TED Talks are short and powerful presentations by experts and world-renowned speakers. These inspiring talks are not longer than 18 minutes (while most speakers aim for under 10 minutes).
Ted Talks are quality content covering any possible topic including health care, education, entertainment, climate change, and more.
I have also shared the best Ted Talks for seniors on many different topics. Let us have a look at the top Ted Talks on retirement. These Talks will make you rethink and redefine retirement and help you get the most out of your golden years.
10 Best Ted Talks on Retirement
1: The 4 Phases of Retirement
Dr.Riley Moynes points out that more than 10,000 Americans are retiring every day. Retirees spend an average of one-third of their lives in retirement. By interviewing hundreds of retirees, Dr. Riley discovered a framework on “how do you squeeze all the juice out of retirement” and he shares his finding in this talk.
“I wish I knew then what I know now about the psychological challenges that accompany retirement. It would have made things much clearer and easier.”
Dr.Riley Moynes, while talking about his research.
This is one of the Ted Talks on retirement that is helpful for both retired and about-to-retire people. It makes things much clearer for retirees and helps you in understanding what to expect when you retire.
About Dr.Riley Moynes Riley served as a teacher, department head, and director of education in his distinguished career spanning four decades, in the public and private sectors. He was a founding partner of the National Wealth Management Firm and author of several textbooks. His book “The Money Coach” sold over 200,000 copies in six editions and he co-authored several editions of “Top Funds”. His recent book “The Four Phases of Retirement” (the basis of this TED Talk) became a Canadian best seller. This talk explains the four phases of retirement in less than 15 minutes.
2: Rethink Retirement – Well-being beyond Your Bank Account
Clare Davenport helps you continue to live vibrantly during your retirement by redefining and redesigning the important stage of your life.
She introduces another type of ROI (beyond your bank account) for your long-term happiness and well-being.
Clare is a life design coach and a change agent for well-being. Shee shares ideas and frameworks to help retirees get the most out of their golden years.
Rethink retirement with the new definition of ROI (Reform, Optimize, and Ignite).
- Reform (rethink and design) your retirement definition
- Optimize for your well-being in your retirement
- Ignite your path forward
Clare challenges you to create a retirement canvas, full of colors and textures of well-being. This talk helps you create your own ROI for increased satisfaction, productivity, and performance in retirement
About Clare Davenport Clare is the founder of Designing4Better and a published author. She began her career at Goldman Sachs, followed by 20 years in strategy management for Fortune 500 companies.
3: Retirement: The Best Years of Your Life?
James Cobb argues that retirement years should be a celebration of your life bringing new experiences, and adventures. He highlights some important statistics from different research, like:
- People are happiest at the age of 82 years
- Yet, 9 out of 10 are not looking forward to old age
He has talked to many residents of retirement villages and communities. James found them happier and satisfied but only 0.6% of UK seniors live in these communities. The numbers are much higher in Australia, New Zealand, and the US (where 8% of those over-65s live in community living).
This talk highlights how health challenges can be managed easily and 92% elderly never need care in life.
James Cobb makes you look forward to old age and turn it into the age of celebration of life.
4: Redefining Retirement
Dean Waggenspack challenges the audience to redefine retirement away from depart, remove and withdraw. He brings a new definition of Pay, Passion, and Purpose.
- Pay means generating income to meet financial needs. Recognize that many people need to/ want to work later in life. (Read: 12 Fun Retirement Jobs That Pay a Small Fortune).
- Passion means doing something that is important to you. It can be a hobby, golfing, consulting or anything that makes you happy. (Read: 12 Fun Things for Bored Seniors to Do At Home)
- Purpose means doing something for the greater good in the community and society. You can help others, work with local charities and volunteer your time for causes of your choice.
This is one of the Ted Talks on retirement that makes you reimagine elderhood and redefine retirement. Dean highlights how the greatest generation was the first and only generation to enjoy “golden years” (life without work but with financial stability).
Things have changed as 10 years are added to life expectancy. we are capable of doing more later in life (thanks to less physically demanding work).
People retiring now have a unique opportunity to create their unique retirement and “Redefine Retirement”.
About Dean Waggenspack Dean is a professional certified career/life coach and a blogger. He worked in Fortune 500 Company for nearly 30 years. Dean was a high school teacher focused on personal finance and business-related classes.
5: Is Retirement Bad for Your Brain?
With retirement comes a great opportunity to enjoy well-deserved vacations and have a great time of life without interruption.
Ross Andel points out that there may be a dark side to retirement. Under certain circumstances, retirement could speed up the aging of the brain and make you forgetful. There is a hidden danger in form of increased risk of cognitive decline and dementia.
In his research, Ross focuses on identifying the ways to slow down cognitive decline that comes with age and reduce the risk of dementia among retirees through diet, exercise and leisure activities and modification to the work environment.
This is one of the best Ted talks on retirement that highlights a real danger and helps you have a wonderful retirement while avoiding/reducing the risk of memory decline and dementia.
About Ross Andel Ross is a professor in the School of Aging Studies at the University of South Florida, Tampa. He has published 130 peer-reviewed articles and several book chapters. Ross has been involved in research to distinguish true signs of cognitive impairment from normal cognitive aging.
6: Saving for Tomorrow, Tomorrow
Shlomo Benartzi addresses the issue of saving in his Ted Talk. It is easy to imagine saving money in the future but how about right now? Shlomo points out that
- 50% of Americans do not have access to 401 (K) plan
- Only 33% of Americans actually save to a 401 (K) plan
- And only 1 out of 10 are saving enough for retirement
This is one of the best Ted talks on retirement planning that helps you understand why people are not saving. The speaker highlights the necessary behavioral changes and ideas to help you save for retirement.
About Shlomo Benartzi Shlomo Benartzi is a professor and a co-founder of the Save More Tomorrow (SMarT) program. The program helps employees increase their saving rate gradually over time. SMarT increased employee saving rates from 3.5% to 13.6%. It is now offered by more than half of large retirement plans in the U.S. The program has also been incorporated into the Pension Protection Act of 2006, enabling 15 million Americans to boost their retirement savings. Checkout Save More Tomorrow: Practical Behavioral Finance Solutions to Improve 401 (K) Plans by Shlomo Benartzi
7: Retirement Redefined
Latest surveys suggest that 92% of Americans ages 40 and older plan to work after their retirement, citing a longer life expectancy than previous generations.
John Shields advocates a purpose-filled retirement and helps you redefine retirement to gain many years of satisfaction and meaning. He shares stories of retired folks who chose to not fully retire and contribute and share their wisdom with the younger generation.
This is one of the best Ted talks on retirement planning. It encourages you to be useful and relevant after your retirement.
About John Shields John has spent more than 30 years of his life helping others to prepare for a purpose-filled retirement. He holds multiple licenses in the financial field. He is also a speaker, National Trainer and board member of the local YMCA.
8: Retirement is Redundant
Dr Catherine Rickwood challenges our assumptions about aging and retirement in her Ted talk. She questions the current approaches; age stereotypes and ageism are limiting imagination and innovation.
She proposes ways to rethink our approach to aging to create a different future for everyone.
9: Why You Should Think About Financial Independence & Mini Retirements
This Ted talk highlights how we are “time-poor” to have fun in our youth. Most of our time before retirement is spent working. We only have an average of two decades of feeling “time-rich” to look forward to at end-of-life retirement.
Lacey Filipich shares a way to bring some of the “time-rich” feeling to our youth by combining financial independence and mini-retirements.
Personal health issues and losing her sister at a young age made Lacey look at life differently. She came across The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss, the New York Times best-seller. The book encourages us to take time off as mini-retirements to have fun when we are not yet fully retired.
Time Ferris also shows ways to achieve financial independence.
10: How To Live to Be 100+
Dan Buettner studies the world’s “Blue Zones”, communities whose elders live to record-setting ages. In his Ted talk, he shares 9 common denominators (diet and lifestyle habits) that helped these people to live longer and healthier lives.
You can adopt some of these habits and lifestyle changes for healthy aging and to avoid age-related issues.
7 Takeaways from Best Ted Talks on Retirement
Some of the key takeaways from these Ted Talks are:
1: Retirement Planning
Know that there are psychological challenges to retirement as highlighted in the “4 Phases of Retirement” talk. Saving and investing your savings in the right place is also very important.
As highlighted in the “Saving for Tomorrow, Tomorrow” Talk, only 1 out of 10 Americans are saving enough for retirement.
2: Retirement is a Celebration of Your Life
Have fun and enjoy your retirement. The surveys suggest (as shown in “Retirement: The Best Years of Your Life?” talk) that you are happiest at the age of 82 years old. You are “time-rich” to have a good time and celebrate your life.
3: Retirement is Not Scary
9 out of 10 people are not looking forward to old age, as James Cobb points out in his talk. This is because of the fear of aging. The surveys suggest that 92% elderly never need care in life and you are happier and more content as you get old.
4: Phases of Retirement
Know that there are phases of retirement (as Dr.Riley suggests in The 4 Phases of Retirement). You can “squeeze all the juice from retirement” if you prepare for the psychological challenges that accompany retirement.
5: Have a Purpose
It is common to experience isolation and loneliness after retirement. Keep yourself busy by doing something for the greater good of the community.
You can volunteer for charity work or help a cause you care about.
6: Consider Working Part Time
You can avoid isolation by working part-time. John Shields shared stories (in Retirement Redefined Talk) of retired folks who chose to not stay at home. They remain active in contributing to society and helping the younger generation.
You can work part-time on your own schedule and generate some good income.
7: Stay Mentally and Physically Active
Whether you like playing golf or enjoy solving puzzles, stay physically and mentally active. As Ross Andel points out in his talk, retirement has a hidden danger of cognitive decline and a risk of dementia.
Keep yourself busy with outdoor activities and regularly put your brain to work by solving puzzles and other brain exercises.
Here are some of the articles to get you started