Article by Ceri Wheeldon
At times it seems that the world is full of couples, and if you are married or in a long term relationship, it is so easy to slip into being one half of a couple, instead of an individual.
It is a hard fact of life, however, that most women will find themselves living alone at some point. Just watching the much acclaimed Fabulous Fashionistas highlighted how life had changed for those women in the programmes who found themselves widowed – one after a happy 54 year marriage. They had all embraced this new stage of their lives with gusto!
We never know when , or for what reason we may find ourselves single, essential then to be prepared.
7 Tips to prepare for a single life over 50
1. Develop interests and hobbies that are not reliant on having a partner to be involved.
2. Develop and maintain friendships with single friends, or plan some activities with friends with partners which do not involve your other halves.
3. Make sure you will have the income or skills to acquire an income to maintain your lifestyle – even if you don’t need to work now, ensure you maintain skills which will give you options later – you may want to return to work for the social aspect even if you don’t have to work for financial reasons.
4. Think about where you want to live – many couples think about retiring abroad – but would you want to live abroad, away from family if you were to find yourself alone. Think about the logistics of the situation if you are looking to retire somewhere sunny! A remote cottage in the country might sound great as part of a couple- but would you want to live away from everything if you were on your own?
5. Find and follow your passions now, so you have activities and interests to carry you through should you find yourself alone.
6. Make sure you know the full details of any joint finances so that there are no surprises later!
7. Think about how you divide the household chores – we all tend to step into routines – avoid the gender trap – at some point you may have to manage them all yourself! I know from experience , when I met my husband after a long period of living alone, he was astonished to see that I had a better equipped toolbox than him! Be prepared!
Ceri Wheeldon
Ceri is Founder and Editor of Fabafterfifty.co.uk She is a frequent speaker at events and in the media on topics related to women over 50 , including style and living agelessly. With 20+ years experience as a headhunter Ceri also now helps support those looking to extend their working lives.
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Catherine
Keeping busy and always having something on is a fantastic way to prepare for single life. When you have lots going on in your life and have lots of interests and friends, you feel much more happier within yourself and that is actually ironically when you will most likely attract someone -when you’re not even looking!