pursue a second career as an English professor (assuming good health). Sounds boring to most of you, I know, but I'm one of the biggest nerds on the planet. In some ways, I'm a compromise between the older doctors who want to work until they die (I'll keep on working doing something) and the younger ones who want personal time (I'll do something, but it will be different from podiatry). Either way the common denominator seems to be the desire to do something active until the end. It's the active life for me!

How do you see your retirement evolving? What personal and economic plans have you put in place for your retirement? It's never too early to plan. Please chime in on an existing eTalk on the topic of Retirement.