Consider a post retirement career

 

Around the time I left the country for a year to travel the world at age 50, I had the good fortune to listen to a podcast called “Aspen Ideas To Go”. The person speaking, Laura Carstensen, founding director of the Stanford Center on Longevity said the following, I’m paraphrasing-

Long life is not the problem. We cannot sustain 30 years of retirement based on 40 years of work. Research has found that most Americans are healthy enough to work well into their seventies, and work is generally beneficial in keeping the mind and body active and to combat loneliness and tedium.

It’s important to consider what you will do with your time before you decide to retire. If you have deeply held interests in the form of hobbies, and you have a nice social circle, that may be enough. But for many our careers are also part of our identity. If you’ve become accustomed to having a schedule, people asking your opinion, earning money, and having influence, retirement may be a rude awakening.

I agree with Ms. Carstensen, 30 years of retirement is not sustainable. As a person who can contribute to our society, we have an obligation to contribute. How do you think you will contribute?

It’s okay to teach classes with a focus on gardening. It’s okay to write about travel. It’s perfectly acceptable to teach people how to take amazing photos. When considering your post-career work, it can be about more than simply earning money or climbing a corporate ladder. In fact, I hope that whatever direction your interests take you, you feel the freedom to explore what’s possible. Know that no matter where your interests lie, you will have an audience. I suggest that the more refined your niche, the more tailored your message will be for your audience. That’s a good thing.

You may want to attract a global audience with your work. In that case, you’ll have to be everything to everyone. A big challenge and I suggest that it is not a satisfying challenge. Creating a product or service to appeal to the masses means your product is less special and won’t have enough appeal to hold your interest. It may be better to consider a product or service that you would buy.

I always go back to a saying that I heard some time ago, but I must apologize to the person who coined the term. I looked it up on the internet, and the phrase is attributed to Amy Krouse Rosenthal. However, I’ve not read her works. Here is the phrase, and I agree this is a good strategy: "Pay attention to what you are paying attention to.”

What comes up over and over in your mind? I always think about having a good diet, getting a little exercise, frugal living, writing, cooking… These ideas float through my head on repeat. Other thoughts intrude at times, travel, hiking, art, and photography, but without fail, most days of the week I think about the ideas I mentioned first. These ideas have been part of my mindset for ages. I don’t think I will ever get tired of learning about good health, cooking, and frugal living. I will always want to write. By planning a post-retirement career with those basic concepts in mind I know a few things are true-

1.     I will not become bored; these ideas have been interesting to me for years

2.     I am well-versed and prepared to defend what I teach others about good health, frugal living, and cooking

3.     The concepts will evolve over time as I grow and I will always have fresh ideas to share with my audience

4.     I won’t appeal to every Tom, Dick, and Harry, I will only appeal to a subset of society, but I can tailor my message to be helpful to those individuals who are interested in what I have to share

It’s that simple, I am paying attention to what I’m paying attention to in order to develop systems that work for me and perhaps others.

What are you paying attention to? What ideas come to mind over and over? Do you love quilting? How about watercolor painting? Are you an antique enthusiast? These hobbies can be turned into a career that sings to your heart. Even better because you already have a passion for your area of interest you have a leg up in getting your business started. You are likely already an expert.

Perhaps you’ve spent the last decade working in a certain industry. You understand the ins and outs and can build a career by sharing your vast knowledge as a consultant. Imagine the value you can bring as an expert, and how great it will feel to know that you are helping a new business owner sort out some of the challenges they face. You may have one idea that helps your client transition from a bit player to the star of the show in their industry. That would feel fantastic and has the potential of being very lucrative.

Ages ago I used to sit on the board of directors of a state association. Two times each year we would have a retreat. Our initial retreat would focus on our goals for the fiscal year, and our second midyear retreat would focus on success, failures, and reestablishing or rehabilitating our goals through the end of the year. Each time we had these retreats we had an expert facilitate our meeting. The experts understood our industry and understood how to facilitate a meeting. These experts were excellent at keeping us on track and were always individuals on a post-retirement career path. We needed their years of insight to help us navigate common challenges with their keen understanding of our industry and their understanding of the pitfalls that we would face.  Without question, those individuals were impactful. We were able to accomplish a lot with their expertise and guidance. Imagine helping others in the industry you are familiar with, how good would that feel?

Perhaps you have seen failures along the way and can write a manual that is helpful for others starting out, or who have a long-term investment in your area of expertise, but need some refinement. You can create an online course and people will pay for your knowledge if you are able to break down what they need to know in simple to follow steps.

There are many ways to reach potential clients, but first, you have to be clear about what makes you think. What are you paying attention to?

Over the next few weeks I’ll provide a few ideas on how to organize starting an endeavor that sings to your heart, helps your community, and has the potential to earn.

Just as a reminder, I am able to work how I prefer to work because I live a frugal lifestyle. I’m not a richy rich, I’ve never earned big bucks. I’ve been able to conduct my professional life and personal life using less monetary resources than my contemporaries. I’ve worked for money off and on over the past twelve years. I’ve traveled to over twenty counties in Asia, South America, Europe, North America, and Africa. I’ve seen a lot and done a lot. I’m satisfied with the life I’ve lived. My hope is to continue to be happy, healthy, and independent until I die in twenty or thirty years.

If a new career is daunting, check out my book, “Your Future Self Workbook: A Time Travelers Manifestation Workbook for Intentional Well Being” and check out its companion podcast or YouTube channel that offers guided meditation to help you learn more about your future and how to achieve what you really want.

I wrote a book about creating a second act career, you can buy it on Amazon, “Your Golden Ticket Years: Find Your Passion on a Post Career Entrepreneurial Ride” In my book I explore the benefits of working while aging, not at the career you created for yourself while building wealth and raising a family, but by taking an area of interest and converting it into a second post-retirement career of passion.