Introduce yourself without talking about your job
Imagine yourself at a friend’s birthday cocktail party, where it’s normal to meet new people and do self-introductions with a glass of champagne in hand. You can do all the chit-chats you want but there’s one rule - you can’t mention anything about your work or job-related information. How would you go about that?
MENTAL REHEARSAL 10-20 YEARS BEFORE RETIRING
Why? You might ask… because this is a rehearsal for you to face your life after you retire. No matter how high you climb the corporate ladder, you no longer carry a business card, and you don’t have a job title after your retirement. YOU ARE YOURSELF.
This is one mental preparation that is required way before we retire (I would suggest at least 10 years ahead), because this is the reality that will hit us - the confidence we’ve built from the first 2/3 of our lives from the success at work will be eroded eventually, especially if your confidence is built solely on your job title on your business card.
THE CHALLENGE
So here’s a challenge for you this week - introduce yourself to 5 new connections without talking about your work-related info even if they ask you. People will understand if you tell them you’re undergoing a challenge with some friends, and you can also invite them to join in to make your conversations fun! Trust me, I’ve tried it multiple times and it worked like magic during my previous “mini-retirement” periods. It might also help to draft a short script beforehand, during which you might discover something about yourself that you’ve forgotten for a while! Below are some ideas which might help with some inspiration:
passion
hobbies
life purpose
personal projects
volunteering
topics that you care about whole-heartedly
your personal experiences/stories
continuing education, etc.
The benefit
Try it more often, you might realize you are a human and you are meeting another human - we can build lasting personal relationships because the first introduction is not about work, and it’s never work only. We can build our personal social circle before it’s too late (at least 10 years before your target retirement age) - I do see a lot of business-oriented people in their 50s, 60s, and 70s who have worked really hard all through their lives (entrepreneurs, beware too!) don’t have many “friends” outside of work.
After all, we are all social animals. Start building towards a happy retirement life with these baby steps. Have fun trying this challenge! Leave a comment after your trial, I would love to hear your thoughts!
If you are interested in learning more about our happy retirement planning process, you can visit this page.
