Every day thousands of Americans turn 55 years old with no plans of retiring anytime soon. (If retirement is still decades away for you, then consider reading on for a parent or a friend.) Many people today are looking for ways to have a social impact during an age that once was thought of as the "golden years" -- a time of life when the glossy magazines say you're supposed to be content to spend your final years luxuriating on a golf course. The problem is, for millions of people, the so-called retirement years are going to last upwards of three decades! That's why many people are pursuing encore careers, purposeful work in the second half of life.

The world has no shortage of problems in need of experienced fixers, but the pathways to this new stage of work are unclear; they are just being forged. One organization that has been leading the way helping people to navigate this new terrain is Civic Ventures, a think tank on boomers, work and social purpose. Their Encore Careers campaign aims to engage millions of people in encore careers combining personal meaning, continued income and social impact to produce a windfall of talent to solve society's greatest problems.

Their resources and Get Started Guide will help you navigate the process of creating a second career:
> What kinds of job opportunities exist to do meaningful work in the encore years?
> How do you make the transition into a field where you might not have experience or contacts?
> What work is available for those who don't want to work full time?
> What steps should you take if you want to create your own organization?

Check out new research on these emerging jobs and read stories about others in encore careers. If there's someone in your life who's ready to explore a new life direction, this could help them combine purpose, passion and a paycheck!

Thanks to our partners at Dowser.org, the site for Solution Journalism. Photo: Civic Ventures

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