Reinvent Yourself Over 50

Reinvent Yourself Over 50 | How to Find Your Purpose

Have you been thinking to yourself lately, “What should I do now?” Or perhaps you have been doing the same thing year after year and it hasn’t occurred to you that you can make changes for yourself. I’m here to tell you that it is possible to reinvent yourself over 50.

Your children are grown and out of the house, or maybe well on their way. Or perhaps you have been in a job that served its purpose to pay the bills but doesn’t fill your soul. If you are struggling with the effect of an empty nest, read Best Tips to Embrace Empty Nest Syndrome.

In our 20’s, 30’s, and 40’s, we charged ahead with our lives. It was filled with climbing the ladder in our careers, raising our children, and taking care of our families. But what now? You may have more freedom to make choices that are authentic to you in this phase in your life and reinvent yourself after 50.

Finding purpose in your life can be scary at any age, but also downright exhilarating to do in our 50’s as we approach midlife.

For myself, in my mid-fifties, I have remarried, started a new career, am on the road to straightening my teeth (again), and considering going back to school to finish my degree.

Why You Should Reinvent Yourself

Middle age is commonly referred to as the sandwich years for midlife women. Your children are grown but still need guidance. For some, one or more of your parents are aging and may require care. And here we are, the meat stuck in the middle.

Or you have been letting yourself get into a rut- You go to work, come home and make dinner, sit on the couch and watch TV, and then go to bed. Only to do it all over again day after day. We don’t give any thought as to how we truly want our lives to be, what makes us happy, or what we want to do next.

Just because this worked for us for previous years, our lives are evolving and so should we. You no longer have soccer practice, homework struggles, or caring for your kids and family. It’s time to WAKE UP, stop living for everyone else, and start living for us.

You can start doing things you’ve always wanted to, but didn’t have time to do because you were taking care of everyone else’s needs.

In the Washington Post article Changing Channels, you can read about women who reinvented themselves over 50.

Is It Too Late To Change Your Life At 50?

The short answer is NO, NO, NO!!

Life expectancy for women is much longer than it was even in our parent’s generation. It used to be that at 50, women would just turn in the towel. But it doesn’t have to be that way. I always say midlife is just the middle of our life, not the end!

Vow to not let menopause define your milestone. We live longer, are healthier, and have more vitality than midlife women of past generations. Take advantage of that and design a life you LOVE. We have a lot more years to live the life we want and have fun.

I have a friend who was a technical writer in corporate America for decades. After reflection and planning, she took a leap to reinvent her life after 50 and found her purpose and passion. Her children were grown so she and her husband decided to move across the country and buy a small farm in Sedona Arizona which has always been a dream for them. She quit her corporate job and is now writing novels that not only fill her passion but also fill the checking account.

Prep Work | Take Stock

When we approach midlife, our lifetime clock seems to be ticking a little louder. It’s time to focus on how we want our lives to play out not only with how we want to live our life but what legacy we want to leave. We get to have a second wind in midlife. Let’s take advantage of it.

The first step to reinvent yourself in your 50’s is to do some prep work and take stock of your lives. Not only where we have been but where we want it to lead.

Ask yourself these questions:

• What have you done so far in your life?
• What do you still want to do?
• What have you learned?
• What are you grateful for?

Celebrate your achievements and acknowledge your disappointments and even your cringeworthy moments. Be careful not to judge yourself, just know that you are going to create the person you want to be going forward.

You might want to journal about this and then make a bucket list of all of the things you dream of, want to do, experience, and travel to.

10 Steps to change yourself in your 50’s

1. What’s Missing?

The first step to reinventing yourself is to take inventory of what is working and what isn’t in your life. In that journal that you took stock of your prior life, begin asking yourself how you want your life to proceed.

As Susie Moore says, ask yourself, “What’s Missing” instead of “What’s Wrong”. It truly puts a better spin on this process to find things that make your heart sing. Search for what brings you joy. After all, when you have joy in your life, you can bring joy to others and it tends to reciprocate.

Questions to Ask Yourself:

• What makes me feel happiest?
• Where do I want to live?
• How would I most like someone to describe me?
• What activities did I do on the best day of my life?
• Do I like my job? If not,what do I want to do now?
• What did I like doing when I was youger that I’ve lost touch with?
• What do I want to do that I haven’t had time to do?
• What is the most important way I want my life to be different in ten years?
• What do I most look forward to each day?
• What do people tell me I’m good at?
• In what ways is the best version of myself different from the current version of myself?
• If I don’t change or add a few of these things, will I be satisfied with myself?

2. Clean Out The Closet

Do you know how refreshing it is when you clean out your closet? We carefully go through our clothes and donate the items that no longer serve us and we don’t absolutely love.

If clothes have stains on them or are torn, we pull them out and rid of them. Or if it is an item that is ripped, but we love and adore it, then we mend or repair it to give it some extra life. If its worn out, is itchy, uncomfortable, or doesn’t fit any longer- we donate and make room for fresh new clothes.

We should “clean out the closet” with our lives as well. Either donating or tossing activities and ideas that no longer serve us, are stained, uncomfortable, and no longer fit.

Once you sort through your “closet”, it’s refreshing to have the things we truly love and there is space to put in the things that we identified that are missing- new activities, relationships, and ideas that speak to our soul.

3. Let Go of Fear and Empower Yourself

Change is scary. There, I’ve said it.

But by being confident in yourself, you will feel empowered to make changes for the good. Besides, facing your fears will help you grow in leaps and bounds. Usually, the scariest part is making the decision to do something different, but once that is done, it can actually be exciting!

If you don’t take time to reflect and make up your mind to change a few things, the comfort of your comfort zone can keep you there forever.

4. Celebrate Your Youth

We discovered that women today live much longer than women a couple of generations ago. Today’s 50-year-olds are more youthful, fitter, and healthier than ever.

You’re old enough to know yourself, what works for you and what doesn’t. You know what makes you happy.

And you’re young enough to make it happen! So why not celebrate our youth and continue on with what makes us happy and fulfilled?

5. Embrace Your Finances

Most likely you are in a different financial position now than when you were in your twenties. Your financial situation may be better as the kids have moved out (no more ballet class or football uniforms to purchase).

You may have a smaller mortgage or have paid off your home. Your home in which you raised your family may be more house than you need. Read Should I Downsize for Retirement? to see if it makes sense for you to do so at this point in your life.

When looking at your finances, you may discover that you CAN buy a boat or step down to a different position.

6. Find Your Pace

In our younger years, we were sometimes out until all hours of the night living it up with our friends. As we get to this point in our lives we no longer have the stress of climbing the corporate ladder.

We are old enough and wise and can step back and observe rather than being caught up in the rat race. You can choose to slow the pace and free up time to be with who you want and do what you want to do. You get to choose the pace you want to live your life.

7. Game Plan

Now that you have celebrated what you have accomplished in life so far and pondered how you want your life to be in the future, it is time to come up with a game plan so that you can live your dream and new you!

Envision what is next. You have matured and have the confidence to discover and act upon what legacy you want to leave. How are you going to make this time count?

Meditate in your own way to slow down and contemplate in order to come up with a game plan with dates to accomplish the steps to get to where you want to be. Take action, as a dream is just a dream until you activate the steps to get there.

Ooh- this is getting exciting now! You have clarity on what you want and a roadmap on how to get there. Pretty quickly you will be living the new you. While working on your action plan, there are a few things to be done to feel even better.

8. Shed the Baggage

Shed unwanted baggage. Look at your behaviors or habits that are not helpful to achieving the reinvented you.

Evaluate relationships that have run their course and disperse your energy to your new goals. You may have grown apart from some friends as you have both evolved in your life and now have different interests. It’s okay to find new friends that are more in alignment with your life going forward. See Female Friends in Midlife and How to Find them for some tips.

Work on yourself and shed any bitterness for past transgressions from others. An old saying says, Stop looking in the rearview mirror, it’s not the direction you are going.

9. Stay Healthy

You have new beginnings and things we want to be, do, and experience in this new chapter. Re-establish your health so that you can continue to achieve those things. By taking care of your health you will replenish your energy to soar in the next adventures in life.

Work on eating healthier and getting in some exercise such as walking or pilates. When you are fit you will be able to go hiking, white water rafting, go to the water park, travel, and for some-keep up with the grandkids.

Keep up on your checkups at the doctor and dentist and do what they say to ensure your longevity.

Practice your self-care to feel good. It’s ok to go ahead and schedule a massage or facial. You deserve it!

10. Clean Up

Literally- clean up. When there is less clutter in your home you create a clean slate to envision and act upon reinventing yourself. Toss what doesn’t serve you anymore or isn’t in the picture of the new you. Do you really need that breadmaker that you haven’t used in 20 years? Make room in the garage for your new paddleboard or downsize all together so that you can live the life you want.

Final Thoughts to Reinvent Yourself Over 50

Share your vision with your closest friends. This not only gives you accountability, but you also share the joy of your accomplishments. Who knows, you may even inspire them to reinvent themselves and live a life they want also.

Remember that reinvention is a journey, not a moment in time. Once you reflect, plan, and start taking action on your plan, you will have the clarity to live life with more meaning and purpose. You have the time and power to catch up on the things you always wanted to experience but never got around to doing.