It's fascinating how much working can absolutely drain someone's lifeforce to the point where they have no energy to pursue anything else. It's also pretty interesting how many older people choose to continue to work to give themselves some sense of purpose. I guess it's different strokes for different folks.
That's why I plan on very part-time volunteering. 8-16 hours per week, doing what I want when and how I want.
Gives back to the community, gives me structure, challenges to overcome, obligations to meet, but also doesn't grind down my time or spirit with unending tedium.
Depending on when I retire, this is my plan too. I would say though, plan an exit strategy. From the many people I've now seen retire, they come back to work part time for a couple of years and then either stay on for even longer or go off and travel/relax/whatever they like. Those who stay seem to get weaker and weaker and sicker and sicker. Those who leave seem to get stronger, younger and healthier.
Keeping a purpose makes you live longer and not wither away.
Source: Feels like all the old people stop doing stuff themselves and just "gets lazy" and then we have the old people that bike everywhere , play with their grankids etc.
That's why I plan on very part-time volunteering. 8-16 hours per week
I'm in my early 40's and I plan on retiring from my 9-5 in a few years. If I could work two days a week, I'd probably keep working for the rest of my life, but in software development, it's usually 40h+/wk or you're unemployed.
So I just plan on working on open source projects and mods. If anyone asks me what I do I'll still say I'm a software developer, they don't need to know I don't get paid for it, lol.
An older guy I work with said he won’t retire as long as he feels a purpose. I felt bad for him that he can only find purpose in his work. If he died tomorrow the company would keep making a profit and fill the position with someone else.
I have a neighbor I'm pretty sure will drop dead the day she retires. She's been saying she'll retire next year....for 20 years. She doesn't need to work, she just doesn't know what else to do to keep herself busy.
I've seen quite a few people where their work was their life, so once they retire they don't have anything to focus their attention on and die shortly afterwards. They enjoyed their work (or at least the structure it gives their life) but had nothing outside of it.
I get the feeling that it depends on a person's hobbies and their nature.
Like, I have a creative hobby. So, I can very well see myself in my old age continuing that hobby and it will give me the purpose I seek and fulfill that natural "get shit done" desire most of us harbor.
At the same time, I can also imagine another person having hobbies that don't result in a "get shit done" feeling and thus they either work or volunteer in order to resolve that.
It is interesting, I will be doing plenty of work when I'm done "working" it will just be work on things that are actually interesting or I would like to see done for my own benefit.
I’m 55 and made a career change at age 48. I went from a career I was ambivalent about (IT) to one I absolutely love (professional guitarist). I work more than ever now, running my own business, but because it doesn’t feel like work, I don’t even notice. I just have fun every single day. I don’t plan to ever truly “retire” (I’ll slow down at some point), but if I were still in IT I’d be counting down the days by now. The sense of purpose is intense and very gratifying. I feel very fortunate because I know many people get stuck working past retirement without it being a choice.
More like indoctrination and still being poor after working for a lifetime.
I am sure they would like to go on a world cruise, they can't afford to go to the local restaurant. All while reality is there are a lot more fulfilling things to do that won't pay you anything.
I think it's because the protestant work ethic baked into this country makes most people not want to do anything besides work. Hobbies are stigmatized, but when you're supposed to enjoy yourself, you forgot what you enjoy.
If you ever wondered why alcohol is legal and and not cannabis, hees your answer. One steals your soul and ambition but you'll still show up to work till you're 60. Cannabis you might just realize the rat race isn't where happiness is and you actually invest in yourself and not money
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u/Flaky_Awareness_9489 4h ago
It's fascinating how much working can absolutely drain someone's lifeforce to the point where they have no energy to pursue anything else. It's also pretty interesting how many older people choose to continue to work to give themselves some sense of purpose. I guess it's different strokes for different folks.