You hear a lot about how the coming wave of baby-boomer retirements is going to swamp the Social Security and Medicare systems. I’ve even read some articles on how the government and businesses need to encourage us to continue working longer, in order to keep the economy and the national budget healthy, as well as to stave off an impending brain drain and labor shortage in the business world. Encourage us how?
As far as I’m concerned, the way to encourage people to keep working is to make them love their jobs, and give them enough flexibility to have a fulfilling, healthy life outside of work. However, the trend in business seems to be just the opposite: more mergers that produce gigantic conglomerates where people feel like numbers; “streamlining” initiatives designed to squeeze more productivity out of fewer employees; the constant threat of being downsized, outsourced, re-engineered. Even the wonders of modern technology, the cell phones, pagers, blackberries and laptops are often used not to make work easier, but to make it harder to escape from it, even at home. Few companies have programs to retain retirement-aged workers or any workers, for that matter.
Of course, we all know that companies are in business to make money; we’ve heard it often enough. Their primary purpose is not to have happy employees and not to help the federal government bail out Social Security and Medicare. Ultimately they are going to do what they must to remain profitable, we are going to do what we must to live fulfilled and happy lives, and the two don’t always coincide.
Perhaps the way to help our country’s economy without working into the grave is by keeping healthy and volunteering our time in ways that will give back to society. One of the staggering opportunities of having free time in retirement is the chance to do meaningful work for no pay at all. I know that many employed people are dedicated community volunteers, but many are also like I was, too caught up in the insular world of the corporation to look beyond at the greater world. I scan the web and find almost too many opportunities to get involved in something that has meaning. It may take me awhile to find the perfect fit – but that will be my next big project.
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
My Town - Then and Now
I still live in the town where I grew up, only a few blocks from the house where I was raised and where my parents lived for over 40 years. It’s really not the same town as it was then, however. Things change.
My first day at the elementary school, I walked home. I remember that walk home clearly because I got lost. Although it was only two short blocks, straight ahead, to my house, I thought it was only supposed to be one block, and when I walked one block and didn’t recognize the house, I panicked and went in the opposite direction. But I managed to get home okay. I was six or seven years old. Flash forward to 2007. Our neighbor’s child goes to the same school, but now the school requires a parent pick up each child after school; no child is allowed to walk home unaccompanied. If someone other than a parent picks them up, that person must be registered with the school ahead of time. When I was a child, I remember being taught not to accept rides or candy from strangers, but I don’t think anything ever happened to warrant the level of caution that we see in schools today.
Something else was different: none of my friends’ mothers and none of the mothers on my block had jobs outside of the home. Only a couple of them had their own cars. When I came home from school, my mom was either at home or visiting with one of the neighbors, all of whom we knew. At the time, though, it was still possible to buy a home in a decent, if not fancy, neighborhood on only one income. (I think my parents bought their house for less than I paid for my Toyota!) That has changed gradually over the years, and by the time my mother sold the house around 1997, the neighborhood had changed and seemed much less close-knit, with very few of the old neighbors still there. That house has been re-sold at least three times since; the last time it was listed for $599,000. If I had a spare $599,000, I’m not sure I’d buy it, though. It wouldn’t be the same. You really can’t go home again.
My first day at the elementary school, I walked home. I remember that walk home clearly because I got lost. Although it was only two short blocks, straight ahead, to my house, I thought it was only supposed to be one block, and when I walked one block and didn’t recognize the house, I panicked and went in the opposite direction. But I managed to get home okay. I was six or seven years old. Flash forward to 2007. Our neighbor’s child goes to the same school, but now the school requires a parent pick up each child after school; no child is allowed to walk home unaccompanied. If someone other than a parent picks them up, that person must be registered with the school ahead of time. When I was a child, I remember being taught not to accept rides or candy from strangers, but I don’t think anything ever happened to warrant the level of caution that we see in schools today.
Something else was different: none of my friends’ mothers and none of the mothers on my block had jobs outside of the home. Only a couple of them had their own cars. When I came home from school, my mom was either at home or visiting with one of the neighbors, all of whom we knew. At the time, though, it was still possible to buy a home in a decent, if not fancy, neighborhood on only one income. (I think my parents bought their house for less than I paid for my Toyota!) That has changed gradually over the years, and by the time my mother sold the house around 1997, the neighborhood had changed and seemed much less close-knit, with very few of the old neighbors still there. That house has been re-sold at least three times since; the last time it was listed for $599,000. If I had a spare $599,000, I’m not sure I’d buy it, though. It wouldn’t be the same. You really can’t go home again.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
The Endless Weekend
If you’re not sure what it would be like to retire, think about your typical weekend. If you spend every week-end doing a hobby, sport, or activity that you’re passionate about, that’s what you’ll probably end up doing more of when you retire. And if, like me, you attack the weekend with a long list of appointments and errands to run, things to get done around the house, as well as fun things you want to do, then go back to work with a heavy heart because the list didn’t get done, well, you probably won’t be bored when you retire but, like me, will wonder at the end of each day why you didn’t manage to get in your exercise and why the bathroom still isn’t cleaned. The only difference is, you won’t have to wait until next weekend to continue with the list. Every day is the weekend. There’s a certain feeling of peace in knowing that you really don’t have to finish it all in two days, that there’s always tomorrow. Eventually, you might even come to the realization that you really can take a whole day to work on your scrapbook or go to the beach or museum or zoo, or write in your journal or read a good book. Yes, it’s nice. But there’s also the danger of lethargy setting in from the lack of urgency. After about a week of it, I started to worry: Am I going to lose my edge and turn into a lazy slob? After having a job all of my adult life, it is a little hard to let go. The lack of structure is both wonderful and uncomfortable. I don’t miss the job I left as much as the idea of having a job.
Some people say that they would like to retire so they can travel more. I will no doubt do a little traveling now that I’m retired, but probably no more than I would have done if I were still working. If you want to travel, don’t wait until you retire. I say, do it now. When you’re working, you have the money for vacations and you have a whole bunch of people to show your vacation pictures to when you get back. Plus, you need to get away from the job and de-stress, don’t you? I don’t know how many sad stories I’ve heard about people who wanted to wait until retirement to take their dream vacations and then had some tragedy, an illness or the death of a spouse, strike soon after retirement. Whatever it is you dream of doing, don’t delay. Do it now, and retire with wonderful memories instead of regrets.
Some people say that they would like to retire so they can travel more. I will no doubt do a little traveling now that I’m retired, but probably no more than I would have done if I were still working. If you want to travel, don’t wait until you retire. I say, do it now. When you’re working, you have the money for vacations and you have a whole bunch of people to show your vacation pictures to when you get back. Plus, you need to get away from the job and de-stress, don’t you? I don’t know how many sad stories I’ve heard about people who wanted to wait until retirement to take their dream vacations and then had some tragedy, an illness or the death of a spouse, strike soon after retirement. Whatever it is you dream of doing, don’t delay. Do it now, and retire with wonderful memories instead of regrets.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
What Does Work Mean
My first job at the age of 17 was a great source of pride. It gave me a feeling of independence and a taste of what the real world outside of school was like. In addition, I learned about Italian meats and cheeses and how to make great deli sandwiches, knowledge that I still retain today. I job-hopped frequently over the next several years, sometimes for the flimsiest of reasons; but every job, no matter how short my stay, taught me something useful: from wrapping beautiful gifts, to checking income tax forms, to calculating payroll checks, to learning to use a computer.
Looking back, I think I changed jobs a lot because I was curious what it would be like to work for different types of companies. It was a way to keep from getting bored once the job became too easy and routine. Still, I always worked and always loved the idea of having a job, if not always the work itself. I enjoyed getting dressed up, getting in my car, and having some place to go every day. My jobs gave me both self-esteem and a community. The people I worked with were often the only friends I had, outside of my family. For most of my working life, the idea of retiring early would have seemed ridiculous because my job, whatever job I had at the time, was my life.
In a wonderful 1974 book called Working, author Studs Terkel interviewed people from different walks of life about their jobs and how they felt about the work they did every day. Clearly, most people consider their jobs a big part of their identity and have a lot of physical and emotional energy invested there, for better or for worse. I, too, believed that I would someday find an ideal job that I couldn’t quite define, though no job seemed to fit the bill. Somewhere along the line, I wound up at a large corporation, acquired a house with a mortgage that had to be paid, and remained with the company for the next 27 years, some of which were relatively happy and some of which were not. Gradually, working became less of a great adventure and more of a chore to be endured as a means to an end.
So what does work mean? At its most basic, we trade our time to perform a service that the employer requires in exchange for a paycheck and, hopefully, benefits to secure our future. At its most ideal, we give our whole selves, our convictions, our talents, our personalities, in exchange for the opportunity to do something we love. Most employers would say they want employees who embody the latter. But do they do anything to earn it? That is the subject of another post.
Looking back, I think I changed jobs a lot because I was curious what it would be like to work for different types of companies. It was a way to keep from getting bored once the job became too easy and routine. Still, I always worked and always loved the idea of having a job, if not always the work itself. I enjoyed getting dressed up, getting in my car, and having some place to go every day. My jobs gave me both self-esteem and a community. The people I worked with were often the only friends I had, outside of my family. For most of my working life, the idea of retiring early would have seemed ridiculous because my job, whatever job I had at the time, was my life.
In a wonderful 1974 book called Working, author Studs Terkel interviewed people from different walks of life about their jobs and how they felt about the work they did every day. Clearly, most people consider their jobs a big part of their identity and have a lot of physical and emotional energy invested there, for better or for worse. I, too, believed that I would someday find an ideal job that I couldn’t quite define, though no job seemed to fit the bill. Somewhere along the line, I wound up at a large corporation, acquired a house with a mortgage that had to be paid, and remained with the company for the next 27 years, some of which were relatively happy and some of which were not. Gradually, working became less of a great adventure and more of a chore to be endured as a means to an end.
So what does work mean? At its most basic, we trade our time to perform a service that the employer requires in exchange for a paycheck and, hopefully, benefits to secure our future. At its most ideal, we give our whole selves, our convictions, our talents, our personalities, in exchange for the opportunity to do something we love. Most employers would say they want employees who embody the latter. But do they do anything to earn it? That is the subject of another post.
Things That Matter
This blog is about things that matter to me and, I’m willing to bet, to you too, things like work, relationships, health, security, and the strange, twisting journey that we all take through life. It is my way of sharing a little bit of what I’ve learned over the last half century with my friends and family, with the hope that some of you will be moved to take part in the discussions offered up. Here’s a preview of some ideas I’m working on for future posts:
Money vs things
The average worker vs. corporate America today
Too Much Multi-tasking/Over-scheduling
Staying fit, eating healthy
The health insurance crisis
What are the things that matter to you? Please share your ideas. If you come up with a topic that I know little about, I may even have you write a post and be my Guest Blogger!
Money vs things
The average worker vs. corporate America today
Too Much Multi-tasking/Over-scheduling
Staying fit, eating healthy
The health insurance crisis
What are the things that matter to you? Please share your ideas. If you come up with a topic that I know little about, I may even have you write a post and be my Guest Blogger!
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