Skip to content
Laird Norton Wealth Management
  • Services
          • Wealth Planning
            • Business Owner
            • Equity Compensation
            • Estate Strategies
            • Philanthropic Giving
            • Tax Strategies
          • Investment Management
            • Tax-Aware Investing
            • Risk Management
            • Alternatives & Private Market
            • Impact Investing
          • Trust Services
            • Beneficiary Services
            • Family Legacy
            • Trust Administration
            • Trust Benefits
            • Understanding Trusts
          • NonProfit Clients
            • Request RFP Participation
  • About
          • About LNWM
            • Fiduciary Financial Advisor
            • How We Help
            • Our Team
            • Corporate Social Responsibility
            • Careers
            • Community
            • Board of Directors
            • FAQs
        • two people in a kayak on water
  • Insights
        • Blog

          Top-of-mind at LNWM and elsewhere.

          Papers

          Expert insights and analysis.

          Videos

          See what we're up to.

          Media

          Our published work and media coverage.

  • Contact
Search Icon
Client Login
mobile-login

Home » Insights » Retirement » Five Easy Ways to Avoid Mental Retirement

Five Easy Ways to Avoid Mental Retirement

LNWM | Retirement | March 10, 2011 (February 25, 2020)

With boomers nearing the typical retirement age of 65, a host of ominous studies have been released on life post-work. One research project was particularly disenchanting, which suggests that saying goodbye to work puts your mental acuity at risk.

The two economists who penned the paper “Mental Retirement” argue that once people say ‘I quit,’ their cognitive abilities begin to decline, memory becomes more challenged, and general function starts deteriorating. Why? The most obvious reasons are that the workplace provides an environment where people exercise their brains, socialize and stay relatively active. According to Laura L. Carstensen, director of the Center on Longevity at Stanford University, this recent research suggests that work actually provides an important component of the environment that keeps people functioning optimally.

Is “work” really the secret to a sharp mind? What’s missing in the study – and in the experts’ conclusions – is the acknowledgement that many of the same types of mental and social activities that keep us alert in the workplace can still happen when we leave traditional careers behind. Intellectual, social and emotional growth can happen just as easily on a trip to the museum as it can on a walk to the boardroom. Perhaps the real secret is doing anything, so long as it’s something.

In that spirit, here’s a list of five simple ways to keep your mind quick and your life long:

1. Create a reading list and work through it

Select a diverse mix of books about subjects you are interested in. The key is to broaden your horizons. You can choose some of your favorite reads from the past, but also try something new. If you generally choose fiction, try reading a biography about a person that you find intriguing.

Here’s a suggestion, buy the books (or get them on your Kindle). That way you will feel guilty if you don’t read them.

2. Form a hiking group

This can be hiking, walking, disco dancing, whatever. The point is that you have a regularly scheduled time to spend with a group of equally energetic and committed people. For starters, try to meet once a week and go up from there.

3. Take a cooking class

OK, it doesn’t have to be a cooking class. It could be taking a golf clinic, sowing the seeds of an urban farm, touring art galleries on First Thursday—whatever strikes your fancy. The main idea is to get out and about in your community and to increase your knowledge about people and places around you.

4. Talk to someone else’s kids

Today’s children don’t get enough respectful interaction with adults who are outside of their immediate family and independent from competitive pursuits like sports and school. When most people reflect on their childhood, they positively recall some grownups who treated them respectfully and talked to them.

So, talk to a kid. Reach out to a parent and say “Hey, if you’d like me to take them to the museum for the afternoon, I’d love to do it.”

5. Go hear live music

Nothing replaces the thrill of experiencing music live. It’s an instant recharge from the mundane aspects of life. The iPod will never be an adequate substitute for the real thing. And, we have more choices of styles and venues than ever.

Even better, go dust off that clarinet you used to play in high school and start practicing again. Or, learn to play a new one at a band camp for adults.

Really, it’s not about saying no to work… it’s about saying no to mental slippage.

  • Share:

LNWM

Activating wealth to serve life. From investing to legacy planning, we help you realize all that is possible, one choice at a time.

Sign Up For Navigator

Get our quarterly insights on investments, wealth planning, taxes and trusts.

Site Logo in footer footer logo
facebook Twitter Opens a news tab Linkedin Opens a news tab Youtube Opens a news tab

About

  • Board of Directors
  • Careers
  • Community
  • Contact
  • FAQs
  • Our Team
  • Sign up for Navigator

Services

  • Investment Management
  • Sustainable Investing
  • Tax Strategies
  • Trust Services
  • Understanding Trusts
  • Wealth Planning

Address

  • Laird Norton Wealth Management 801 Second Avenue, Suite 1600
    Seattle, WA 98104
    United States
  • 206.464.5100
  • 800.426.5105
© 2023 Laird Norton Wealth Management. All rights reserved.
Form CRSOpen PDF in a new tab Legal Terms and Conditions Privacy Policy
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to customize your settings.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
CookieDurationDescription
__cf_bm30 minutesThis cookie, set by Cloudflare, is used to support Cloudflare Bot Management.
bcookie2 yearsLinkedIn sets this cookie from LinkedIn share buttons and ad tags to recognize browser ID.
bscookie2 yearsLinkedIn sets this cookie to store performed actions on the website.
langsessionLinkedIn sets this cookie to remember a user's language setting.
lidc1 dayLinkedIn sets the lidc cookie to facilitate data center selection.
UserMatchHistory1 monthLinkedIn sets this cookie for LinkedIn Ads ID syncing.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
CookieDurationDescription
_uetsid1 dayBing Ads sets this cookie to engage with a user that has previously visited the website.
_uetvid1 year 24 daysBing Ads sets this cookie to engage with a user that has previously visited the website.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
CookieDurationDescription
_ga2 yearsThe _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
_gcl_au3 monthsProvided by Google Tag Manager to experiment advertisement efficiency of websites using their services.
_gid1 dayInstalled by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
_hjAbsoluteSessionInProgress30 minutesHotjar sets this cookie to detect the first pageview session of a user. This is a True/False flag set by the cookie.
_hjFirstSeen30 minutesHotjar sets this cookie to identify a new user’s first session. It stores a true/false value, indicating whether it was the first time Hotjar saw this user.
_hjIncludedInPageviewSample2 minutesHotjar sets this cookie to know whether a user is included in the data sampling defined by the site's pageview limit.
_hjIncludedInSessionSample2 minutesHotjar sets this cookie to know whether a user is included in the data sampling defined by the site's daily session limit.
_hjTLDTestsessionTo determine the most generic cookie path that has to be used instead of the page hostname, Hotjar sets the _hjTLDTest cookie to store different URL substring alternatives until it fails.
_omappvp11 yearsThe _omappvp cookie is set to distinguish new and returning users and is used in conjunction with _omappvs cookie.
_omappvs20 minutesThe _omappvs cookie, used in conjunction with the _omappvp cookies, is used to determine if the visitor has visited the website before, or if it is a new visitor.
calltrk_session_id1 yearThis cookie is set by the Provider CallRail. This cookie is used for storing an unique identifier for a user browser session. It is used for tracking the number of phone calls generate from the website.
vuid2 yearsVimeo installs this cookie to collect tracking information by setting a unique ID to embed videos to the website.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
CookieDurationDescription
_fbp3 monthsThis cookie is set by Facebook to display advertisements when either on Facebook or on a digital platform powered by Facebook advertising, after visiting the website.
_mkto_trk2 yearsThis cookie, provided by Marketo, has information (such as a unique user ID) that is used to track the user's site usage. The cookies set by Marketo are readable only by Marketo.
fr3 monthsFacebook sets this cookie to show relevant advertisements to users by tracking user behaviour across the web, on sites that have Facebook pixel or Facebook social plugin.
MUID1 year 24 daysBing sets this cookie to recognize unique web browsers visiting Microsoft sites. This cookie is used for advertising, site analytics, and other operations.
test_cookie15 minutesThe test_cookie is set by doubleclick.net and is used to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
CookieDurationDescription
_ce.gtldsessionNo description
_dc_gtm_UA-41670453-11 minuteNo description
_hjSession_275188330 minutesNo description
_hjSessionUser_27518831 yearNo description
AnalyticsSyncHistory1 monthNo description
BIGipServerab10web-nginx-app_httpssessionNo description
BIGipServerab47web-nginx-app_httpssessionNo description
calltrk_landing1 yearThis is a functionality cookie set by the CallRail. This cookie is used to store the landing page URL. It helps to accurately attribute the visitor source when displaying a tracking phone number.
calltrk_nearest_tld9 years 10 months 8 daysNo description
calltrk_referrer1 yearThis is a functionality cookie set by the CallRail. This cookie is used to store the referring URL. It helps to accurately attribute the visitor source when displaying a tracking phone number.
CookieLawInfoConsent1 yearNo description
li_gc2 yearsNo description
SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by CookieYes Logo