6 networking tips for retirees

Getting your finances in order before you retire is not just important, it's crucial. But just as important is the emotional side of retirement.

Financial advisers will tell you it is critical that you enter retirement with both a financial plan and a plan that lays out what you will do every day. Otherwise, you could end up looking desperately for something to do. Or, you could be totally dependent on your spouse for your daily activities — which just might account for the rising divorce rate among Baby Boomers.

Remember, people are living longer. So you are likely to live just as long in retirement as you did in your working life.

The key to that successful retirement is to make sure you have two plans — one a financial plan, and the other being what you will do for the rest of your life. And a big part of that latter plan is to make sure you stay connected.

Emily Sanders, financial planner and managing director of United Capital in Atlanta, says many people get social interaction at work. That's why it's such an issue when they retire.

"When they retire, unless they replace that with something else, they may feel a loss," she says. "Studies have shown that being in touch with other people helps them stay intellectually active, improves longevity and helps ward off dementia."

When you technically retire from whatever it is you've been doing, it doesn't mean you retire from life, says George Fraser, 70, corporate networking guru and author of Click: Ten Truths for Building Extraordinary Relationships. "You wouldn't retire and go to a rocking chair and sit and stare at television for 12 hours. You would be dead sooner rather than later."

Fraser says networking and staying involved is critical in every stage of your life. And it takes on added importance once you leave the workplace.

"Isolation can happen," says AARP family and caregiving expert Amy Goyer. "When people are isolated, research says they have higher health risks, and higher mental health risks. At AARP, it is a key issue, because it affects all the other issues. You may not be taking care of your home. There may be health issues, home and safety issues. People who are isolated tend to not be eating as well and having good nutrition. It is a quality-of-life issue and also a concrete aging issue in terms of safety and well-being."

Fraser, who has 51,000 people in his network and has written and spoken on networking for 40 years, has six networking tips for retirees and pre-retirees.

1. Join retirement groups of like-minded people. Fraser suggests creating a business card with your name, address, e-mail address and that you are retired. "Let people know what you've been doing and who you were doing it for. When they look at that card, they see that you are of value — a retired plumber, retired electrician or retired business owner. They appreciate you for the elder statesmanship and wise counsel you bring in your subject of expertise."

Jeff Warnkin, financial adviser with JL Smith Group in Avon, Ohio, says his company prepares business cards for newly minted retirees. "All during their working lives, they carried business cards. That was their identity."

John Gajkowski, principal at Money Managers Financial Group in Chicago, says many companies have retiree groups that meet on a regular basis. He tells clients to get involved with them. He says he has a client who retired 20 years ago from 3M but is still actively participating in a retiree group.

2. Develop a networking system. Fraser says he makes five calls daily to friends or family (warning them he has only 10 minutes); he contacts five new friends, people he has met through speaking engagements, church or other activities (usually by e-mail); and, lastly, he makes five introductions of people who need to know each other. "This is what I have been doing for 40 years. These are good habits. If prior to retirement you have not developed them, it would help you greatly to maintain and fuel new and interesting relationships in your life."

3. Develop a regimen of retirement activities. Fraser says his regimen includes social media on a daily basis for at least a half-hour, visiting websites such as AARP, LinkedIn or financial sites. He goes to at least one professional meeting weekly, where he will meet people from similar fields — whether in sales and marketing or finance. "You want to keep your finger on the pulse," he says. Quarterly, he says, you should do "casual contact networking" at an event where there are hundreds of people. It could be a flea market, a gun show, a Civil War show. And finally, once a year, go to an event outside of your local community, like a national conference. "Even at 70, I have an insatiable appetite for learning. I want to keep my mind active. The more active you keep your mind, the better you are in warding off Alzheimer's."

4. Develop new streams of income. "Although you are retired, I still think that people should have an interest in developing new streams of income doing something that they love. The business of America is business. This is ice cream money. It is cruise money. It is also a way to keep your mind sharp and network with new people." But be careful, Sanders says. Earned income may have an impact on your Social Security.

5. Do the things you were always too busy to do. For Fraser, it has been learning about the financial system, stocks and mutual funds. "Learn about, dabble in and have fun with those things we were to busy to do while we were raising a family. Your life is consumed by that. The kids are gone and you're empty-nesters." Go to classes and meet like-minded people. "It is a way to keep active in spite of retirement."

Sanders says if there is a college nearby, consider non-credit courses. Universities usually let people 62 and over audit their classes, she says. And Gajkowski says he has lots of clients who go back and take classes at high schools or community colleges.

6. Read. Find book clubs. There are reading events at Barnes and Noble bookstores. Meet authors. "It's another great way to met people. I love reading, but I never had the time to read as much as I wanted to read. Make new friendships and stay alive and vibrant and interesting. That's one of the key ideas around retirement and networking. If you are interested in things, it means you are interesting. The more interesting you are, the more people you attract."

"In the old days, intellectual capital ended when we retired," says Warnkin. "Now, more than ever, retirees have a great opportunity, if not a calling, to document that experience. Social networking is a way to do it. It allows them to remain active."

"The last thing you want to be in life is boring," says Fraser. "No one wants to be around a boring person if all you talk about is weather and sports."