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As they say in the article, I think many people approach retirement as a cessation. From what I've seen of my own parents, I hope that retirement for me will b

As they say in the article, I think many people approach retirement as a cessation. From what I've seen of my own parents, I hope that retirement for me will be more a change of what I'm working on, and how I work, rather than whether or not I work. I'm also trying to make those changes now - working on what I want to work on, at a reasonable pace, at the level and times I'm interested. I'd quite happily keep doing this forever. It's a little frustrating that we reserve "living well and enjoying the fruits of your labor" for aged people - I'd rather enjoy it while I'm still relatively young and healthy, and mix it into my life rather than setting it aside as a separate thing.

pmiller2 10y ago
+1 to this. I plan to retire, or at least semi-retire at some point. To me, that means I'll have more time to do things I want to do that don't necessarily generate income.
brandon272 10y ago
I view retirement mostly as financial freedom. I have every intention of working after retirement as I get personal enjoyment out of doing what I do. I just haven't decided what "work" will look like.
- ergothus 10y ago
  This. I am baffled by friends and family that talk about how they couldn't retire because what would they do? My response is to list the many, many things I want to do that I can't because I 'have to work': read more, learn new languages (spoken & computer), take up the piano/guitar, try new games (board, tabletoprpg, computer), write, program, etc. The only reason I ever get bored is because I don't have the time, resources, and/or other people to do what I want. The thought of not having to rely on a work schedule to provide necessary resources sounds wonderful, not threatening.
  - maroonblazer 10y ago
    My problem is similar but different. The last couple of vacations I've taken have been staycations. Even though I have many hobbies and interests - several musical instruments, writing music, drawing, dabbling in code, reading - not having the structure of a job and expectations of others weighing on me to 'be productive' I procrastinated quite a lot. I frequently felt anxious and unfulfilled. I took this experience as a glimpse into what retirement might be like. In retirement I think I'll need to create a schedule for myself that includes having others depending on me to 'show up'. E.g. doing volunteer teaching, etc.
    - TeMPOraL 10y ago
      I've recently started scheduling stuff I'm doing in advance and trying to stick to it, and I found it incredibly empowering. I too ended up wasting a lot of free time despite having a growing bucket list of things to create - scheduling free time helps to overcome that and generally makes me happier. I hope to use the same technique if/when I retire.
    - elbows 10y ago
      I've found that when I've been stressed out or overly busy, it can take a while to adjust to a more relaxed rhythm. At first I just want to slack off completely. After a couple of days, this gets boring, but it takes longer than that for my motivation to come back. Last year I was unemployed for about a month, and it was really only near the end of that time that I started to get some momentum going with side projects and hobbies.
    - cableshaft 10y ago
      I've noticed it's really difficult to work on side projects also when you're in between jobs (especially if you don't have much saved up) because the looming threat of financial ruin never lets you forget it, and you just get too distracted by it that it's hard to be productive even though you have so much more time, and every moment you spend on side projects your brain goes "you could be putting this energy into looking for a new job right now." I know that's probably different than your staycations, but it's for that reason that I don't think I will be as bad at working on my personal projects once I've retired (if I ever can retire).
- smilingtom 10y ago
  Wait, so you know you will work after retirement. You get personal enjoyment out of your work. But you don't know what your work will be? It sounds like you're saying that you want to continue existing and being able to do things after you retire... That is exactly what retirement is. Why do you feel like you need to sound like one of those "go-getting", "I'm-always-working" people who thinks everyone should work 22 hours a day?
  - brandon272 10y ago
    The tone of this post is quite rude and not appropriate for HN. And yes, I am a "go getter". :)
Shivetya 10y ago
Get a hobby, it will save your life and your marriage. Heck even having pets help. the idea is to not have idle time
singold 10y ago
You made me remember this "living life backwards" quote http://seniorplanet.org/living-life-backward/ http://seniorplanet.org/living-life-backward/

pmiller2 10y ago

+1 to this. I plan to retire, or at least semi-retire at some point. To me, that means I'll have more time to do things I want to do that don't necessarily generate income.

brandon272 10y ago

I view retirement mostly as financial freedom. I have every intention of working after retirement as I get personal enjoyment out of doing what I do. I just haven't decided what "work" will look like.

ergothus 10y ago
This. I am baffled by friends and family that talk about how they couldn't retire because what would they do? My response is to list the many, many things I want to do that I can't because I 'have to work': read more, learn new languages (spoken & computer), take up the piano/guitar, try new games (board, tabletoprpg, computer), write, program, etc. The only reason I ever get bored is because I don't have the time, resources, and/or other people to do what I want. The thought of not having to rely on a work schedule to provide necessary resources sounds wonderful, not threatening.
- maroonblazer 10y ago
  My problem is similar but different. The last couple of vacations I've taken have been staycations. Even though I have many hobbies and interests - several musical instruments, writing music, drawing, dabbling in code, reading - not having the structure of a job and expectations of others weighing on me to 'be productive' I procrastinated quite a lot. I frequently felt anxious and unfulfilled. I took this experience as a glimpse into what retirement might be like. In retirement I think I'll need to create a schedule for myself that includes having others depending on me to 'show up'. E.g. doing volunteer teaching, etc.
  - TeMPOraL 10y ago
    I've recently started scheduling stuff I'm doing in advance and trying to stick to it, and I found it incredibly empowering. I too ended up wasting a lot of free time despite having a growing bucket list of things to create - scheduling free time helps to overcome that and generally makes me happier. I hope to use the same technique if/when I retire.
  - elbows 10y ago
    I've found that when I've been stressed out or overly busy, it can take a while to adjust to a more relaxed rhythm. At first I just want to slack off completely. After a couple of days, this gets boring, but it takes longer than that for my motivation to come back. Last year I was unemployed for about a month, and it was really only near the end of that time that I started to get some momentum going with side projects and hobbies.
  - cableshaft 10y ago
    I've noticed it's really difficult to work on side projects also when you're in between jobs (especially if you don't have much saved up) because the looming threat of financial ruin never lets you forget it, and you just get too distracted by it that it's hard to be productive even though you have so much more time, and every moment you spend on side projects your brain goes "you could be putting this energy into looking for a new job right now." I know that's probably different than your staycations, but it's for that reason that I don't think I will be as bad at working on my personal projects once I've retired (if I ever can retire).
smilingtom 10y ago
Wait, so you know you will work after retirement. You get personal enjoyment out of your work. But you don't know what your work will be? It sounds like you're saying that you want to continue existing and being able to do things after you retire... That is exactly what retirement is. Why do you feel like you need to sound like one of those "go-getting", "I'm-always-working" people who thinks everyone should work 22 hours a day?
- brandon272 10y ago
  The tone of this post is quite rude and not appropriate for HN. And yes, I am a "go getter". :)

Shivetya 10y ago

Get a hobby, it will save your life and your marriage. Heck even having pets help. the idea is to not have idle time

singold 10y ago

You made me remember this "living life backwards" quote http://seniorplanet.org/living-life-backward/ http://seniorplanet.org/living-life-backward/