Don't feel like you're up to working toward that big goal yet? At least keep it in mind. That will buoy you and provide time to further develop the idea.

For those who might need a spark, here's a baker's dozen of big goals well suited for folks who are older:

• Run for local office: school board, town council, etc.
• Invent something. Devise a better garden kneepad, for example.
• Take a group of older people on a long bike ride or a hike. In the evening, talk about your goals.
• Set up a local, old-fashioned matchmaking service for older people.
• Renovate a boat, plane, or home.
• Create a homework hotline, pairing students needing help with other students and adults willing to provide it. Assistance could be offered by phone, in person, and online.
• Write an article or even a book. For example, I'm thinking of writing An Honest Look at Race in America. Or I might write a book on how to get a great college education (and a great job) without drowning in debt.
• Do a public-access cable TV show in which you read stories to children or even adults. (Few things are as nurturing as being read to aloud.)
• Create a series of paintings depicting older people doing great things. Pester a local bank, restaurant, or theater lobby to let you display them.
• Volunteer for SCORE, an organization in which retired executives help people start businesses, or even create your own such enterprise.
• Write a stand-up comedy routine. Perform it at a local open-mike event, or go for broke and try it in Hollywood. Who knows? Maybe you'll be discovered.
• Volunteer to work on a scientific research team. Oceanography? Genetics? Whatever moves you. If necessary, start by washing test tubes.
• Take acting classes. Try out for a community theater play.

Of course, don't limit yourself to these. What other big goal might you want to pursue? Kate Wendleton, founder of the Five O'Clock Club, a national career coaching service, writes, "The reality of death can make us get more out of the time we do have . . . At 40, 50, 60, you will find that you are now using everything you have ever learned in your life."

Now, more than ever, is the time to set goals–big goals.