Secrets to staying busy in retirement?

[Lee Schierer]

Once the honeydo and house renovations are done (are they ever); there are lots of volunteer opportunities out there. For instance, our church has a group of men that meet every Tuesday morning and take care of the landscaping and minor repairs at the church. There is also Habitat for humanity, they welcome volunteers to help with their builds. Locally we have a ramp building organization that provides free ramps for those homes that need them. When the need is finished, the remove the ramps and recycle the parts that are in good shape.

You can be as busy as you want to be when you retired. I have very few days where I have nothing to do.

Whatever you do avoid boredom as that leads to eating and eating leads to sitting in an easy chair.

[Mike Chance in Iowa]

My observations of past and present Seniors in my life.... the ones that were more active prior to retirement age stayed as active, or became even more active after they retired. These were people who were generally happy in life and would participate in social or group/club activities. Even the ones that became legally blind and/or legally deaf or had other physical limitations ... they would still engage in neighborhood or town events as long as they had a driver.

The ones who were generally not happy in life, didn't have hobbies or activities, and avoided social/group situations were the ones that hunkered down even more after they retired.

It's fine to hunker down with a good book for the weekend or binge watch something on TV, but there needs to be a balance to get out and enjoy a walk with the dog, or visit with friends or family, or explore a museum or farmer's market too.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Sit down in October and try to figure out Medicare options.
That will keep you busy until the following August - when you can spend a couple of months gathering up all the documentation you need for October....

I'm only half kidding.

Why they insist on making that whole process as complex as it is escapes me.

The other thing is - get used to taking a nap. My nap is the highpoint of my day.

[roger wiegand]

I can't even imagine how I once had time to go to work (much less the 60-80 hour weeks I used put in). I routinely have to prune hobbies and activities, as they just continue to proliferate -- everything is just so interesting! I'm in the shop about 50-60 hours a week with an endless backlog of projects (completing a year-long restoration of a self-playing 1930's Belgian cafe dance organ this month), interrupted by 2 to 3 multi-week trips somewhere each year. (At the Marc Adams School learning welding and wood finishing right now); I watch TV perhaps an hour or two a month, but do lose a lot of time to youtube videos on how to do things I'll probably never get to as well as old industrial processes.

The sad truth is that I seem to no longer have enough time to go fly fishing, another hobby I have loved over the years.

[roger wiegand]

Sit down in October and try to figure out Medicare options.
That will keep you busy until the following August - when you can spend a couple of months gathering up all the documentation you need for October....

I'm only half kidding.

Why they insist on making that whole process as complex as it is escapes me.

Must have missed something, I signed up seven years ago now (took an hour at the time) and haven't given it another thought since. The choices I made then just roll over to the new year and I haven't had cause to think about changing them.

[John K Jordan]

…I've seen more than one relative retire and then decay/die by just sitting on the sofa. I understand it can be hard to motivate oneself at 70+. But I wondered if anyone has suggestions for HOW to stay engaged and active.

My relatives all knew they "should" get a hobby, a social group, etc. But they just couldnt break the sofa habit. How do you folks do it? For example, do you "force yourself" to go find new places to socialize? Do you just keep trying different types of volunteer work until you find one that suits? Etc.

Sorry if this seems like a dumb question, but Im hoping to get some experienced advice.

Respectfully,
Fred

I’m 72, been retired 16 years. My solution: buy some property with a decent house and an old barn. Get animals to take care of. They keep me busy and give me lots of exercise!

I started in ‘04 with two goats and a horse. I built good fencing and today have 4 horses, 6 llamas/alpacas, three mini donkeys, chickens, guineas, turkeys, peacocks, and beehives (plus dogs and cats). The baby horse, over 6 months old now, is almost a full-time project! (it’s weaning time…)

I move about 350 bales of hay twice every year (once when storing and again when feeding), countless 50 lb bags of feed, and walk 5 miles a day on average. I went about 14 years without watching even an hour of TV.

I realize this lifestyle isn’t for everyone but can be VERY rewarding and soul-satisfying, might require a built-in love for animals! But I guarantee it provides motivation (assuming you care about the animals’ wellbeing!)

I also love teaching and helping others which leads to socializing opportunities. For example, a few days ago I was able to help a gentleman with some metalworking. We had a wonderful time!

JKJ

[Bill George]

Been retired 15 years now. I have always had a shop and hobbies. I am 79 and build the steel frame out of Unistrut and welded it together for my first solar electric generation system. Six panels (600 watts) mounted with LiFePO batteries and 2000 watt low frequency heavy duty invertor. I have three other panels not mounted but portable.

Also have a new 30 watt Galvo fiber laser to learn, and of course my other CNC interests


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[Frederick Skelly]

This is all great stuff guys. Thank you!
Fred

[Rich Engelhardt]

The choices I made then just roll over to the new year and I haven't had cause to think about changing them.

Consider yourself either blessed - or - healthy enough you haven't needed your coverage.

[Bernie Kopfer]

Many excellent observations and suggestions here! My experience of being retired for 10 years has been very positive probably due to a great deal of volunteer work and a emphasis on staying fit. Volunteering to help the common good is rewarding and also provides a socializing opportunity. For me the feeling of being needed and useful minimizes the opposite.

[mike calabrese]

All here are very good suggestions. The first thingI would suggest you to do is don't panic.
The next thing would be to think about the time you were at your work and wished you could be somewhere else doing something you would enjoy.
That could be the best opportunity to enter into something that could keep you happy for a long time.
And lastly once you retire your thought process will change completely. You will start complating activities that you never allowed yourself while working because you knew all you could do (while working at your job) was run to the end of your work chain and bark at your dreams. When you retire the chain goes away run with it.
mike calabrese

[Jim Koepke]

Another thought, check with your health care provider to ask about "silver & fit." It is a program that provides free gym membership so you can exorcise regularly. In my area it is done through the YMCA.

jtk

[Jim Becker]

Just to add an element to this conversation, staying busy isn't just about physical fitness and not becoming a couch potato. It's really important to keep one's mind "fresh", too, so participating in things that are actually interesting, enlightening, engaging, etc., is a really good step for maintaining "overall" health. The cognitive rehab that folks who are experiencing some level of age related dementia is a good example of formalizing this, but there's no reason why all of us cannot benefit from similar mental stimulation, too.

[Larry Frank]

Retirement is one of the major moments in our lives and one that many are not prepared for as there are so many decisions that need to be made and some well before you retire. My wife and I started seeing a great financial advisor early on and it was very helpful. What are you going to do in retirement depends on what you can afford to do, what you are healthy enough to do, and what you want to do.

I think planning is critically important for retirement. For me, I have continued to do hobbies from before retirement such as making sawdust and gardening. Your health is another consideration. Unfortunately, I suffer from back issues and chronic pain but still enjoy my hobbies. Just as important as what you will do is what your spouse will do.

There is no easy answer but one should spend significant time before retirement to investigate and try different things.

[Dwayne Watt]

I read (and hear from recently retired friends) that some folks equate working on/cleaning the house or in the yard as their plans for retirement. That concerns me. Those are chores, not long term activities. Do I have retirement figured out...probably not after only a couple of years, but having reasons to get up and "DO" something is imperative. Keeping the mind active as well as the body is important. As a long time woodworker, I have about filled the house with furniture and cabinets so I have embarked on more artistic works by using a lathe and getting actively involved in a local turner's club. I watch TV/movies in the evening because I enjoy that. I travel a little bit. I sleep soundly at night. I like life!
When I first retired, a long time friend gave me some very good advice for the first few months of retirement. Sit back a bit, de-stress, read a book...most importantly, make no rash/impulsive decisions. Start to implement your retirement plans or solidify them, ramp up hobbies or start new ones, but again most importantly remain engaged in the new chapter of your life. It is not simply a long vacation.