You have waited and anticipated your retirement for most of your working life. Now you have arrived, with all the time in the world to do all those things you promised yourself you would achieve during this new life of leisure. Fast forward six months. You have reorganized your wardrobe, thus enriching the Good Will store with volumes of outdated outfits. You have cleaned out the garage and found so many treasures that you once considered lost. It’s indexed all your music CDs and DVDs in a sophisticated database, so you can access them by title, artist, genre and mood. You’ve digitized all your favorite photos of family and friends, sorting them by time and event. Now what?
You may not realize it, but you have finally freed yourself to begin your adventure in a truly meaningful final work, spending quality time thinking about how you will spend the next 20-30 years of your life. Will you work, play, travel, study, create, unleash your inner entrepreneur, volunteer, or customize your retirement life to include some combination of these possibilities?
Traveling sounds fun. And this is something you always promised yourself after you retired. In fact, one of your dreams was to commit to visiting all 50 states and taking a selfie in front of at least one landmark in each. Or he hoped to visit at least one European country per year for the first 10 years, then switch to destinations further afield, such as Asia and Australia. Or maybe you envisioned a captivating sequence of journeys that centered around one theme: music, art, battlefields, architecture, food, wine. Oh, the places where you can and should and will be go — by motorhome, by airBNB, by home exchange, by 5-star hotel, by cruise, by train, by motorcycle!
What about your creative side, possibly still waiting to be expressed? Perhaps over the years, one of your relaxation strategies has been drawing cartoons. In fact, family and friends have often commented on the fact that you are an exceptionally talented artist, opinions that you have modestly ignored. But coincidentally, he recently noticed that his local community college is offering a non-credit course in cartoon illustration and digital animation, and he suddenly begins to imagine his drawing horizons expanding to all sorts of opportunities. Ready! all your angst from the boredom of retirement disappears.
A year ago, that four-letter swear word, “works,” It would have been the last option you would have put on your list of “ways not to get bored in retirement.” Now, you’re not so sure. What if for your retirement “job” you could choose to do something totally different from your previous career, something you really enjoy, according to a flexible schedule of your own creation?
Perhaps your local newspaper or community newsletter would be willing to accept a weekly cartoon. You could even do some research on the markets where animation is used in TV commercials. Imagine being able to supplement your income by having fun using your innate artistic talents!
Plus, everywhere you go, everywhere you look, there seem to be countless opportunities to give back to your community through volunteering. Imagine how much enjoyment you could bring to nursing homes, children’s parties, hospitals and summer street fairs by sharing your drawing/animation talents with young and old alike.
The key to avoiding retirement boredom is finding a “job” that’s absolutely right for you. And that means knowing yourself very, very well. During the career of your life, your work defined you. now is the time for you ONESELF to define your job.
What does this mean exactly? Begin with a pause to regroup. Then take the time and attention, as well as access to the necessary tools, that allow you to rediscover yourself.
What is your type and temperament (MyersBriggs)? These dictate what you must have to be satisfied and fulfilled. what are your keys interests interests? These define what will be commits you.
Their values they are also essential factors in selecting your retirement “job.” What do you find significant? Their strengths of the firm Clarify what you have to offer uniquely.
then there are your skills Y personal traits. These are also elements that are critical to finding the fit that works best for you. But keep in mind that whatever your skills are now, you can certainly add to them. And the very process of upgrading your skills – learning everything you need to successfully go in a whole new direction – is its own form of “hard fun.”
Retirement opens the door between your job and your “job.” this is your time. Do it your way. Who has time to be bored?