Who Wants To Work After Retirement?
Some time ago, I wrote that the two things retired people worry about most are health and wealth.
Actually, I think I got the order wrong. After trying on retirement, I came to realize that retirement income (money or wealth), should be at the head of the list.
The reason is simple. Few of us will retire with everything we need to last the rest of our lives. Some of us will want a little extra cash to help pay the bills or maintain our lifestyle or just have interaction with other people.
One area that should be considered by retirees are jobs that can be done from home. Working from home can be the best job for seniors, but the difficulty comes in finding one that you can do from home. I found a work at home job and here are some tips to help you find yours
1. Identify the skills you learned in your career and decide what you want to do or are willing to do in the future. Make a list of things you have learned that could be useful in future endeavors.
I have a friend who retired after years in a management position where he had the opportunity to help develop other company management teams.
It would have been easy for him to continue this as a part time job from home with a little bit of networking, marketing and perseverance.
Make a list of all the things you have done that added value to your career. Put everything on the initial list, no matter how insignificant you think it is. I believe everything you do has value. You just have to figure out how. then narrow the list to specific skills that you can market. Identify what you have learned while working at a particular job that can be useful as your part time job.
2. Advertise yourself. Find and join several professional networks that you can use to stay in touch and promote your skills and knowledge. Stay in touch with people you have worked with in the past. Recognize the fact that networking is not the only useful way to find part time work you can do at home. But, you have to network and advertise yourself because hey, nobody is going to find you if you don’t.
Do an internet search for your skill and “networking websites” or go to Wikipedia to find a list of networks you can join.
3. Stay Active in the job market. Consider doing some volunteer work, or give your time and skills away for free as a way to learn how to do part time employment after you retire. The idea is to get freelance work that you can add to your resume and network profiles. Pro bono work is a common practice in the entertainment industry and can be effective in other fields as well. Several years ago, I did some free consulting for a local college video media class and the local Salvation Army. Both looked good on the resume, networking site and made good talking points when interviewing.
4. The most important tip is to believe in yourself and keep learning. The more you know the more valuable your skills and service can become to potential employers when you get to the point in your life where you are considering part time employment as a retiree. Believe me, been there, done that and I know it works.
How To Find Work At Home Jobs
Now I am living the dream, I’m retired, and while I like the freedom of not having to work every day, working is still a part of my life. Work still provides some positive things that I need and I don’t know how to turn off the work ethic that took a lifetime to develop.
The big difference is that now, I’m not committed to 40 hours a week, every week. Most of the retired people I know are still working in some capacity. It’s just something we do.
But the question most people ask me is “Why work after you retire?”.
An old friend of mine had one of the best answers. He said “You can sit on the porch for only so long.” The question you should ask is “What do you want to do after you retire?” and there may be several answers to that question. Your decision will generally be based on how financially secure you are after retiring. For some of us old folks, working, even part-time, will be a reality. So, what is the perfect retirement job for you?
Finding The Perfect Part-Time Job
The perfect retirement job might be the one you have now. Except on your own terms. I know several people who retired and agreed to come back to work on a part-time basis for their former employer. They get to use their vast store of knowledge, work shorter hours with people they already know and get paid pretty well for it. A win-win situation if you can get it. The place to start is to find out if your company already uses part-time employees or make an offer to your company to provide valuable services after you retire.
If you have technical experience, you might explore consulting as a part-time job. My consulting work started shortly after I retired in 2009 with a phone call from a company asking if I could help them out with a short term project doing exactly what I did before I retired. I’ve been working four to six months a year ever since.
There are several other possibilities for part-time work that you could consider:
Do you like to drive and travel?
Recreational vehicle dealers in your area might have a need for someone to transport motor homes from one dealership to another. Check with your local RV dealers and offer your services as a driver. Some might require a class C driver’s license, but the rewards of being paid to travel to different parts of the country in a luxury motor home might be worth the effort.
I know a retired guy who used to drive cars between auto dealerships in his city and another who delivered cars for Enterprise car rental. This type of work is a little more difficult to get into because auto dealers usually have someone on staff deliver cars. It doesn’t hurt to ask and it might result in a unique part-time job.
Uber, the ride sharing service that was started on the internet a couple of years ago offers opportunities to generate some additional cash. I don’t know what the pricing structure is, but it should be easy to sign up for and generate some extra cash. Another big benefit for a retiree, you get to work when you want to and on your terms.
When most people think about a part-time job, the first thing that comes to mind is a low paying structured job where you report to a place at a certain time, put in some hours and get paid. This works and has been the norm since forever. But, the real key to finding unusual ways to earn extra cash is to look around, watch the news and see what is happening in the world today.
Do you like to build things?
I know a retiree who has a wood shop and builds crafts, cabinets and desks out of good wood. He limits his activity to building but doesn’t do installs. There are possibilities for making craft type stuff and selling them at yard sales or flea markets. My suggestion to him was to dust off his scroll saw and make some small wood items such as unique cutting boards and wall plaques that he could sell at flea markets or online. He could also use barn wood or other re-purposed material for a more unique approach.
I know another retiree who raised koi fish and sold them to pet stores. This was a little more time consuming in developing a market for his fish, but it worked for him. I had a friend who raised poison dart frogs to sell. It’s amazing how much money people will pay for a tiny, but beautiful, frog.
Finally,
Think outside the box if you’re planning for retirement and want or need to continue working. If you see something unusual that interests you, check it out. It might just be your perfect part-time job.