Transforming Aging: Innovation and Opportunity with Dr. Jim Firman
Rejuvenaging with Dr. Ron Kaiser
Dr. Ron Kaiser
5.0 • 1.4K Ratings
🗓️ 23 April 2024
⏱️ 36 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode of REJUVENAGINGⓇ with Dr. Ron Kaiser, we are joined by Dr. Jim Firman, a trailblazer in the field of aging and the founder and Chief Innovation Officer at BetterAge. With a career spanning over four decades, Jim has dedicated himself to enhancing the quality of life for older adults. He shares his profound insights and experiences, including his leadership roles and the impactful programs he helped create during his 25 years as President and CEO of the National Council on Aging.
He discusses the development of significant initiatives such as the Benefits Checkup, a free online tool that has assisted millions of seniors in accessing benefits, and the Aging Mastery Program, designed to empower older adults with knowledge and skills across various aspects of life. Jim’s narrative is enriched with personal stories that shaped his passion for aging issues, including the influence of his grandparents and his early ventures into social entrepreneurship during his college days.
Throughout the episode, Jim articulates the evolving challenges faced by an aging population in a world unprepared for its growing numbers. He emphasizes the need for innovative solutions and societal shifts to better support this demographic, detailing BetterAge’s vision and strategy to address these needs through technology and community engagement.
This episode not only celebrates Jim Firman’s contributions and the transformative work of BetterAge but also serves as a motivational dialogue on rethinking aging, fostering a society that values and supports its elderly members more effectively. Dr. Ron and Dr. Jim’s conversation offers valuable perspectives on proactive living, the importance of holistic health, and the societal benefits of nurturing an environment where older adults can thrive.
Resources
https://www.linkedin.com/company/betterage
https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-firman-b948a517/
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | My grandfather was a professor and a dean at Columbia Dental School and he had a very active life and then at 65 he was forced to retire because of mandatory retirement, his wife, my grandmother, |
| 0:16.2 | had some illnesses. They moved in with us and he went from being a very active thriving person |
| 0:23.2 | for somebody who's stuck in the suburbs |
| 0:25.1 | hanging out with a seven-year-old. |
| 0:26.7 | And that made quite an impression on me. |
| 0:30.7 | And on me and |
| 0:40.4 | Welcome to rejuvenating with Dr. Ron Kaiser. This is a podcast designed to help you lead your life enthusiastically today, tomorrow, and every other day. your know, and TEDx speaker and author of rejuvenating the art and science of growing older with enthusiasm. |
| 0:57.5 | I'm also a chief immersion officer at better age, the company that is helping to improve the health and |
| 1:06.1 | well-being of older adults throughout the world. And it's in that capacity that I am so thrilled to be bringing you today's guest. |
| 1:16.5 | Dr. Jim Furman, aside from hiring me for better age, was the founder of better age and now is chief innovation officer. |
| 1:27.0 | But his history of working with older adults and being innovative, successful and so on really goes back more than 40 years, including 25 years as president and CEO of the National Council on Aging. |
| 1:49.3 | During his tenure, the NCOA developed many, many programs including the benefits checkup that is a free online tool that has helped millions of older adults become aware of benefits that are |
| 2:09.7 | available to him. He also co-created the aging mastery program and if any of you have |
| 2:20.0 | visited the aging mastery program or been part of it. You know the philosophy is so much in line with |
| 2:28.5 | the philosophy of rejuvenating the mental health gym and all the stuff that we look at from a positive psychology standpoint. |
| 2:37.0 | Jim is kind of a serial innovator and so he's not stopped. We'll learn more about what he's doing now and how it's going to help older adults on those who are currently older adults and all of those of you who will be. |
| 2:58.2 | So it is the greatest honor for me to welcome you, Jim. It's such a pleasure to have you here on rejuvenating with Dr. |
| 3:06.4 | Ron Kaiser. |
| 3:07.4 | Thank you, Ron. It's delightful to be on the show with you and to have you as a partner and a colleague as we work to help |
| 3:18.9 | everybody in the world to age as well as possible. |
| 3:22.0 | Great. Well, let me in the world's age as well as possible. |
| 3:39.3 | Great. Well, let me ask you some. I mean, now you're, now you're approaching my age, you'll never, never catch me because I think I got a decade or more on you but you've been working with older adults since long before you were an older adult. |
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