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As Americans live longer than ever before and the ones born today could expect to celebrate their 90th birthday and beyond there are questions they need to ask themselves.

The University of California, Irvines Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders (UCI Mind) has studied elderly individuals as part of its 90+ Study since 2003, analyzing the ways in which nearly 2,000 participants go about their lives in their 90s and 100s, as well as what may have contributed to that longevity and underlying cognitive disabilities they may or may not know they have.

60 Minutes met with a few participants including a World War II veteran and a ballroom dancer six years apart and recently reported that many continued to thrive. Some participants had an iPhone and were on Facebook, and others were exercising in any capacity they could. While a few of the participants were losing their cognitive abilities, others were mentally agile, able to answer questions and formulate calculations at the tops of their heads.

They also remember vivid memories one participant said he recalls buying his first car, a 1931 Chevy convertible, for $18 in a pool hall because the seller needed the money to shoot pool. When asked how old the 99-year-old feels, I always say 69, he told CBS reporter Lesley Stahl.

While these golden agers might seem uncommon now, the future will see many more. Half of children born this decade can expect to see their 103rd or 104th birthday, Claudia Kawas, co-principal investigator of The 90+ Study, told CBS. And if other Americans expect to follow suit, living well into their 80s, 90s or even 100s, theyll need to think carefully about the time ahead of them.

Here are a few questions they can consider:

See: Want to solve the retirement crisis? Invest $7,500 for every baby born in America

How many things will I be when I grow up?

Parents and teachers used to ask children what they wanted to become when they were older, but the question will likely need to change to what jobs as in, plural will people want to take on as an adult, said Joe Coughlin, director of the MIT AgeLab and author of The Longevity Economy. You are seeing in this pandemic a propellant of what education will be like, he said. Theyll have to continue learning.

Some older Americans may already be seeing that, as they switch jobs or advance their careers as technology pushes society forward. There are now social media analysts, data scientists, even remote learning consultants positions that did not exist only a few decades ago. Nancy Schlossberg, an author and former counseling professor, said shes experienced it herself moving from a job as a professor and author to a consultant for Zoom programs on transitions in life.

Workers will need to stay adaptable, Coughlin said, meaning they will need to brush up on the latest skill sets and be ready to grow as their fields change.

Not only can people expect to change jobs and career fields numerous times in their lifetimes, but even what they do in retirement, Schlossberg said. There are six types of retirees, she found in her research, including ones who choose not to have any big plans in retirement and those who start a hobby theyve always longed to try.

With whom will I live this long life?

Choosing a significant other to share lifes journey with may become an even bigger commitment than it already is, especially if you marry in your 30s and expect to live into your 90s, Coughlin said. Were not talking about 25 years or the rarity of 50, he said. Celebrating a golden anniversary, or longer, could become commonplace. But that also depends on if the marriage will last. Of course, many Americans divorce even in their older age and some may choose to stay single, date or find another spouse with whom they can spend their later years.

Not everyone needs a spouse, but when thinking about a long life ahead, individuals do need to think about who may be around them in that time. They should plan for how they expect to interact with children, grandchildren, other family members, friends and even neighbors. A crucial question to get sorted out is this: Who will take care of you when youre old or sick? This may be a significant other, it may be a relative or a family friend, or it may be a health care professional but knowing that answer and discussing it at length with the other person is important to ensuring your wishes are met, as are theirs.

There are also social clubs, online communities and other ways to strike up new friendships. Socializing is an important part of living a long, happy life.

Can I afford it?

Longevity is a blessing, but it can also become a burden if an individual is not adequately prepared financially for this long life. Because of the pandemic, about half of workers over age 55 will be poor or near-poor at 65 years old, defined as living on less than $20,000 a year, according to the New School.

The COVID-19 crisis may make it harder for some Americans to live comfortably in old age perhaps because of a job loss, brief but significant investment losses or the need to withdraw money from a retirement account but even without the pandemic, workers need to think about how their money will last them for decades, not years, in retirement. A healthy 65-year-old could expect to live at least 30 more years in retirement, which means every dollar they have saved and invested will count. Because of this increased longevity, some Americans may choose, or need, to work longer to make ends meet.

You have to worry about getting unlucky and living to 100, Richard Thaler, the 2017 economics Nobel Prize winner, said during a Brookings Institution event last year. Theyll need to focus on saving and preserving those assets, as opposed to spending them down in retirement.

Also see: How robots and your smart fridge can keep you pit of a nursing home

What should I do with all of that time in old age?

What will fulfill you during this next phase of your life? Thats one major question to ask yourself, said Thomas Malone, author of Superminds: The Surprising Power of People and Computers Thinking Together. You can say wisdom is not just the ability to achieve your goals, but to work toward the right goals, he said.

For some, this may be leaving behind a legacy. It sounds philosophical, but one way to determine a persons next steps is to think of what provides the greatest good for the greatest number of people, Malone said. What gives people fulfillment is working toward something bigger than yourself, he said. Finding the answer might become easier as a person ages, because theyll have experiences they can rely on.

But retirement is also a chance to enjoy yourself and take up a hobby or interest you couldnt do in the earlier parts of your life, Malone said.

Coughlin said your life can be broken up into 8,000-day intervals: from birth to college is 8,000 days; from college to midlife is 8,000 days; from midlife to retirement is 8,000 days; and then retirement itself can be another 8,000 days, he said.

How do we want to live life tomorrow? Coughlin asked. Its not just about planning but preparing. We need to physically put things in place about where we live, get around, give and receive care. This is more than putting enough money in the bank its about living longer and better.

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This entry was posted on December 4, 2020 at 12:28 am and is filed under Longevity. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |