Not everyone referred to EML is ready to face the reality of their changing prospects for later life. While fees are sometimes cited as being the issue, they are nothing more than a convenient excuse along with, ‘I’m too young’, ‘I’m too busy’ etc etc. The real message is ‘I don’t want to acknowledge my […]
Give yourself a little bounce….! When the family was younger we had a trampoline – complete with a safety net that made it look like an old fashioned gas tower. For many years it gave immense enjoyment, for bouncing on, camping under and even as a playground for the cats. As our young children grew […]
One simple tool for maintaining relationships is your address book. In addition to contact information I try to include a birthday (if known) or better a date of birth (the latter containing a year – useful for those special birthdays). Birthdays show in my calendar and, for a few quid annually, I subscribe to an […]
In researching the impact of global longevity EML identified six key areas of life that together, differentiated those who were successful in negotiating later life from those who were less so. There was no silver bullet, no ‘one thing’ that will make all the difference, instead those who were seen by their peers as ‘doing […]
This morning I woke up to a world full of promise. For the last three years I have held public office – a demanding role that kept me busy 24/7 – and I loved it! Yesterday I handed the reigns to my successor, sent out my final emails and closed a chapter. Today new adventures […]
At any age changing your behaviour can be a challenge. We become accustom to comfortable routines which perpetuate long past their intended purpose. Sometimes its what you do and sometimes its what you don’t. Talk to many octogenarians about taking a taxi and they look at you as if you are mad. One was seriously […]
Talking about death can be a catalyst for unusual discussions – and occasionally inspirational revelations. Some people are great planners putting considerable thought into their own demise while others, like one relative, a top class hoarder, simply shrugged and said ‘well, it won’t be my problem’. There are some that seek to exercise ‘intrusive control’ […]
When it comes to applying the research EML conducts, I like to be the guinea pig. When recommending anything to others there is little more powerful than saying you’ve done it yourself. Multiple visits to A&E with elderly relatives highlighted the need to know, and ideally be able to demonstrate, what was ‘normal’. Looking beyond […]
Long before I ran the world’s largest survey into changing attitudes towards later life I was already aware of the divide between ‘Old money’ and the rest of us. A good friend worked as a land agent advising ‘old money’ on running their estates and through him I gleaned an insight into a totally different […]
Today feels like it has been a good day and I’m wondering why? This is important because, if I can work out what has made it a good day, I can work towards ensuring I have them more often! There has been no one big event – if there had then it may have been […]