On September 25, 2026, Former Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy received the Robert Coles “Call of Service” award from the Phillips Brooks House Association at Harvard University. I listened to him describe his own career path that’s been steered by connecting, listening, and asking, “what’s needed?” Two comments in particular stood out that relate to success in retirement planning, beyond the financials.
The first was:
“Success without fulfillment is the ultimate failure. We’ve been misled about what fulfillment is. It comes when we do three things:
- Love (which provides belonging)
- Serve (which provides meaning), and
- Play (which provides joy).”
Fulfillment after Work: Creating Belonging, Meaning, and Joy
For many professionals, work has provided all three sources of fulfillment. Belonging came from their teams, colleagues and their firm. It came from people who knew their name and relied on their presence and judgement. Meaning arose from solving clients’ problems or providing mentorship to new hires. Play showed up in all kinds of forms: shared moments of laughter, nicknames, inside jokes.
When someone considers selling a business or retiring, the question is less about “what will I do with my time?” It’s “where will my needs for belonging, meaning and joy come from now?”
Building Meaning in Retirement, Moment by Moment
The second thing that Dr. Murthy proposed was to downsize the search for meaning as a large, looming question. Instead, make it a short-term one:
“What would feel meaningful right now?”
I love this reframe. I often see clients agonize over the question, “what’s my purpose?” once they’ve stepped away from the C-suite, a business, or a long career. That question becomes right-sized when they start with small acts. They explore an activity they haven’t had time to do. Maybe they schedule conversations with people they’ve wanted to talk to for a while. Or they try on a project to see how it fits. Showing up in the present moment helps them gather new information and discover new potential sources of belonging, meaning, and joy.
An Opportunity to Build Meaning with Others
Post-career belonging, meaning, and joy are at the heart of my Purposeful Transitions group program. We explore these questions together in a community that itself becomes a source of belonging during a time when many people are leaving their professional one. Let’s talk about how joining an upcoming program can support your post-career transition to a fulfilling life.
Pictured: Michael Curry, Esq. and Alta Mauro, PhD. presenting the Robert Coles “Call of Service” to Dr. Vivek Murthy, September 25, 2026.