Does retirement mean you have to stop working?
What if you have no intention to retire?
For some people stopping work, doing what they love to do, is impossible. Sure, they may reduce the hours they are in the job, or business; but the idea of not working is not an option for them.
Retirement is often regarded as a transition, moving from a busy life of doing and achieving, to a way of being and enjoying. This way of being involves taking a fresh look and perspective on what is important to you – a perspective that will direct your future activities and engagement in the world of work and your community.
At this transition time, people may take ‘time-out’ to review their lives and be open to all future possibilities. Retirement may be ‘forced’ on them, due to employment contracts but continuing to work is still an option.
One person I know is a retired school career advisor who was involved with primary school children for over 40 years. Now in his 80s, he is involved and paid for his work in a variety of roles. He is active with community programs that oversight international students studying in Australia, leads teams with the Scouting Association, and mentors still-working school professionals. He says’ I am as busy now as when I was working full time.’
Think of Warren Buffet, a US investment guru and very wealthy man, Richard Branson, another very wealthy entrepreneur and Quentin Bryce, our Governor General. None of these people has retired; rather they are continuing to work at what they love to do, and are capable of doing.
So why not continue to work, and never retire?
You may be challenged about having to continue to work, perhaps because of your financial situation, family obligations, or other reasons that means you cannot afford to retire. Can you turn these challenges around and continue to work by quietly demonstrating your ability and enjoyment in doing what you do?
It’s your attitude that will generate a productive and fulfilling life in your older years. There are always options that you can choose, to spend this time the way you want.
Optimism is the way to develop and lead a happy life. It’s your positive outlook, that life is going to better as you get older, that supports you in the pursuit of a lifestyle to suit you. While you acknowledge the parts of growing older such as the impact on your physical health, you focus on what you can do to ensure a fulfilling lifestyle.
Maybe a health check a financial check, a mental health review and relationships renewal are all on your agenda for the near future?
Are you feeling the pressure to retire?
Choosing not to retire will invite criticism, so be prepared.
Your work colleagues, family and friends may see your wanting to work as unusual, out of the ordinary, and by the way, you deserve to stop work. For them retirement may be a stop to all that has gone before, particularly work.
But you know that by continuing to work in a capacity that suits you, you stay connected to life and to the community.
Bogan and Davies (2007) suggest that these people will ‘soon be banging on your door’. They want to learn how you are successfully and happily dealing with living beyond the age of retirement, including working to suit your wants and desires.
Your contribution to the world of work, on your terms, may mean pulling back from the rigid and inflexible days and hours of old. You may have had your own business and while wanting to continue to work, you may sell and work as an employee for the new owner while you work less, and phase out over a period of time.
You may have an idea of changing careers or occupations. Professional people after a lifetime of work discover their passion in developing new or existing interests that lead to different work but a fulfilling lifestyle.
What can you do to keep working on your own terms?
Create a plan for your second half. Check out all the possibilities of the new beginning you want and work with a planner to get your second half of life right for you.
Contact us for a complimentary consultation to kick start your ideas, ending a cycle of work to beginning a cycle of new experiences. It will be the best spent 30 minutes you spend to start your lifestyle plan.
Contact us to provide you a weekly tip, for a whole year, to jump-start your life re-invention. Whether these tips complement your work life or suggest a whole new way of being, start out now!
Reference
Bogan, D and Davies, K 2008. Avoid Retirement and Stay Alive. New York: McGraw-Hill.
© 2009 Helene Strawbridge, All rights reserved. You are free to use material from the Second Half Success material in whole or in part, as long as you include complete attribution, including live web site link. Please also notify me where the material will appear. The attribution should read: By Helene Strawbridge of Second Half Success. Please visit Helene’s web site at www.secondhalfsuccess.com.au for additional articles and resources. (Make sure the link is live if placed in an newsletter or in a web site.)
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