A couple of weeks ago, I received a request to take an on-line survey from my former employer. The survey targeted recent early retirees and tried to determine not only why we retired early, but whether the company could have done anything to keep us longer. I found the survey to be well-designed and interesting. It made me really search my own soul.
I’ve been retired a whole year now, and sometimes retirement still doesn’t seem natural to me. Most of my adult life, I enjoyed working and got a lot of self esteem from my job. But by the time I decided to retire, that joy of working was gone, for the most part. Would I have stayed on the job longer if offered part-time hours with medical benefits? Part-time with a full pension? How about a paid sabbatical? Contract work? These survey questions probed to the heart of the matter: did I really want to stop working altogether, or did I just need more time off?
Continuing to work at the same job part-time might have given me more time to exercise, cook, and go to the beach, but I doubt that I would have enjoyed the job itself any more. So I might have considered it, but probably wouldn’t have accepted a part-time offer. The idea of a sabbatical or contract work was even more interesting. Taking a break from work altogether could certainly help in a situation of job burn-out or long-term stress. But once again, I probably would have turned down such an offer after seriously thinking about it. In the end, my motivation for retiring was not stress or burn-out as much as lack of passion for what I was doing.
I applaud the company for finally realizing that it needs to take steps to retain its most experienced people. I have no doubt that many people considering retirement would be receptive to a phased, work-to-retirement option of part-time work, contract work, or a paid sabbatical. But the key to retaining employees, retirement age or not, is a little more complicated than offering benefits and incentives.
Showing posts with label Retirement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Retirement. Show all posts
Friday, April 11, 2008
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Moving On
Each time a major change occurs in our lives, whether it is a marriage, a death, a new job, a move to a different city, we have to reconstruct the pieces that make up our daily lives, like putting together a puzzle. After five months of being retired, I am still doing that.
The first thing I had to do was to disengage from my old routine: getting up at 6:00 AM, keeping the kitchen stocked with the ingredients to make my brown-bag lunch, putting out my wardrobe for the next day each night, and setting up the coffee maker before going to bed at 11:00. All of this was gone in the blink of an eye, as was driving to the office while listening to my favorite radio station, walking across the parking lot, turning on the computer to check my email, reading the daily company news, going for my noon walk, etc.
In place of that old, familiar routine, I began to add new things that I never had the time or energy to do before, things like making a healthy breakfast for myself each morning, working out at the gym three days a week, shopping for fresh food at the farmer’s market, going out to lunch with my husband. Errands are now spread throughout the week, instead of crammed into the week-end.
But after five months on this new, more relaxed routine, I felt like there was something missing. A big part of that was being a member of a community of people. Although I still keep in touch with my former co-workers, I no longer really “belong.” I missed having an independent existence that I could call my own. When I got into my car and drove to work each day, another part of my identity emerged, the part of my self that was out in the world “doing something” and using my expertise, energy and mind to solve problems, get things done, and be recognized for it. These are the things that I kept in mind as I pondered the various types of volunteer activities I could pursue.
The first volunteer position I have accepted in a local social services organization involves two afternoons a week at an office where the small permanent staff made me feel like part of the family immediately. Some of the duties will require me to “stretch” a little in developing my people and listening skills, which is one positive thing. More positive still is the fact that my incentive for being there is to help people in the community. Continuing to complete the puzzle of building my new routine will be an on-going process. Perhaps I will later want to add one or more different volunteer activities, or perhaps I will really click with this one and want to spend more hours here. By taking this first step into the world of community service, however, I feel like I truly have taken the final step in leaving my old life as a corporate employee and moving on.
The first thing I had to do was to disengage from my old routine: getting up at 6:00 AM, keeping the kitchen stocked with the ingredients to make my brown-bag lunch, putting out my wardrobe for the next day each night, and setting up the coffee maker before going to bed at 11:00. All of this was gone in the blink of an eye, as was driving to the office while listening to my favorite radio station, walking across the parking lot, turning on the computer to check my email, reading the daily company news, going for my noon walk, etc.
In place of that old, familiar routine, I began to add new things that I never had the time or energy to do before, things like making a healthy breakfast for myself each morning, working out at the gym three days a week, shopping for fresh food at the farmer’s market, going out to lunch with my husband. Errands are now spread throughout the week, instead of crammed into the week-end.
But after five months on this new, more relaxed routine, I felt like there was something missing. A big part of that was being a member of a community of people. Although I still keep in touch with my former co-workers, I no longer really “belong.” I missed having an independent existence that I could call my own. When I got into my car and drove to work each day, another part of my identity emerged, the part of my self that was out in the world “doing something” and using my expertise, energy and mind to solve problems, get things done, and be recognized for it. These are the things that I kept in mind as I pondered the various types of volunteer activities I could pursue.
The first volunteer position I have accepted in a local social services organization involves two afternoons a week at an office where the small permanent staff made me feel like part of the family immediately. Some of the duties will require me to “stretch” a little in developing my people and listening skills, which is one positive thing. More positive still is the fact that my incentive for being there is to help people in the community. Continuing to complete the puzzle of building my new routine will be an on-going process. Perhaps I will later want to add one or more different volunteer activities, or perhaps I will really click with this one and want to spend more hours here. By taking this first step into the world of community service, however, I feel like I truly have taken the final step in leaving my old life as a corporate employee and moving on.
Saturday, April 28, 2007
A Final Word About Work
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.
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.
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.
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