Tag Archives: Encore Career

How to Work and Travel as a Digital Nomad After Retirement

This post was contributed to Leisure Freak by digital nomad and writer John Smith. Retirement no longer means sitting idly by; instead, it has become an opportunity for adventure and freedom. Enter the digital nomadism world, where retirees embrace a unique lifestyle that combines work and travel. By becoming a digital nomad after retirement, you can explore the globe while continuing to earn an income remotely. In this post, we will talk about how to work and travel as a digital nomad after retirement. So, let’s embark on this remarkable journey together!

Man and woman standing by the door

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Assessing Your Skills and Interests

Now that you’ve decided to embrace the digital nomad lifestyle after retirement, it’s time to assess your skills and interests. Take a moment to reflect on your vast array of experiences and identify those transferable skills that can be valuable in the remote work landscape. From project management to writing, teaching to consulting, there are numerous options to explore. Additionally, consider your passions and interests. What truly excites you? Whether it’s photography, graphic design, or coding, aligning your work with your passions will bring fulfillment and joy.

Planning Your Finances

As you set off on your digital nomad adventure after retirement, careful financial planning is crucial. Begin by evaluating your retirement savings and income, ensuring they can support your desired lifestyle. Create a comprehensive budget that accounts for travel expenses, accommodation, meals, and other necessities. Consider alternative income streams like freelancing, online consulting, or monetizing a hobby. Diversifying your income can provide stability and flexibility while traveling. Remember to factor in healthcare costs and insurance coverage as well.

Choosing Your Destinations

One of the exciting aspects of ways to work and travel as a digital nomad after retirement is choosing your destinations. Research digital nomad-friendly locations that cater to remote workers, offering reliable internet connectivity and supportive infrastructure. Consider the cost of living, safety, climate, and cultural experiences. Each destination has its unique charm and opportunities. Explore visa requirements and limitations for your chosen locations, ensuring smooth entry and stay. Whether it’s the bustling streets of Bangkok, the serene beaches of Bali, or the historic cities of Europe, the world is your oyster. Embrace the freedom of choice and embark on a journey that aligns with your dreams and aspirations.

Setting Up Your Remote Workspace

Creating a productive remote workspace is essential as you embark on your digital nomad journey after retirement. Start by selecting the right technology and tools to support your work. Find co-working spaces or cafes with reliable internet access where you can work comfortably. Ensure you have a comfortable chair and a desk that promotes good posture. Organize your digital files and documents for easy access. Set boundaries to separate your work and leisure activities. Experiment with different setups and find what works best for you.

Managing Your Time and Workload

Managing your time and workload effectively is key to a successful digital nomad lifestyle after retirement. Establish a routine and schedule that aligns with your travel plans and personal preferences. Set realistic goals and deadlines to stay focused and motivated. Prioritize tasks based on urgency and importance. Utilize productivity tools and techniques like time-blocking or the Pomodoro Technique. Delegate or outsource tasks when necessary to alleviate the workload. Embrace flexibility while staying disciplined to maintain a healthy work-life balance. Regularly reassess and adjust your schedule as needed to optimize productivity and enjoyment. With effective time management, you can make the most of your digital nomad adventure while meeting work commitments.

Building a Professional Network

Building a robust professional network is crucial for success as a digital nomad after retirement. Leverage online platforms and communities to connect with like-minded individuals in your field. Attend digital nomad meetups and conferences to expand your network further. Collaborate with local professionals in your chosen destinations to gain insights and create potential business opportunities. Foster meaningful relationships by offering your expertise and support to others. Actively engage in conversations and discussions to build rapport. Embrace the power of networking and cultivate a strong professional community while traveling the world.

Staying Healthy and Ensuring Well-being

While living the digital nomad lifestyle after retirement, prioritizing your health and well-being is paramount. Take care of your physical and mental health by incorporating self-care practices into your routine. Find fitness facilities or engage in outdoor activities to stay active. Manage travel-related challenges like jet lag and unfamiliar cuisines by practicing mindful eating and getting sufficient rest. Seek out medical facilities and ensure you have adequate health insurance coverage while traveling. Prioritize mental well-being by practicing stress management techniques and seeking support when needed. Remember, a healthy and balanced lifestyle is the foundation for a fulfilling digital nomad journey after retirement.

Embracing Cultural Experiences

Embracing cultural experiences is a delightful aspect of being a digital nomad after retirement. Immerse yourself in the local customs and traditions of your chosen destinations. Learn the basics of the local language to enhance your interactions and connections. Participate in cultural events and activities, such as festivals or cooking classes, to gain a deeper understanding of the local culture. Engage with locals and fellow travelers to exchange stories and perspectives. Visit historical sites, museums, and art galleries to appreciate the rich heritage of each location. Embracing cultural experiences enriches your digital nomad journey, fostering personal growth and creating lasting memories.

Conclusion

Embarking on a journey of traveling as a digital nomad opens up a world of adventure, freedom, and fulfillment. By assessing your skills and interests, planning your finances, and choosing suitable destinations, you can lay the foundation for an exciting lifestyle. Setting up a productive workspace, managing time and workload effectively, and building a professional network contribute to your success. Prioritizing health and well-being and embracing cultural experiences enriches the journey further. Remember, as a digital nomad, you have the flexibility to adapt and adjust along the way. So, take the leap, explore new horizons, and savor the endless possibilities that await you when you work and travel as a digital nomad after retirement.

Much thanks to John Smith for sharing his expertise with Leisure Freak readers.

Author Bio

How to Work and Travel as a Digital Nomad After RetirementJohn Smith is a seasoned digital nomad, travel enthusiast, and inspiring writer currently writing for Family Affair Moving Orange County. With a passion for exploring new cultures and sharing practical advice, John offers insights and tips for retirees looking to embrace the digital nomad lifestyle. Through his engaging writing style, he aims to inspire others to live a fulfilling and adventurous retirement.

 

Wow! I Might Be An Unemployable Retiree, It’s More Than A Skills Issue

There sure are a lot of open opportunities today and recruiter contact has recently escalated. Something of a surprise since I haven’t updated an online resume in over a decade. After a recent back and forth with a recruiter about an interesting opportunity, I’ve come to realize that at this point I might just be an unemployable retiree. Surprise! It has nothing to do with stale skills.

Many years ago when I retired early at the age of 51, I had a plan to retire early and often. I spent years being pigeonholed during my long engineering career to support all the legacy crap. The tedious old money-makers that new people didn’t want to learn while denying me the new fun stuff. So my plan came with a list of paid adventures I wanted to learn and do. My retirement gigs were fun and rewarding to jump in and out of. I basically ran through my list and have since enjoyed stepping back from all of that while remaining open to maybe one day doing it again. But can I?

Wow! I Might Be An Unemployable Retiree, It’s More Than A Skills IssueImage Source

Hitting Unemployable Retiree Status

There are many stories about how people want to retire and do some type of paid work. I’ve always believed retirement is the absence of NEEDING to work, not the absence of work. A philosophical view and lifestyle that I have lived for over 13 years now. 

We always hear warnings about people who retire and then want to return to work but they didn’t maintain or gain the necessary new skills to remain attractive to the hiring system. I know that is a real thing to be cognizant of and work to address. However, what I’m now experiencing is something else. It’s something that I think every retiree who is open to working in retirement might also find one day happening to them.

My years of retirement freedom living life on my terms have changed my definition of rewarding work and what I’m willing to do when trading my time for money. After decades of obligated work duty acceptance, I stuck to a narrow and focused target of what I would accept doing in retirement. Career servitude certainly changed me over the decades. But there’s little question that over time, my early retirement has also changed me from what I was in the first years after ditching my long career. 

I’ve had a lot of time to think about all of the sacrifices I had to make in order to succeed in my past career and now a financially independent retirement.

Too much of my career had over the top unacceptable treatment. Today I wouldn’t tolerate any of it regardless of outcome. Rejecting some of those workplace shenanigans were put to the test in my retirement gigs. I just successfully refused to bend and offered to immediately resign. But I now feel even more rigid about my work acceptance parameters. Here are a few observations that make me believe I may have reached unemployable retiree status.

Advanced BS Detection

I used to be a lot more trusting. Giving a pass to some contradictory statements or work scope discrepancies that seemed to drift throughout a conversation or opportunity interview. Not so much now. My BS detection kicks in and I immediately feel the need to call it out and clarify. Strangely it’s something I’ve found that interviewers and especially hiring managers aren’t used to and don’t appreciate. In the past I just took mental notes and knew what to watch out for later if I accepted the position. Today I’m not willing to go anywhere near there.

Rarely does someone get past my working in retirement screening. But the last time that an interesting opportunity did, I actually cleared through a couple of interviews to the final hiring manager and director interview. This was the earliest realization that I may be an unemployable retiree. I had laid out clearly what I was willing to accept throughout their earlier interview process. Now these two were mentioning things beyond the earlier interview agreed position scope. All of a sudden there were required position elements that were consistently mentioned as my having zero interest in doing. 

The moment I brought it up in that final interview I sensed hostility toward my gall to even mention it. I knew what that alone meant. Even if it was favorably explained to me, I knew that I wouldn’t be high on their hiring list just for having the audacity to raise the issue. Nor could I trust it wouldn’t rise up again later if we did decide to move forward. At that point I decided we were wasting both of our time. I simply said it doesn’t sound like it’s a good fit. That was my way to politely end the interview.

Lack of Needing To Prove Myself 

As far as I am concerned, as a financially independent retiree I’ve got nothing I need to prove to anyone. There seems to always be a competitive element to the workplace. Be the best, go the extra mile, surpass expectations, bell curve performance rating, etc. and be able to prove it. It all ends up being compared to peers with metrics that are meant to drive competition to drive higher productivity. Something that doesn’t necessarily result in higher compensation. It’s a way to have overperformers cover for the underperformers so that the business continues without delay. I get it, but I’m no longer interested in any of it which is an unemployable retiree stance to have.

I find that a lot of managers need their carrot and stick practices as a primary motivation. As a retiree I just want to do the best job possible and no longer seek climbing in job status or chasing any other corporate-world carrot of the day at the cost of my personal life. Meaning, I will gladly trade some of my time for money doing the agreed upon job scope that I accepted and if it isn’t enough, then let’s just part ways. 

As a financially independent retiree I consider any paid opportunity as a learning and doing experience of interest that will ultimately run its course one way or another. Not being motivated by carrots or having fear of any sticks may just be the definition of someone being an unemployable retiree, even in this wide open job market. 

Overtime Will Never Pay Enough

Money was never the primary reason for any of my paid retirement gig adventures. So time always beats money ever since I retired early. In today’s understaffed environment, whether due to mismanagement, design, or bad luck finding people, overtime seems to be the business go-to. When I was a young parent I had to work all the overtime I was offered. Something about financially desperate employees really plays well into the employment system. Now that isn’t the case for me which I think takes me to, and even beyond, unemployable retiree status. 

What I Would Do If The Perfect Opportunity Presented Itself

I try to believe that I could revert back to my slightly more bendable early retiree self if I was presented with the perfect gig. It would have to be something I really wanted to do. I do think even with the introduction of some slight employment shenanigans I could temporarily fake it until I could either mold things my way or get a big enough taste to feel good about just walking away if it was unbearable. Even getting to that point will rely heavily on what I have always done to land my past paid retirement adventures.

Trust My Screening Process

It takes a lot to get to me. Much has to be in perfect alignment for me to even engage in the first place. I am getting a lot of recruiter emails and a few voice messages and nothing passes the smell-test these days. Having already gone through my list of jobs I wanted to learn and do in my retirement, I can’t think of anything at this time that I would even entertain. It would take me believing in the people, project, business, or cause to peak my interest.

Be Brutally Honest

In all my retirement gig interviews I honestly said what I will and can do. The way I see it, there’s no reason for either party to have false expectations. Whether they believe it or not, what they see is what they get. It would only happen if it is a good fit for both of us. Not sure that would fly in today’s environment. Seems the world values bluster, exaggeration, and self promotion over truthfulness or facts.

Stick To The Payable Strengths That I WANT To Use

I’d stick to my skills that I would love to use and the job itself. I have no interest in working using even payable skills that I hate doing. On top of that, there’s no interest in climbing any ladder to something more. The truth is a retiree is a short-termer. It’s no secret that I am older, why would either party tiptoe around it?

Tell Them Why I Really Want To Do It

Obviously if it gets to this stage, the match of resume, skills, and job scope have been perfectly aligned. Explaining why I want to do a job just ties it together. Especially if there is any question of overqualification. Everyone then knows exactly where we stand. Frankly, I can’t think of anything today that could get me past this hump to even tell myself let alone an interviewer. This issue makes me now really believe I’m an unemployable retiree. 

 

My plan to retire early and often is a great plan. It is a rewarding lifestyle to adopt and I’m optimistic under the right conditions that it still could be in the future. But like everything else in this world and life, nothing lasts forever. This retirement philosophy will have to evolve as we always seem to change. I think we end up at some point deciding for ourselves that we are an unemployable retiree. Something to consider as time goes by living a life of FIRE.

Mental and Physical Health Benefits of Working After Retirement

Older man sitting at a desk.

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This article was contributed to Leisure Freak by freelance writer Olivia Farrell.

Did you ever notice that people seem to show signs of aging much more quickly once they retire? It’s as if they become old overnight. And there is a reason for this. While there are many good sides to retirement, like more free time, there are also downsides. Once people retire, they have no more everyday work to keep them mentally and physically active. We decided to tell you about some of the health benefits of working after retirement, especially early retirement, so that it might change your mind on this issue. However, you must keep in mind that this does not apply to every job. Some jobs are highly stressful, such as police officer or firefighter. Those and any other similarly stressful job you shouldn’t continue after retirement. Also, you don’t have to keep working the same job or work full-time. It’s all about balance.

Less likely to get a serious disease

Research has shown that people who keep working after retirement are less likely to get serious health issues. This is connected to the fact that you are active and have less downtime when you are working. Often when people retire, they let themselves go a little. They indulge in unhealthy foods, sleep more, and are overall less active. That can lead to diabetes, higher blood pressure, etc. Better health is a great incentive to keep working. As we said before, you don’t have to work full-time. Just a few hours daily are enough to keep you healthier and give you some structure and balance.

Working After Retirement-Older woman smiling.
One of the health benefits of working after retirement is an improved mood and mental health.

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You will be happier

There is a big difference between working because you have to and working because you want to. One of the main reasons people start to dislike their job and get frustrated is because it has become a necessity. They have to work because they need financial security. That can take the joy out of almost any job. Many people start off loving their job, but over the years, it just becomes another obligation they have to do. All of that changes once you retire. Then you can do your job again, not because you have to make money but because you can enjoy doing it instead. It allows you to reconnect with the love and excitement you once had about your job. It also gives you a great sense of freedom you didn’t have before. This is exceptionally beneficial for a person’s mental health.

You are more likely to stay in shape

One of the benefits of working after retirement is that you are more likely to stay in shape. People who have to get up every day and go to work are more motivated and disciplined. These are fundamental traits for anyone who wants to work out regularly. Staying in shape is a lot harder when you are retired. There is a good reason for this. A lot of people, when they retire, stop taking care of themselves because they have so much time on their hands but zero structure. And that can be very damaging. Working out is essential not just for physical health and looking good but also really important for a person’s mental health. Working out gives us energy and makes us more focused and happier people.

Older woman doing yoga.
You are more likely to stay in shape if you continue working. Alt-tag: Older woman doing yoga.

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Gives us financial security

You may think that financial security has nothing to do with the health benefits of working after retirement but let us explain. Financial security is directly tied to a person’s mental health. According to experts, one of the leading causes of depression and anxiety in people is fear or financial insecurity. When people retire, their income becomes smaller. That can be a cause of many mental health issues and severely damage the quality of your life. If you keep working, even part-time, you will save yourself all this trouble, and you won’t have to worry about having enough money. Also, this money will be handy if you develop unexpected health issues because healthcare, even with the best insurance possible, can still be very expensive.

It will keep you sharp

The first thing that usually declines for people who retire is their brain. Once they stop working, they also stop actively working on solving problems, which your brain needs to stay sharp. You have probably heard a doctor recommend that you should do a crossword puzzle every day. As with any other muscle in our body, our brain also needs exercise. Otherwise, it will slowly decay. People who keep working are more focused. They notice things better and also have a better memory. However, you can simply switch if you are tired of doing a tedious office job every day and don’t want to keep doing it. Once you retire from that job, look for something else. It can be any other job. What is important is that it stimulates your brain and keeps you active.

It’s important to still have a healthy social life once you retire.

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One of the health benefits of working after retirement is a healthy social life

One of the things retirees often complain about is loneliness. And loneliness quite often leads to depression, sometimes in a very severe form. Once they retire, many people lose touch with their coworkers/friends, which can really damage their social life. People are social beings, and to be happy, and mentally well, they need to have friends and a healthy social life. It’s much better to keep working and stay in touch with other people; it can do wonders for your mental health.

 

In conclusion

As you can see, there is so much more to life after retirement. Just because you filled certain requirements and now can retire doesn’t mean you have to do it. You should pay attention to the many mental and physical benefits of working after retirement. And as we said previously, you don’t have to work full time or even stay at the same job. Find a job after retirement that will be fulfilling and keeps you active.

Much thanks to Olivia Farrell for sharing this informative post with Leisure Freak readers.

Author bio:

Olivia Farrell is a freelance writer from New York but has spent her life traveling around the world, learning about health and wellness. She has honed her craft writing for Personal Trainers Dubai and now focuses on giving people the best advice for their mental and physical health.

Quiet Retiring: The Retire In-Place Early Retirement Strategy

I sometimes find some of the new personal finance and career trends to be amusing. Most times it’s a new clever repackaging of what has always been around. Lately my amusement is about how some people are using quiet quitting to make a statement about their dissatisfaction with their careers. Why does it amuse me? Because it’s nothing new. Here’s another flavor that has always been there. A slightly more aggressive form I’ll now call quiet retiring. It may be a possible new trendy path to slowly ending your career if quiet quitting isn’t enough. 

Ask yourself: 

  • Have you saved for retirement but can’t quite get there with stunted market performance and inflation? 
  • Are you at the end of your go-getter rope, hating the soulless job stress that’s slowly killing you?
  • Need a way out of the stressful grind or crappy unbalanced work life and still collect your paycheck and benefits in a corporate world that favors newly attained employees? 

If you answer yes then you might want to consider just retiring in place using a quiet retiring slacker retirement strategy. Use your talents and skills to get most of what you really want: Less stress, reduced obligation, and the happiness that comes with taking control of your life.

Quiet Retiring: The Retire in Place Early Retirement Strategy
Nobody Slugs A Smiling Sloth

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8 Steps To Pull Off The Quiet Retiring Slacker Early Retirement

We’ve all seen and suffered from the “retired in place” at some point in our workplace. At least that’s what we used to call them in my first career. The long-time employees who seemed to escape all the BS and stressful hard work assignments. Those slackers love their jobs and found a way to stay employed. Best of all it’s successfully done by people of all ages. They just may be onto something!

If you’re tired of being a go-getting keister buster and wisely saving for early retirement but can’t get there soon enough, then transforming yourself from Go-Getter to No-Getter may be the answer. 

This plan is all around refocusing your talents away from climbing the ladder to relaxed coasting. Something that has to be done covertly and carefully because management isn’t going to just allow you to do it. If they hate quiet quitters, they will really dislike you doing this. 

In a nutshell, the quiet retiring focus is about creating a work environment where stress can be sloughed-off or passed-on. Where eventually management only assigns you the easiest of tasks and allows you to skate by, being virtually unaccountable. All while still collecting your paycheck and benefits like health insurance until you have enough saved to ditch the rat race on your terms. 

Who knows, it may also provide a big send-off severance check if you eventually get tossed during a downturn. If sticking it to the man floats your boat, then there’s plenty of that too.

Step 1- Identify and Then Mirror the Retired in Place 

Change the way you think about those retired in place that you’ve disdained. As a stressed out go-getter I used to just shake my head wondering how in the hell do they get away with it. It’s time to flip that thinking. Instead of thinking they are unmotivated banana slugs, admire how brilliantly tuned-in they are to management’s mental blind spots. Those who successfully retire in place figure out the perfect balance of doing as little as necessary while setting a low bar for expectations. Yet they’re able to stay employed for as long as they want. Show up and leave on time with nothing but stress free fluff in the middle. Yep, that’s the ticket! 

Management just wants things done. They always find it far easier to force the motivated ladder climbing go-getters to do things because a slacker can’t be 100% relied upon to come through in time. They can’t even identify a motivating carrot to dangle in front of them.

The slackers where you work have found the exact low effort success recipe for your company’s culture and management. Learn from them through observation. Research, admire, and study their work, actions, attitude, demeanor, and imaginative but effective excuses. Then create your own quiet retiring strategy. 

If there are no quiet anything slackers to be found, then you might want to cancel this plan. Maybe you can become their first ever to attempt this in your organization but it’s more likely that your employer’s management has figured it out. You’ll most likely fail, sooner than later.

Step 2- Be the Biggest Cheerleader 

It all starts here. Can you hold your nose to be a cheerleader and enthusiastically cheer every decision and accomplishment within your organization whether it’s total BS or not? If you can’t then your quiet retiring plan may fail. It’s the one thing that management really likes about employees. It’s a slacker perception smokescreen and it somehow always magically protects them. It works so well that any teammate who complains about a cheerleading slacker is looked at as more unfavorable by management than the slacker is. Slackers may not be considered a reliable go-getter, but by God the good slackers sure are perceived as the most engaged, happy, and positive employees on the team. 

Always smile and openly compliment the others who will ultimately be picking up your slack. Be the one who suggests a potluck accomplishment lunch or group success celebration. Create visibly awkward moments by calling out for team hugs, high fives, and fist bumps. Take all the teammate eyerolls that you will be getting as a sign that you are on the right track. You are noticed and remembered for enthusiastically being there for the team.

Step 3- Being in the Right Spot 

Look at the size of your organization. There has to be enough people to hide within and to carry the load of doing all of the hard stuff and BS that you won’t be doing anymore. If you are on a small team or there are already too many quiet quitters or retired in place, then consider transferring to another team or department. 

An internal company move will allow you to begin your quiet retiring by coasting under the guise of “new person ramp-up” in training. I have seen successful slackers stretch that time-line out for years while successfully deploying the other slacker retired in place tactics. 

Step 4- Easy Does It, You New No-Getter

Don’t make the mistake of going too fast into your quiet retiring. If you’ve been the stressed out go-getter for many years then you can’t just immediately retire in place. Slide into it slowly. You must gradually cause lower expectations. Drop the ball and get a few, I’m worried about your lower performance discussions before going full bore. Just use the “I’ve got personal issues I’m working through” excuse.

Start by just letting slide all of the crap you absolutely hate doing. But do still hold a high level of competence and performance for things you actually enjoy doing or that are super important to management as far as performance objectives or team metrics. There’s still opportunity to score some easy performance bonuses and raises during the early stages of your descent into quiet retiring. Then slowly start to let other things slip here and there until you can move into full retired in place operandi. 

Gradually trim back everything that causes work stress but do the things that you can still be happy doing. While you’re most likely trashing any career accomplishment legacy you might have, it’s important to have a reason other than money and benefits for keeping up the charade and showing up. 

Step 5- Don’t Volunteer to Lead But Enthusiastically Join 

There’s always going to be a proposed important project or activity in a staff or team meeting. You know, the ones that have stressful short timeframe or will be extremely difficult. Never volunteer. Sit back and let a ladder climbing  go-getter do that. But once it looks as if it will be a team effort, jump in as a tag-along. It doesn’t matter that you have no intention of working hard. What matters and will be remembered is that you enthusiastically offered to help and was part of the team. Team success will also land on you no matter how big of a slacker you were. 

If you are unfortunately assigned the lead by management then make sure it becomes a team effort. If it isn’t obviously going that direction, start by saying “this sounds great. I have a lot on my plate but I think I can make room”. Then start complimenting a team go-getter so they get dragged into your team. While working on the project make sure to throw in a lot of “WE” talk with the other assigned team members. Reminding everyone this is a “WE” situation will make the go-getter(s) overcompensate for what will be your quiet retiring performance. 

There is one exception to this step or rule. Do volunteer to lead any celebration type activity to be a compliment to your cheerleading efforts and then milk the crap out of it to avoid other stressful or hard work assignments. 

Step 6- Exaggerate Your Work’s Importance and the Effort It Takes

Even as a retired in place slacker you will have work that you will be doing. It’s important to inflate the work you choose to do. Your quiet retiring task is to spin your wheels for as long as possible. That way you appear too busy to be assigned anything more and especially anything hard. Always smile and talk about how difficult and important your work is. Remember that many managers have no idea what the actual work is or how it’s done anyway. 

Step 7- When All Else Fails, Buy Treats

It is highly recommended that you strategically shower a few inexpensive treats on your coworkers and team while you retire in place. Sometimes a slacker’s best strategies will wear thin or fall short. Buying team treats is an important part of any quiet retiring toolkit. Especially when you have successfully dropped the ball and your team has had to carry your load. Even when being late to a meeting, treats like doughnuts, cookies, or bagels are the perfect smokescreen tactic to deploy. Even cheap day-old or old halloween candy works. It’s a companion action to being the biggest cheerleader. 

Step 8- CYA: Document Everything

There are times when slackers will be targeted for reprisal or dismissal.  If your finances aren’t where you can otherwise retire, then you must CYA with documentation that can be used to secure a severance package or financial offer if things go south. 

Any miswording or action that could be considered even remotely offensive to anyone, whether you were offended or not, should be documented. Dates, places, the issue, the offender, the audience, witnesses, etc. 

Don’t play your hand unless you have to. At the first sign you may be in serious slacker employment trouble, drop the bomb. Say you have been working in fear and now need to bring atrocious behavior to the attention of company executives. Use your most inquisitive and sad look on your face and quietly ask, do you think I might need an attorney?

CYA documentation may not stop your termination but you may end up with a bigger severance package or offer to make both you and it all go away. It just could bridge your retirement savings gap.

If you have an impressive list of bad behavior there are always legal options. You may be a retired in place quiet retiring slacker but you’re also now a sympathetic or even maybe a pathetic victim in this rancid cultural stew that celebrates grievance. It just might pay off! Remember, you are the biggest cheerleader. You were always the lead for celebrations and you constantly brought treats to the team. 

In Closing

Quiet retiring means you still have to show up to your job. But think of it as being about fulfilling your social needs and getting paid at the same time. Look, retiring in place isn’t some clueless “work until you die” retirement plan. If you are killing yourself in a stressful job and can’t quite retire yet, the quiet retiring goal is to purposely and happily retire in place while you continue building your retirement nest egg. Why should the actual lazy morons and ruthless manipulating idiots only get to pull it off?

LAST BUT NOT LEAST- 

It is extremely important that you’re completely aware that this was written to be totally facetious. 

There’s been talk about the trend of people “quiet quitting” in today’s post pandemic workplace. Then an old first career coworker told me of his stress and frustration about having to carry retired in place do-nothings. I was amazed to hear that some of the same long-time slackers were still allowed to work there from my days dealing with them over 12 years ago. They always tell everyone how much they love their jobs and the company. For some it must be close to 20 years of slacking their way to a stressless retired in place happy career. They have a lifestyle they never need to ever retire from. 

As one unashamed retired in place slacker once told me, I haven’t had much of a salary increase in years, but my hourly work pay has quadrupled”. 

Personally I think doing any of these quiet retiring tactics takes much more effort than just pulling your own weight and doing your job to the fullest. Just set some rational boundaries, continue living below your means, and keep doing what you’ve done to become as successful as you are and can be. 

This is just a little Labor Day mental musing based on my past corporate career encounters that crosses with today’s career trends. I’m funnin on both managers and slackers alike. This Quiet Retiring Slacker Early Retirement Plan is of course tongue in cheek. Or is it?

Entrepreneurship in Retirement Has Many Benefits

This post was contributed to Leisure Freak by Linda Chase, creator of Able Hire. 

When you retire, you may first think about lazy afternoons on the porch or months-long trips to the beach. But, if your income and savings can’t keep up with your aspirations, you may find yourself one of the millions of retirees ready to go back to work after your “official” end date.

Unfortunately, those of us in the 55+ crowd face obstacles, from outdated work skills to being overqualified for the things we’d like to do in our encore careers. If you’re looking to get around these challenges, starting your own business may be the way to go. Today on the Leisure Freak blog, we share a few tips on how to launch a post-retirement business from the comfort of home. 

Entrepreneurship in Retirement Has Many Benefits

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Start With a Plan

As with any professional endeavor, it helps to start with a plan. This should include the type of business you want to start and a draft of actionable steps that help you make it happen. Another important thing to get out of the way now is forming your LLC. Even if you’re not tech-savvy, you can use an online formation service to create your legal entity for far less than you’d pay an attorney. Keep in mind that while the limited liability and tax perks you’ll receive are at the federal level, you’ll need to confirm LLC formation laws in your home state.

Calculate Your Needs

Retirement often means a fixed income. Sadly, inflation has taken over, and a fixed income is the worst thing you can have as prices rise. It makes it exponentially difficult to plan your daily finances, which is likely what led you here in the first place. But, you do have to look ahead and try to calculate how much money you need each month. Huntington Bank shares tips on how to create a personal budget. Once you know your income gap, you can decide how much you’ll work.

Market Yourself

It doesn’t matter what industry you are in, you have to market your business. There are many ways to do this, including social media and networking. While these might be intimidating, many old-fashion marketing strategies, like flyers and business cards, still work well today. Even if you don’t have graphic design skills, you can use Word or a similar processing program to create simple files, which you can then convert to a PDF for your printer. You can then convert a PDF to Word to make changes as your service offerings grow. There are plenty of online tutorials that show you how to create designs in Word, which is much easier to use when you need to edit since PDFs have limited editing capabilities.

Best Home-Businesses For Retirees

While no one can tell you what you should do, there are a few businesses that make sense for retirees. These include:

  • Blogging. Blogging is a great way to share your knowledge and expertise with the world, and you can choose an affiliate site to generate passive income.
  • Travel agent. If you’ve already spent much of your life traveling (or if you just want to travel) launching a travel agency is an excellent choice. In this capacity, you’ll get to help other people make decisions about family vacations and work destinations. As an added benefit, you may enjoy discounted destinations and you can write off your own travel on your taxes.

Why Work From Home?

There are many reasons that you should consider starting a business from home during your retirement. First, you’ll save money as you won’t have to pay a monthly lease for office space. Further, if you have any type of mobility issue, you won’t have to worry about getting back and forth to a brick-and-mortar location each day. Perhaps most importantly, having a home-based business gives you more freedom and flexibility to enjoy your retirement.

 

Entrepreneurship comes with a host of benefits for retirees, especially for those of us on a fixed income as inflation continues to rise. Today’s tips can help you get started, and you don’t even have to leave your home to add entrepreneurship to your list of accomplishments.

 

Much thanks to Linda Chase for contributing this informative article. It comes at a time when many people are rethinking retirement. Entrepreneurship in retirement is a way to meet many goals. The benefits extend to more than only those needing to earn extra income. As I always preach, retirement is the absence of needing to work, not the absence of work. 

Author Bio: 

Linda Chase created Able Hire to help people with disabilities build rewarding, successful careers. She hopes Able Hire will be a resource for people with disabilities seeking jobs and for hiring managers seeking a better understanding of what people with disabilities have to offer.

10 High Paying Jobs That May Surprise You

This post was contributed to Leisure Freak by freelance writer Hannah Boothe.

When you think about making a six or seven-figure salary, you probably think of a career as an attorney, a doctor, a chief executive officer, or a top NBA or NFL athlete. However, technology has opened doors to career opportunities that have made millionaires in relatively short periods. Most of these career paths are not familiar to many. Below is a list of the top 10 high-income jobs that are likely to awe you.

10 High Paying Jobs That May Surprise YouImage Source

1. Cloud Computing Professional

Cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular as most organizations seek to cut down on costs. A career as a cloud architect or venturing into cloud computing consulting is by all means worthwhile. With thorough knowledge in cloud application architecture and a great understanding of popular cloud computing platforms such as Azure, GCP, and Amazon Web Services, you are set to smile all the way to the bank by utilizing your in-demand skills.

2. Blockchain Engineer

You will be tasked with the development and implementation of solutions and architecture using blockchain technology like a professional in this field. Spending on the blockchain is expected to increase exponentially, and tapping into this by acquiring thorough knowledge in programming and having a firm grasp on technologies behind R3, Ripple, Bitcoin, and Ethereum will come in handy in landing you that six-figure salary.

3. Product Manager

If you are creative and good at leading teams towards the development of unique products and solutions, then a career as a product manager will be fulfilling and financially rewarding. A product manager determines the framework around a product they want to be developed and oversees the process from conception to launch. It is of the essence to understand the product lifecycle process, have a thorough knowledge of tools such as JIRA and Pivotal Tracker, and possess good analytical skills if you want to pursue this career path.

4. Data Scientist

While it may seem obvious that a career as a data scientist comes with a good salary, many downplay this as they do not realize the vital role played by these professionals and why they will continue being in demand in the long term. A data scientist is tasked with the analysis and interpretation of complex data that aids entities in making good decisions on time.

5. Customer Success Specialist

Being a people person can really earn you good money. As a customer success specialist, you will act as an advocate for your company and act as a client liaison. Having both hard and soft skills will ensure that you thrive and stay in demand. The beauty of this career path is the growth prospects associated with it, as one can quickly progress to a chief executive.

6. Behavioral Health Technician

With global advocacy on the importance of mental health, there is an increase in demand for professionals specializing in the treatment of various behavioral disorders. While a degree in a particular field is not required when pursuing this career path, thorough knowledge of the pattern of behavior being treated is key.

7. JavaScript Developer

Thorough knowledge of this programming language will ensure that you reap big as it is one of the most sought-after software development skills. JavaScript developers are in great demand as they are responsible for ensuring that a web application’s visual elements are working as they should.

8. Cybersecurity Expert

Keeping company and customer data safe is a top priority for every company. With annual rises in data breaches, cybersecurity experts are increasingly becoming fundamental in ensuring a smooth flow of operations without outside interference. If you are tech-savvy and have a firm grasp on networks and firewalls, then this is the career for you.

9. Digital Marketing Specialist

Digital marketing specialists are some of the highest-paid professionals. A diverse skill-set is, however, required when pursuing this career path. From SEO, SEM, and Marketing in the various social platforms, these must be at the fingertips of a professional in this field.

10. Business Development Executive

Sales roles have experienced a lot of demand in the past year, especially in the tech and science fields. Business development executives are especially sought after to help in the generation of leads and follow-ups and certainly earn well while at it.

 

With online courses in the disciplines mentioned above being available for free on YouTube and at affordable rates on platforms such as skillshare, acquiring them has never been easier. The majority do not require you to have a college degree to get started and can be completed in a year or less. A shift in mentality from traditional well-paying jobs is certainly required. 

Much thanks to Hannah Boother for contributing this post sharing some high paying jobs that may surprise you during these times of employment opportunity. Timely inspiration for skill improvement and a possible higher paying career.
High Paying Jobs That May Surprise YouAuthor Bio-

Hannah Boothe is a freelance writer native to Northern California who spends her free time developing herself. Hannah enjoys the outdoors, she goes hiking whenever the weather permits and enjoys practicing yoga. She carves out time to journal and read whenever she can. She loves adventure and connecting with those around her. 

Semi Retirement? What I Loved About My Scaled-Down Retirement Jobs

Looking back over my early retirement there was a lot to love about my scaled-down retirement jobs. Right from the start of my journey to FIRE, my plan was to be open to paid work in early retirement. What some people refer to as semi retirement, I happily called what I was going to do “retiring early and often”.

For me it was all about being able to pursue interests. Interests that my long career wouldn’t allow me to do. That and shedding some of the stuff I didn’t like doing. I looked forward to accepting opportunities for just as long as I wanted to do it. That, and also gain the life flexibility I had sacrificed over the decades while serving the corporate world system. Basically, my paid work in retirement will be a rewarding adventure or it isn’t going to happen or continue. Here’s some of what I loved during my retirement work experiences. 

Semi Retirement? What I Loved About My Scaled-Down Retirement Jobs

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The Best Parts About Working Scaled-Down Retirement Jobs 

Done right, being open to taking on scaled-down retirement jobs has only upsides. Everyone will have to decide what “done right” looks like for them. I set my own working in retirement guidelines and stuck to them to leverage the work experience in my favor. Aside from getting to meet and work with some awesome people, here’s what I loved most:

Money wasn’t my motivation, it was learning and doing something I had interest in –

I had established my retirement funding to cover things regardless of my working. Anything I earned would be added to our overall net worth, not increasing our budget or spending. It freed me to purposely target opportunities based solely on interest. I could ask myself, if money was removed from accepting this position, would I still want to do it? There are some things, like herding cats (project management) that no amount of money could get me to do. 

This mindset also made it easy to decide when it was time to end the job experience. I retired early again without hesitation from an encore career that paid more than my first long career. This mindset provides empowerment. No longer shackled to unrewarding work, unreasonable management, or a toxic work environment because of the need for a paycheck.

It allowed me to experience work in a different way as a paid observer. I was only there to perform my duties and absorb all I could without the pressure of attempting advancement for monetary reasons. I was able to learn, experience different interests, be rightfully paid, and simply move on once the itch was scratched.

The ability to leave it at the end of the day and not take it home –

My long telecom engineer career included 24×7 on-call. But worse than that was having to continually think about it to stay ahead of problems or plan ahead for the next day. What I enjoyed most about my scaled-down retirement jobs was being able to leave it all there at work. It was no longer my job to take care of the world. That was left for the career driven go-getters who still needed to. 

The pleasure of having absolutely no pressure to over perform –

During my old career we had monthly accomplishment meetings with management. Where it was all about the question, how have you performed over the past 30 days? We had to prove our worth to keep our job and add to or subtract from our annual appraisal metrics for salary treatment. Make a measurable mistake or underperform in the last month of the year and they gladly erased all previous accomplishments that year. In fact, any poor performance month was used as a reason to withhold a raise. There was none of that pressure in my scaled-down retirement jobs. If there was, I wouldn’t have accepted the position. 

I vowed to be reliable, do my job, and learn all I could from the experience. No more sacrificing my personal life or covering for incompetence, outdated and overworked software/hardware/machinery, or doing more than I really wanted to do. When I did go above and beyond it was because I really wanted to help out. Not out of some obligation to do it or an attempt to avoid feeling the sting of management’s retribution.   

Being able to refuse accepting the thieves of personal life: On-call and overtime – 

Turning down every offer of taking an on-call duty, working a nonscheduled weekend or holiday, and any overtime was a whole different feeling of freedom. This also endeared me to my coworkers who were hungry to earn extra money and saw me as someone not competing against them for that. 

Free from legacy obligations – 

Being new on a job means everything now touched is fresh and new too. In my long career there were a lot of things touched and worked on. Management created a fix-it-fast culture where they didn’t care who was really responsible. That meant anything worked on over the decades that broke, even when it was outside current job responsibilities, it still ended up in your lap because nobody wanted to take the time to learn or own it. Losing and no longer bogged down with legacy work history was a refreshing aspect to my scaled-down retirement jobs. 

It wasn’t about money, but I still loved padding net worth while enjoying a retirement job –

Who wouldn’t love adding money to their portfolio while having fun working on their terms? Even my lowest paying retirement gig went towards our overall net worth. I had retired early with a modest mortgage that we had refinanced to get the lowest budget friendly payment possible. I was able to pay that off from my earnings over an 18 month retirement job stretch.

During one short contract I was able to divert almost all of my earnings to the 401k to approach that year’s federal maximum contribution allowance. It deferred taxes, reducing it to near zero on earnings other than Social Security/Medicare withholding during that earnings stretch.

It Wasn’t All Smooth Sailing, There Were Some Challenges To Retirement Job Bliss

Time off and vacation time offered, but with a catch –

After spending decades at the same company in my first career I was caught off guard by how my scaled-down retirement jobs managed employee time off. They didn’t. For all my corporate based retirement gigs it was put on the employee to make sure either the shift was covered or have a full backup person cover you. Difficult to do when everyone is already stretched to their limits with work.

We still traveled and vacationed while on these retirement gigs. I found it an intimidation strategy to get career driven employees to not take their vacation benefits. Getting time off under their rules was a challenge. I admit that because of my retirement work mindset where there was no financial fear of dismissal that I may have circumvented their time-off process a few times. 

Scheduled to work weekends and holidays –

I accepted that I may have to work weekends and holidays as long as it was fairly assigned. It was tough to be unavailable to be with family when they were off work whenever I was stuck fulfilling my duties. I did experience having to work an early morning Christmas shift for the first time in my life. It went by fast and I kind of enjoyed the quiet day. We had already planned Christmas with our kids and grand-kids later that day anyway.

Unfortunately that Christmas the entire next shift  of 2 called in sick (they weren’t) and I refused to work a double on Christmas. Somehow I was in more trouble than those fibbing illness. Turns out it disturbed my manager’s holiday. It was nice having that conversation with my boss the following day. Reminding him that I did my job duties and it wasn’t my job to make it easier for him to manage his people and the business. The joys of financial independence in all its full glory. 

Income taxes were a handful – 

To fund my early retirement in my pre age 59 ½ days I was living off of Sepp 72t IRA distributions. Something that I couldn’t turn off without IRS hassles. I then banked all work earnings, taking advantage of 401K opportunities when offered, use of IRAs, CDs, and a savings account. I had 10% federal taxes withheld from the 72t payments and I claimed Zero at the single higher rate on my work W4. With all of that I would still owe a big chunk at tax filing each year. 

The longer on the scaled-down retirement job, unwanted legacy work obligations creep in – 

The longer I worked a retirement gig, its own legacy work obligations that I had gladly moved beyond from began to show up again. There will always be some undesirable work that people will drag their feet doing. If you have proven success with it then management will pile it on you to make their life easier. It’s the nature of most jobs where excrement rolls down hill. It’s one of the reasons that added to my decision to end what I call my encore career. I wanted to learn and experience my interests, not carry operational BS because new or full time people didn’t want to do it and management just wanted it done without disturbing their own bliss. 

Management trying to add unwanted scope –

When I was hired for my scaled-down retirement jobs it was well detailed what I used to do. They even mentioned the “overqualified” issue. I selected opportunities based on what I wanted to experience. I made it clear what I was there to do because I wanted to do it. My retirement jobs were perfectly scoped based on my being rationally unreasonable about that. But they can’t help themselves but to try and change the scope or rules. Sadly that doesn’t work for them once you are happy to call the relationship over if pressured to accept it. I did have a 4 month stretch until my contract ended where a new manager was unable to accept this dynamic and created a slightly hostile environment. 

Turning down extra shifts, overtime, etc., on occasion caused some conflict with management – 

Most of the time there was a ready supply of work go-getters willing to snap up any opportunity to make more cash. But when there wasn’t, my response of “no thanks” to their requests was less than acceptable. I hate to admit it, but they paid the price for my pre-retirement decades of work abuse and my unrelenting desire for a balanced working-in-retirement lifestyle. My refusals were always done with a smile and soft tone.

My Retirement Gigs Didn’t Last Forever, Nor Meant To

The list of my paid retirement work isn’t vast. I retired early at the age of 51 from a traditional and ravaged Bell System company as a lead engineer. 

I took some months off and my desire to learn wireless technology guided me to a Wireless (Cellular) company Network Operations Technician position. 

My interests in cable technology and past experience led me to an opportunity to become a Video on Demand Systems Analyst. It’s what became what I consider my encore career. Even though it was going very well and paid more in salary than my first long engineering career I got all I wanted out of the experience and then retired again.

Months later I accepted a short Cable Telecom Systems Analyst contract. The recruitment came from some people I enjoyed working with before. It started as the best contract experience of my life. Once that project ended after 2 short months I was extended 4 more months for another project. It was a lesser experience but tolerable due to my set retirement job boundaries. 

Then one summer I worked as a Craft Beer bartender to help out in a small local coffee shop/Pub that I frequent. I worked during busy weekends and events. That was by far the most fun I have ever had while getting paid.

There were also some super short contracts that were more like paid tasks than anything else through the 11 years of my early retirement. 

Going forward?

I have no idea what I may try to do next or when I will do it. I’ve become extremely picky about work now that I have met my jobs bucket list goals. Maybe never, it doesn’t matter. But I do know I will frame any opportunity I do accept to be aligned exactly with what I want to do under the retirement freedom rules I created. 

I don’t consider what I do as semi-retirement. I believe that retirement is the absence of NEEDING to work, not the absence of working. What I consider “scaled-down retirement jobs” goes beyond having lesser responsibilities or salary. What it means to me is having a different mindset about it. Working on my terms, doing what I agreed and accepted that I would do, for as long as I want to without financial fear of losing the job or being forced into unrewarding situations.

I’ve had some fantastic and rewarding scaled-down retirement jobs over the years. They’re awesome because I set my own rules and I can leave before it can become a bad experience.

Because of this freedom to live this way, I’ve been simply retired since the first day I walked away from my long demanding career and during every one of my paid retirement opportunities since. 

Tips For Achieving Job Success

This post was contributed to Leisure Freak by the site Value of Stocks. The first step in reaching financial independence is earning income which requires having a level of job success. Here are some tips for effectively choosing how best to do that.

It is fairly easy to get lost in this life. Not knowing which path to take to reach your goals is fairly common. We all want to achieve some kind of success, probably in different areas. Wealth perhaps, or financial freedom. There are multiple ways to achieve your dreams and your goals. Not all of them are the same, but they require a solid foundation that is similar and independent from the path you choose to take. 

Tips For Achieving Job Success

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Think Of Job Success As More Than Money

Find Your Calling

This is perhaps the most important step to achieve success. I am not talking here about financial success but a successful craft in which you can specialize. Finding what you love to do is perhaps one of the most important steps to become happy and successful. No matter how much financial success you achieve, it isn’t worth doing something just for the money and the final outcome. You should focus on doing what you love, and doing it everyday. This is one of the keys to achieve your ultimate goals. Finding your calling is as important as finding the path to financial freedom. It is perhaps the most important step you should take. 

Although the numbers are debatable, it is estimated that 85% of all the people are not happy with their jobs. It is just foolish and masochist to spend your whole day doing something you don’t like, in order to get promoted and still do something you don’t enjoy. Just for the possibility of reaching a certain financial goal. It is rather important that you spend most of your time doing what brings you joy. This may certainly not be the most profitable job you have in the first place. But your love for that activity will ensure that you can constantly get better.

Working for Someone or Be Your Own Boss

It takes a special trait of character to go into business. Entrepreneurs are people that are willing to take a risk, working multiple hours for something that might ultimately fail. This should not discourage you at all. Most of the time entrepreneurs fail, but the lessons you can learn from failing are far greater than the ones, success might teach you. It also has to do with personality, some people like to have a fixed job, and are perfectly happy working for a company for a long time. I am not forcing you into any direction here, it should be a personal decision, and you must take that decision early on in life. Mainly because failing as a young entrepreneur is something uncomfortable but rather easy to overcome. When you reach a certain period in your life, where you have multiple responsibilities. Your family might even be dependent on you, there is very little room for failure. The sooner you start your entrepreneurial endeavour the better.

Start a Company

If you are starting a company there are three main ways to succeed. I will try to explain all of them so you get a better perspective.

1- Better Product/Service

One of the ways to succeed is to start a company which has a superior product or service. This is extremely difficult, because most of the time there are many other competitors trying to reach the same objective. Although it is not impossible it is still a far fetched idea, that might help you achieve this goal.

This is not by far the only way of achieving your goals. There are a number of ways to succeed without being an incredible innovator. Just look at Facebook as an example, at the time, there were numerous other social media platforms that were already up and running. This should also reinforce that no matter how good your idea for the product or service is, you have to execute it perfectly. Business success is much more about execution than the idea itself. Many people might have the same idea, but the execution is the key differentiating factor. This leads us to number two.

2- Better Way of Doing Things

This is the key for most of the business success. It is not about the idea itself it is all about execution. You will also find that some business opportunities lie in identifying a way some things can be done better. Let’s look at Walmart, there were retailers before them. What made them stand out, was their execution. There wasn’t any revolutionary product or service, just a much more efficient way of doing things. 

3- Cheaper Way of Doing Things

This leads us to number three. Executing with the lowest cost. This is another way that sets apart companies, solely based on their profitability. It is inherently tied to the execution part of the business and more specifically regarding efficiency. If for some reason you think there is a better, or more efficient way of conducting a certain business. And that translates into cheaper cost. You can pass that towards your consumers and it should allow you to grow over time.

Conclusion

I hope you were able to learn something from this. I would go even further and I expect you to find what you love doing, and spend the rest of your life doing it. Just like I love to write about finance, and try to help people think outside the box. Life is short and I wish you all the success and happiness you can achieve. Remember life is not about the material things, it is about doing what you love and meaningfully impacting the ones you like the most, family and friends. You won’t be in your deathbed missing all those hours spent doing something you hate, for that hefty paycheck or the large amounts of money you made. Focus on what is important and good luck.

This article was contributed to Leasure Freak by the site Value of Stocks. 

Author bio: Value of Stocks is an independent financial information provider. Focused on analyzing stocks with a value investing approach. Our main goal is to help investors make better investment decisions.

My Early Retirement Was Never About Retirement

Sometimes we have to adapt to difficult and changing circumstances. As people are being forced to reevaluate their retirement plans and careers, it’s easy to get hung up on the perceived safety of coloring within the lines of traditional definitions and norms. For many it may look impossible to figure out a way to financial security. Maybe a mental shift is needed and perhaps my retirement story will provide ideas. Even though what I did was characterized as early retirement, my leaving my career at the age of 51 was never about retirement. 

Everyone has a mental picture of what retirement is. I had a retirement image too and I knew that someday I would reach an age that the traditional definition of retirement would materialize. But that vision of retirement was decades away. My early retirement wasn’t that. Not even close. I wouldn’t accept that there was just one way to go. 

My Early Retirement Was Never About Retirement

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I Retired Early But It Was Never About Retirement 

I do understand why I got the heat I did about my early retirement not being considered retired. I’ve gone with a different solution to counter the dregs of youthful work life. I wanted to ditch the rat race much earlier than waiting until a traditional retirement age. So I adopted a “retire early and often” mindset. I then created and executed a plan to achieve it. Taking a different direction where I wouldn’t have to wait until old age or having a million dollars in the bank. 

My Employment Liberation Motivation

After decades of relentless and unrewarding work, living under the threat of downsizing and the resulting financial ruin it could cause me and my family, I was motivated to reach a point of employment liberation. A financial condition where I never needed to kiss Corporate-keister or if forced into long-term unemployment have to rely on stingy safety nets to survive.

By the time I decided to work towards early retirement I had already made an interstate relocation to keep my job. Then came the long days in the office, 24X7 on-call duties, business travel, and constantly increasing workloads. There were harmful economic market bubbles and the recession that cruelly added more grief by providing easy excuses to further hammer workers. Sacrifices were made for the workplace promises of something better later. But as I and many people know, you can’t count on corporate world promises. 

What My Early Retirement Plan Targeted

I knew from day one of my financial plan that I was going to retire early and often. I later found a retirement definition that better captured that same mindset: Retirement is the absence of needing to work, not the absence of working.

It all came down to deciding that I’d commit to saving enough to cover living expenses and be free to pursue opportunities of interest and passions. I would welcome paid work in my early retirement but only on my terms. I’d only accept work that meets my criteria and always free to walk away at any time without threat of financial ruin.

What I Did To Reach Employment Liberation

Instead of trying to save a million dollars or more, which at my salary would take me well into old age if ever, I decided to go a different route: 

  • Create a sustainable happy lifestyle without wasteful spending. A frugal lifestyle that may not have included months of exotic travel, expensive cars, or second homes. But it also didn’t include feeling like we were living a deprived life. It was all about simpler living
  • Ramp up savings to save enough to cover that lifestyle in retirement. 
  • Maximize income with eyes wide open to leverage wins in the corporate world’s game. 
It started with cutting waste from our budget. 

We adopted a smart frugal and balanced lifestyle. It does take time and practice to figure out what a sustainable and happy frugal lifestyle is. We perfected it during our journey to early retirement. It was the lifestyle we wanted to live before and in retirement. 

Next was eliminating all non-mortgage debt. 

That effort further reduced our cost of living, that reduced our required budget, which equates to less needed saved for retirement to support it. 

Redirect excess income into savings.

It was then all about ramping up our savings to hit the portfolio target sooner than later. Once expenses are cut more money is freed up to invest. There was nothing extreme in my early retirement story. Just the same basic stuff everyone else in personal finance talks about. 

Always recognize opportunities to increase income and continually gain marketable skills. 

This is an effort that we all should do in our careers. Increased income results in more money to save. Increased skills adds to increased income opportunities now and after early retirement. 

My efforts also required me to better play the corporate world’s game. 

I focused on what management valued. They happily load us down with important but non-valued work. All the things we worked hard to do but meant nothing to management during our evaluations for raises and advancement. Tasks that management seldom loaded onto their pet employees. 

That stuff ate time. Usually eating into our personal time and always taking time away from game winning opportunities. I used their own values to decrease my efforts on that segment of responsibility and put all effort into their home run values. 

I then used their own values to challenge any of their objections to my work priorities. It was clear that the issue comes down to every personal success I could leverage into better raises for me equated to management taking some credit and reward too. 

How I Viewed My Portfolio

I did run my numbers through a retirement calculator to get a feel for my success chances. As for how much I saved, I didn’t have the luxury of shooting for a sizable portfolio that would perpetually generate enough passive income of dividends and interest to totally live off of. I knew I’d also spend down assets as part of my retirement funding bucket strategy

I simply thought of early retirement as a condition of unemployment. Whenever I saved money I thought in terms of how many days, weeks, months, and years of being unemployed would be covered. This thinking continued even when working in my targeted retirement gigs. I looked at my earnings that same way as I set the money aside to increase my net worth. 

I just had a different early retirement vision.

It was always my plan to retire early and then freely pursue opportunities of interest that were outside of what my first career allowed. Once that itch was scratched, I would then go on to the next one when the opportunity to do so presented itself. 

I was also content to sit out doing any paid work at all. It was an early retirement plan born of the hope for freedom through employment liberation. That and being shielded from the economic cycles and the corporate world decisions that seem to always mess with the working class. 

I didn’t have the luxury of a fat salary to pad a huge portfolio. 

Although it sounds wonderful if you have the bucks, I never even considered an early retirement of nothing but pure leisure and neverending travel. To tell the truth, that wouldn’t appeal to me regardless of money. We travel as much as we want to but enjoy where we live. I didn’t have to work in my early retirement to live our lifestyle. But I planned on being open to opportunities. Knowing I would most likely take on a paid gig at times. 

Wrapping up-

What having this mindset and plan did was allow me to take on rewarding work in retirement that I wanted to learn and do. Since I stayed on a budget funded by my portfolio, I funneled all earnings back into my net worth. After 11 years of portfolio funded early retirement, with a few working adventures thrown in, I now have a fatter portfolio to go along with my ability to live a better and freer lifestyle. 

Retiring young means still having all of the energy, spirit, and discipline that brought us success in life and career. I’ve found that we’re happiest when we can direct that energy towards something we value. I simply took what I had saved, created a way to access it to fund our frugal living lifestyle, and freed myself to accept opportunities when they were available to me. My early retirement was never about retirement as it’s hardly what many would call a retirement. Not unless the same retirement mindset that I have can be accepted. There’s always more than just one way. 

Is Taking A New Job Without Mentioning Retirement Plans Dishonest?

The Financial Independence Retire Early (FIRE) journey can be tricky. It’s necessary to maximize earnings, increase savings, and also land in the optimum lifestyle that we desire to live. Having these goals can come into conflict with what others either fairly or unfairly expect of us. So, is it dishonest to take a new job without mentioning retirement plans? Being honest during new opportunity interviews served me very well in the last years of my first long career and all of my retirement jobs. It’s a major reason for my FIRE success. Here’s why it’s not dishonest to withhold retirement goals.

Is Taking A New Job Without Mentioning Your Retirement Plans Dishonest?

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Why Mentioning Retirement Plans Isn’t Necessary In The Pursuit Of Opportunity

A prospective employer’s thoughts don’t usually fish around retirement related questions during an interview when we’re young. It’s more a subtle issue once we stroll into the age 50+ ballpark. Younger FIRE aficionados probably seldom encounter this issue. But it’s a good idea to be prepared for the possible ethical dilemma of whether mentioning retirement plans is necessary. There’s a cost for businesses to onboard a new employee. They have a right to feel they will get their money’s worth. But we also have the right to have our own goals in mind. 

Many people will have no problem with this issue. 

There is an understood truth that we are all at-will employees and nobody owes anyone anything. Unless of course there is a legally binding contract which isn’t usually an issue except at the executive level. But for a lot of people there is a hope that the new opportunity is a chance for a mutually rewarding relationship. Otherwise, why even do it in the first place? We shouldn’t start off intentionally disloyal or dishonest in the relationship right from the start. I know I don’t ever want to feel like a ruthless jackhole. I have to live with myself. 

My early retirement plan was to reach employment liberation by age 50. But that didn’t stop me from wanting to pursue opportunities up to and after the big day of freedom. Navigating around the issue isn’t that complex, you just need to be prepared. 

They Don’t Ask, You Don’t Tell

It would be a rare thing for a prospective employer to come right out and directly ask about our future retirement plans. If it comes it will be in the way they discuss their employment longevity desires. This could be a discussion about how their workforce has low turnover and people stay for many years. Or that they are looking for someone who is a great fit and will be a lifer with the company. There’s no deception in keeping your retirement plans to yourself. Just say how wonderful that sounds and how you would welcome working in that kind of environment. 

Before my first early retirement there was an internal promotion opportunity in another group. Something that would bring in more earnings to go toward my financial goals and a chance to learn and do something I had great interest in. I always embrace both flexibility and adventure. I saw it as a “let’s see what happens” opportunity. They didn’t ask about my retirement plans and I didn’t tell them. In the end, my job offer was first presented to my director by the hiring manager as a courtesy. My director decided that I would be marked as a kind of department franchise player and he killed the offer. I was brought in to be told about it, I baulked, and he offered me a raise to silence the issue.

I doubt I would have received that raise had they known of my coming retirement plans. He didn’t ask about any of my retirement plans and there was no dishonesty in not telling him.

Where Do You See Yourself In Five Years?

A lot of interviewers like to throw the where you see yourself question out or its numerous variants. There is a right way and a wrong way to answer what’s your future career plans question. It’s definitely ill advised to say it’s to retire in an xyz timeframe living the life of leisure. They aren’t concerned with that and are looking for answers related to career aspirations that will be an asset to them as it relates to the presented opportunity and their business. Obviously, focusing on the real reasons we are excited to go through the hassle of interviewing for a new opportunity is an honest answer. 

This issue along with dealing with the overqualified roadblock came up in my first stepped down retirement job. It was during the recession and I had retired as a legacy network telecom engineer and was applying for a cellular telecom tech job near my home. I’m sure they initially assumed I was laid off like so many others and would jump at a chance to return to a like titled job as soon as one came up. I had always wanted to learn about the wireless industry and all of my answers were truthful around that. Not that I was financially independent and flight risk at any time by retiring again. As long as the gig was rewarding I honestly planned on being there. 

Open Ended vs Fixed Commitment

Some opportunities are open ended, like we want someone to stay for a long time with us as mentioned above. Others have a fixed component. As in, we need someone to commit to finish this XX month or year project. In that case the ethical dilemma isn’t about spilling your retirement plans. But instead whether you can honestly commit to the timeframe regardless of any retirement plans

This was the issue I encountered when interviewing for my encore career. It was another opportunity of interest and passion. I was to support a huge video project at a major cable company with a specific minimum project time frame. My accepting the position without explaining my retirement status was far from the equation. I simply made the decision to accept the timeframe commitment. It was the best and most rewarding working experience of my life. After the project and another contract extension I ended up retiring again with no hard or dishonest feelings.

If It’s Heaven You May Change Your Retirement Plans, If It’s Hell Too

One of the things that I always thought about when taking a new job and not mentioning my retirement plans or status is that a lot can happen in the time there. Both good and bad. We can’t see into the future. The relationship and rewards can be so great that retirement will be gladly put off. Or it can go wrong and become obvious that the relationship has spoiled and needs to end. 

Nearly two years into my first retirement stepped down gig I had an opportunity to advance. I had actually done the job in my past and it was a step up from where I was there. Everything went great and the offer was discussed but as I was later told they decided to give it to a younger applicant because at my age of 53 I was seen as a flight risk. Nobody asked, nobody told, but the employer made their own assumptions. They were right. I left a couple of months later. But I will always wonder if I would have stayed there a lot longer had they not done that. I really liked working there but it made the decision very easy to leave and accept a new opportunity that came my way. 

Always Be Open To New Opportunities

Nobody ethically believes that people should never be open to new and better opportunities in their life. That shouldn’t end just because there’s a near retirement date in our plans or we are already retired and want to work. There is nothing dishonest in this. 

Retirement is the absence of needing to work, not the absence of working. Sure, it screws up the system of employment that depends on a financially desperate working class. But there are no ethical issues of honesty with our winning at their game. If directly asked about retirement plans then truthfully answer you hope to one day retire just like almost everyone else does. But right now I am totally excited about and focused on this opportunity. 

 

This issue is something I had to think about because I had always intended on retiring early and often. It was bound to come up. I created a lot of retirement opportunity boundaries to make sure any paid work I took on would be rewarding. The odds were already tilted in my favor because I didn’t need to work. I also didn’t need to have dishonesty be any part of it. In the end there is no legal obligation to mentioning your retirement plans. But we should still consider whether we are acting ethically and honestly. Not for them, but for ourselves.