Enjoying Retirement
Discussion
RDMcG said:
That looks a fantastic car RDMcG 
I hope you have many years enjoying it.Had a singer audition with our band tonight and seems very promising...great voice and a personality too. Things hopefully looking up, though still need to find a full time drummer as our current one is too busy with work and kids these days, so can only be a back up. The little Mito swallowed all my gig gear with space to spare (and a boot light to see by when loading up afterwards...I'm easily pleased
). I got a couple of hours playing music and a fun drive there and back too, finishing off with a G&T I got as payment for fixing my mate's bass guitar. Living the dream. 
Feel like sharing my personal story, currently 57 and retired two years ago from an Emergency Service role, got 5 months into retirement and despondency started kicking in, booze consumption went up, the woman I was seeing was a so-and-so, that didn't help, and got diagnosed with atrial fibrillation.
The end result is I saw an advert for a major animal charity and got the job, it is full-time challenging work that can be satisfying occasionally but the majority of the time it is solo working with probably less than an hour of conversation with colleagues a week! I have now applied to go down to 4 days a week, which hopefully will be accepted.
The lure or urge of retirement is still at the back of my mind and I am wondering again if I should take the leap, the current job is not financially required fyi!
The end result is I saw an advert for a major animal charity and got the job, it is full-time challenging work that can be satisfying occasionally but the majority of the time it is solo working with probably less than an hour of conversation with colleagues a week! I have now applied to go down to 4 days a week, which hopefully will be accepted.
The lure or urge of retirement is still at the back of my mind and I am wondering again if I should take the leap, the current job is not financially required fyi!
Mark300zx said:
Feel like sharing my personal story, currently 57 and retired two years ago from an Emergency Service role, got 5 months into retirement and despondency started kicking in, booze consumption went up, the woman I was seeing was a so-and-so, that didn't help, and got diagnosed with atrial fibrillation.
The end result is I saw an advert for a major animal charity and got the job, it is full-time challenging work that can be satisfying occasionally but the majority of the time it is solo working with probably less than an hour of conversation with colleagues a week! I have now applied to go down to 4 days a week, which hopefully will be accepted.
The lure or urge of retirement is still at the back of my mind and I am wondering again if I should take the leap, the current job is not financially required fyi!
This goes to show that you still need a purpose in life when you retire. Before you retire it can easy to simply assume that work is your purpose, and I suppose for many people it can be, and taking that away suddenly can be hard to come to terms with.The end result is I saw an advert for a major animal charity and got the job, it is full-time challenging work that can be satisfying occasionally but the majority of the time it is solo working with probably less than an hour of conversation with colleagues a week! I have now applied to go down to 4 days a week, which hopefully will be accepted.
The lure or urge of retirement is still at the back of my mind and I am wondering again if I should take the leap, the current job is not financially required fyi!
I hope you are ok now and if you do decide to retire again you find something to fill your time with so that you can properly enjoy it.
Mark300zx said:
Feel like sharing my personal story, currently 57 and retired two years ago from an Emergency Service role, got 5 months into retirement and despondency started kicking in, booze consumption went up, the woman I was seeing was a so-and-so, that didn't help, and got diagnosed with atrial fibrillation.
The end result is I saw an advert for a major animal charity and got the job, it is full-time challenging work that can be satisfying occasionally but the majority of the time it is solo working with probably less than an hour of conversation with colleagues a week! I have now applied to go down to 4 days a week, which hopefully will be accepted.
The lure or urge of retirement is still at the back of my mind and I am wondering again if I should take the leap, the current job is not financially required fyi!
My brother 'retired' 3 times. It doesn't have to be binary, just independence.The end result is I saw an advert for a major animal charity and got the job, it is full-time challenging work that can be satisfying occasionally but the majority of the time it is solo working with probably less than an hour of conversation with colleagues a week! I have now applied to go down to 4 days a week, which hopefully will be accepted.
The lure or urge of retirement is still at the back of my mind and I am wondering again if I should take the leap, the current job is not financially required fyi!
Car bon said:
Completely agree - you need to retire 'to' something not just 'from' work.
The emotional side of retirement is equally as important as the financial side.
There has been an immense amount of sharing across the months on this chat. I wondered whether any employers or indeed anyone themselves have reached out for counselling on this next stage of life. The finance part is well covered by many organisations but the mental well being?The emotional side of retirement is equally as important as the financial side.
scot_aln said:
There has been an immense amount of sharing across the months on this chat. I wondered whether any employers or indeed anyone themselves have reached out for counselling on this next stage of life. The finance part is well covered by many organisations but the mental well being?
Certainly didn’t ask for or require counselling prior to making the decision to retire but my wife did buy me a book entitled “ Not Fade Away - How to thrive in retirement “ by Celia Dodd. She said it was supposed to be a joke
I did read it and I guess if you were perhaps “ on the fence “ it might persuade you to retire albeit always possible you might not !
scot_aln said:
Car bon said:
Completely agree - you need to retire 'to' something not just 'from' work.
The emotional side of retirement is equally as important as the financial side.
There has been an immense amount of sharing across the months on this chat. I wondered whether any employers or indeed anyone themselves have reached out for counselling on this next stage of life. The finance part is well covered by many organisations but the mental well being?The emotional side of retirement is equally as important as the financial side.
PositronicRay said:
Isn't this something the police service ( maybe others) do?
I imagine quite a few organisations in Public service might. From my own experience in Private from my initial “ enquiry “ to writing my letter to actually departing I received precisely no advice of any description nor indeed was ever made the offer.
I lie - my CEO did say to me “ you know you’ll be quickly forgotten “
I think this thread helps a lot. It's about planning & open communicating with those around you. Retirement works best when it's a mutually agreed and planned decision / process. Conversely, when it's done to you, or is a surprise to others, then there are more issues.
I was very lucky that Covid came along just at the right time. Whilst I was still working, we were together a lot more than we ever had been during the week. We surprised ourselves, both of us, because we actually enjoyed it.
I was very lucky that Covid came along just at the right time. Whilst I was still working, we were together a lot more than we ever had been during the week. We surprised ourselves, both of us, because we actually enjoyed it.
Edited by Car bon on Monday 22 May 14:54
alscar said:
I imagine quite a few organisations in Public service might.
From my own experience in Private from my initial “ enquiry “ to writing my letter to actually departing I received precisely no advice of any description nor indeed was ever made the offer.
I lie - my CEO did say to me “ you know you’ll be quickly forgotten “
That's awful and just shows how little companies think of employees for the effort and time they put in (unless it was said in jest I suppose). I got no support or offers of counselling when I started the process and they knew it was on health/stress grounds too. It is a big company who like to make out they care for their staff and all the other corporate guff: The reality was somewhat different, though in some ways that helped me switch off as soon as I left. From my own experience in Private from my initial “ enquiry “ to writing my letter to actually departing I received precisely no advice of any description nor indeed was ever made the offer.
I lie - my CEO did say to me “ you know you’ll be quickly forgotten “
One of my peers who retired early a month ahead of me said that he struggled at first because he kept feeling that he needed to help or that there was something he'd forgotten to hand over/properly explain. Perhaps having been made redundant three times in my working life made me less precious about my value to the company and knowing that we're all replacable as much as we might not like to think that.
Had a pleasant Monday with a bit of sunshine between the clouds and been out and about, though managed to get caught in traffic mid afternoon...the humility of it.
Got stocked up with some things for a picnic tomorrow in Hyde park on our way to the Albert Hall for the Jeff Beck tribute concert. I still don't think I know that many of his songs, but there are some good artists performing the show and they should get any rough bits sorted at tonight's show first. Should be a good day out, though will get home well after midnight, at least no work the next day. OldSkoolRS said:
That's awful and just shows how little companies think of employees for the effort and time they put in (unless it was said in jest I suppose). I got no support or offers of counselling when I started the process and they knew it was on health/stress grounds too. It is a big company who like to make out they care for their staff and all the other corporate guff: The reality was somewhat different, though in some ways that helped me switch off as soon as I left.
One of my peers who retired early a month ahead of me said that he struggled at first because he kept feeling that he needed to help or that there was something he'd forgotten to hand over/properly explain. Perhaps having been made redundant three times in my working life made me less precious about my value to the company and knowing that we're all replacable as much as we might not like to think that.
No it was said seriously by him. One of my peers who retired early a month ahead of me said that he struggled at first because he kept feeling that he needed to help or that there was something he'd forgotten to hand over/properly explain. Perhaps having been made redundant three times in my working life made me less precious about my value to the company and knowing that we're all replacable as much as we might not like to think that.
Couldn’t agree more about the lip service though.
I was there 37 years and not so much as a card from the company.
But given all the corporate changes over the preceeding 3 years or so not surprised in the slightest and the previous 15 years of fun and being extremely well paid helped me get over this
Just back from a very pleasant couple of days at the Concours on Savile Row in London. In its second year now and turning into a nice event with the mixture of cars and activities around the core show.
It has been nice to catch up with people and have a drink in the sun with no worries about time pressures, email or answering work calls.
It has been nice to catch up with people and have a drink in the sun with no worries about time pressures, email or answering work calls.
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