July 23, 2007 3:56 PM

What keeps you going?
Posted by Douglas Eisenhartat 3:56 PM

There is a lot to read these days about the impending retirement of baby boomers and how organizations will suddenly be bereft of their skills, expertise, and accrued institutional knowledge.

On the other side of the coin, what will the baby boomers do when they leave all those organizations? We hear a lot about how "retirement" no longer means the same thing as it used to, a sedentary, years-long Barca-lounger cruise into true senility. It too is being redefined, a second act, a new time for reconnection and exploration of new things, or old things seen in a new way.

Which brings us to the question posed in this Career Journal article: "Could you turn a trip into a second career?":

Today, people approaching or entering retirement are more likely than ever to turn their favorite destinations -- or the activities they enjoy once they get there -- into full-time passions. Take Ron and Eva Stob, a California couple who, after tagging along for a week on a boat trip, decided to navigate the Atlantic seaboard and Mississippi River. The pair ended up publishing a book about their travels and have organized an association to guide other would-be captains along the same route.

"What keeps me going," says Mr. Stob, 69 years old, "is having something to do that I really enjoy doing."

And that's really it, isn't it? The big question, for young and old alike: What keeps you going? Answer: Something you enjoy doing. Brilliant statement, capturing motivation, purpose, and the desire to keep working in one simple phrase.

Read the full article, a lengthy treatment full of inspirational stories. Then ask yourself: what keeps me going?

It's a big, open-ended question. More anon.