The Life After Work Zone seems like an ideal place to showcase the kind of work that retirees choose to do in this stage of their life.  Brian and I thought it would be interesting to explore what work looks like for those retirees who continue to work, even when their full time career is behind them.

Working in retirement sounds like a contradiction.  Isn’t retirement when you are supposed to stop working?  It’s time to relax—you earned it after all those years of hard work.

But “working” in a full time career is not the same as the kinds of working that retirees choose to do.  We wanted to take a look at the stories from among the 75+ retirees interviewed for Shifting Gears; 50 Baby Boomers Share Their Meaningful Journeys in Retirement.

Working in retirement can be different, both in terms of the kind of work you do, and the reasons for choosing to work. For those who are choosing to continue to work, here are some of the reasons that were important to them:

• Who does not want a bit more money, a bit more financial security?  It may be “topping up” other retirement income sources so that the special vacation can be afforded.  Others may have a more significant cash need just to make ends meet.
• There is more freedom to pick a job that provides pleasure. The “job” may look more like a hobby with pay. Sometimes the pay would have been too low to support you prior to retirement, but now this enjoyable job can be considered.
• Flexible scheduling of work may allow hobbies and leisure and travel to still be accommodated.  Especially during the pandemic, some employers have a difficult time on-boarding new hires, so may be willing to consider your working on a schedule that is more flexible for both of you. You won’t know until you ask. A gradual phasing down of work hours can allow a phasing up of new retirement activities.  Wouldn’t it be nice to avoid going from full time work one day, to absolutely no work the next day?
• Full time work can be associated with job pressure, a boss breathing down your neck, a challenging set of objectives.  Retirement work can be structured to have relaxed intensity.  You still have things to accomplish, but you can do them in a way that has a smile on your face and a pace you prefer.
• Staying engaged and mentally and physically active is important.  Work can provide a way to stay sharp and feeling good about yourself.
• Being part of a team can give a sense of camaraderie and social connection.
• Inertia. Fear of the unknown. Sometimes people just continue to work instead of deciding to stop. Is your identity your work?  What is your identity after you stop working?

Here are some quotes from retirees telling both what they do and what it means to them.

“I realized I wanted to develop my artistic potential. After a period of time, I did a two-week exhibition of my paintings and sold twenty-five pieces.  I made nearly $1300. I was very happy with that.”

“Being a wine country tour guide is an easy gig really. I drive people around who are in a good mood. I drive them to beautiful wineries and talk about wine. It’s a part time gig that’s kind of cool and fun.”

 “I had to reinvent myself and I’m so glad I was able to do that. I’m going to do something entirely different. I’m going to be a different person. Instead of being a diplomat, I started a birdwatching tour company focused on Southern Africa.”

“Shit, the frustration of doing documentaries for someone else is too great.  I don’t want to do this anymore. I’m just going to do my own stuff. I’m going to just do my own work. I was able to get a small grant and travel to Gaza.”

“When I knew retirement was on the horizon, I went back to school and got a Masters in Environmental Management.  I was thinking I would do freelance writing for different outdoor organizations.”

“I started doing rideshare. You get to talk to so many people, so many different ideas.  You get to tell the same stories over and over again. When I do take a really lovely woman, that’s always a bonus. But my problem is that if I tell my wife, I have to give those fares to her.”

“If you took my previous career out of the mix, there was going to be something missing. It was the challenge of problem solving and just doing business and finding ways to make money. Joining an angel investing group turned out to be an ideal solution.”

“I’m really not sure what else I’m going to do in retirement. Opportunities to help companies get financed keep popping up but I can’t be sure that they’re going to continue to pop up. The part that makes you worried is that you can’t predict it.”

“Much of what I’ve been chasing for the last fifty-plus years has been an in-depth knowledge of play itself. When you study a subject deeply, and the subject itself produces rewards, it’s a pretty good life.”

Do any of these stories give you some ideas?  Is there some “retirement work” that might be right for you? With the distribution of the covid vaccine now beginning, it may be a good time to think through how you would like your retirement to now evolve, and how you might define a work activity that is right for you.

In a recent Retirement Wisdom podcast, Joe Casey interviews Richard and has some penetrating questions based on his expertise in the field of retirement, and his excellent preparation for the interview. Listen to the podcast here:

For more information on Retirement Wisdom, go to retirementwisdom.com.

Follow Richard on twitter @richardhaiduck. His blog is at richardhaiduck.com. Find his new book on Amazon: Shifting Gears; 50 Baby Boomers Share Their Meaningful Journeys in Retirement.

Editor’s Note: LifeAfterWork is not an Amazon affiliate and will not earn money on book purchases.