For most of us, the decades of our lives are a blur. Looking back, it’s easy to feel mixed emotions. On the one hand, we have lived exciting and varied lives.

Many of us have raised children, travelled the world, helped others and explored our passions. On the other hand, after 6 decades on this planet, many of us feel exhausted. We wonder where the meaning in our life will come from now that the social roles that defined our past are gone.

What will we do with our lives now that our children have moved away and our careers are ending? Will we, as Dylan Marlais Thomas wrote, “go gentle into that good night”? Knowing our generation of women, I think that’s highly unlikely!

How Can We Find Meaning in Life After 60?

We want to apply our hard-earned wisdom and experience to making the world a better place. We want to feel important, valued and appreciated.

I recently came across a program that reminded me how simple acts of kindness can help us to find meaning in our lives. The program, organized by CNA language schools, paired young people in Brazil with elderly people living in a retirement community in the United States. The goal was to teach the young Brazilians English, while giving the older Americans a sense of purpose.  The result was magical.

Please take a few minutes to watch the video now. It is fantastic!

I love this idea for two reasons. First, it reminds us that we don’t need any special skills to make a difference in the world. Second, it shows that finding meaning in our own lives comes from meaning something to others. You can’t have one without the other!

If you want to find meaning in your life after 60, find ways to mean something to others.

There are so many mentoring opportunities out there. The younger generations need our wisdom as much as we need to their appreciation. Please take the first step today and look for ways to help in your community. What you plant with kindness in the lives of others will grow into happiness in your own life.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Let’s get a conversation started below about how to find meaning in life after 60 by helping others.

How do you find meaning and purpose in your life now that your traditional family and work roles have changed? Do you mentor younger people? What do you think about the CNA language school program? Would you participate in something like this? Please join the conversation.