George H. Schofield, Ph.D.

We know anecdotally and from the literature that when you say "aging" people immediately think of Elderly. Notions of Elderly are then immediately coupled with the essential topics of loss/decline, quality of life, housing, community, health care, retirement, transportation, intellectual stimulation, nutrition, a balanced mix of dependence/independence/interdependence, and providing the many important services the Elderly will require now and in the future. Take a few minutes now to look at yourself in a mirror and then go out for a walk to observe the people you pass. You will note that aging begins well before elderly.

The potentially bad news is that, regardless of our own desires and the desires of people who want to sell us facial surgery and medicines, we will all grow older over time although not all of us at the same rate. Do you know old 65 year olds or young 85 year olds? The realities of aging are going to be less and less determined by chronological age. They will be increasingly determined by our individual and collective awareness, skill, and social/personal agility.

The potentially good news is that aging is organic. It usually doesn't sneak up on us without warning. If we are paying attention and have continued with our Lifelong Learning, we will individually have the opportunity to decide when we are Elderly rather than having that label and status assigned to us by our chronological age or by other people.

George H. Schofield, Ph.D. is an expert in Human Development/Lifelong Learning in the period between 50 and Elderly. Just as the period between ages 5 and 10 serves as a developmental platform for the necessary skills and awareness between ages 10 and 15, the period between 50 and Elderly serves as a developmental platform for the essential skills and awareness we will need later in our lives. Our developmental opportunities in the period between 50 and Elderly are huge because the life changes are huge. For many of us:

• our children become independent
• our relationship to our work (including parenting) and its importance in our life changes dramatically
• our familiar roles slowly change or evaporate
• our bodies change and we lose some forms of physical prowess we earlier relied upon
• our positioning our family and social constellations change
• we have fewer recuperative financial years if we make a poor investment or employment decision
• many of our long standing personal interests are replaced by new interests and priorities
• our hopes and dreams change, filtered and modified by our life experiences

While it's possible to see these as a series of losses, they are, in fact, a series of opportunities for each of us to develop the skill, agility, refined identities, and new approaches we will need for later in our lives.

As a highly experienced researcher/author/speaker/panelist, George Schofield prefers to deliver interactive, engaging, tailored presentations for specific audiences on the subjects most important to them. This means George and Presentation/Conference Leaders and Managers partner up front to make sure content and learning objectives are identified and clear.

In addition to his professional experience George has been very active as a volunteer in aging circles including:

• Past President, Advisory Council to the Commission on Aging and Disability Services of the City and County of San Francisco (two terms)
• Nominated by the City and County of San Francisco for appointment to the California Commission on Aging
• Past President, California State Association of the 33 Advisory Councils (TACC) to the 33 Commissions on Aging and Adult Services across the state
• Presenter (2008 and 2009) American Society on Aging National Convention
• Presenter OLLI, San Francisco

You can meet George, see his aging-related interests, and hear him speak by going to www.georgeschofield.com and http://tinyurl.com/c3ttxf.

	George H. Schofield can be reached at:   George H. Schofield, Ph.D.   The Clarity Group, LLC   Mailing Address: P O BOX 110084   Bradenton, FL 34211-0084   Office (941) 388 8108   Fax (866) 480 6193   george@georgeschofield.com