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Started working part time at 14 and have had a job ever since, 40 years now... and I'm tired of it. I've done fun and interesting jobs over the years, some have left me battered and a bit busted, but all in all (other than that short stint as a bank teller) I haven't hated my job.
I just want to not work from now on, do the things I enjoy doing, be with my honey.
Me! Me!
I like my job but not love it. It's ok. I've had better before but can't get that back. My team is GREAT, awesome boss, great salary but still. I only have about 5-6 years left before "early" retirement and it seems so far! I find the pressure to over perform, limited staff to do the tasks, etc. is taking a toll on many of us. Always having to do more with less - and seeing frivolous expenses done higher up and us with little increases, is sure not a good way to motivate! There will always be better than us, and worst.
The worst I think is having to get up at 4:15am for work. After so many years it is taking away all the fun of working too, I think.
Why does work have to be in the way of fun? Oh...I remember...to pay for fun things we want and packing money away for early retirement. hihi Seems the day will never get here. But it will. If I could go back in time, there a a lot of things I would not do again, just to have a better freedom of my time. I made choices in life, and now I have to stand by them and be patient a little bit more. hihi
Hang on Pax!!!!
I thought I was sick of working until I stopped working.
I am very happy now, with a professional job that is flexible, and I work part time. However, I made a trade off for less income. Part of me wants to take all of the possible opportunities that come my way, but, I don't want to give up my free time. I couldn't have done this without a spouse who has a good income. As far as I can see, I will work at least part time until I can no longer talk and write, the 2 important skills in my profession. Heck, one of the therapists I work with is 81 and she is my role model. She travels a lot and is awesome.
I found that I could not just ride my bike all day and volunteering felt like slave labor to me.
I used to like my job -- I've been here for 14 years. Lately I very much do not like it. On the other hand, if we lose the contract re-bid that is currently underway then I will be unemployed, and since I have put my mental effort into learning job-specific information rather than expanding my general programming skills, if I lose this job I will probably have a lot of trouble finding a new one.
I think I would be happier working part-time, but I think I will have to work full-time pretty much until I am no longer physically able to do so. I have been "saving for retirement" for years but the total in my accounts never seems to increase very much. Since I am/have always been single, my income is the only one in my household. I do not think I will ever be able to afford to retire.
I have friends who are retired and they are having a great time. Same with my parents. They travel, are involved with activities like cycling, kayaking, long walks in nearby parks, etc. I envy them but do not think I will ever be one of them.
Not only do I not like my job right now, but I think it may be time to change careers. I am a software developer. There are changes being made in the overall process of how we work which I utterly despise. The changes do not mesh well with the way I plan my time and the way my mind works, and as a result things are falling through the cracks, things I used do right without problems. I am told that all companies are adopting these process changes, which tells me that merely looking for a different software development job will not solve the problem. I am 50 years old, single, one person in my household, one income to rely on, and I think I have to choose between starting over with a new career and being miserable. And I have no idea what a new career might be.
I'm pretty good at planning routes for bike rides, and I enjoy doing that. Unfortunately I don't think anyone will pay me to that for a living.
Sorry for the thread hijack, I just needed to get that off my chest.
In general I like my job. But because so many teachers apparently need a lot of hand holding and someone looking over their shoulder ,we have A LOT of extra paperwork to keep us "accountable." We are all treated the same and that makes me angry. I have years of data to show that I am really good. The union won't let our administrators treat us differently. What is the point of being really good at my job? I get no extra benefits. I get the tough assignments and the difficult kids and I get all the extra bullsh!t because some teachers suck.
I'd really like to go part time. Life is short.
Veronica
My DH "retired" a year and a half ago, and is really happy. In the meantime, I continue to hold down my full time job, carrying our living expenses, medical, etc. I don't HATE my job, and in fact, am finally returning to the company I have been contracted to for 2+ years as a full time employee (again). BUT, there are days when I am VERY envious of my DH... The good thing for me is that I work from home, and have a flexible schedule. I do, however, see an end in sight...
SheFly
I also tend to think that we (those in the 50s) are in what we call now 50 is the new 40. So we are in that phase now...rethinking the whole thing. haha
Same for me, I don't feel old at all, but I don't want to change career right now. Especially being closer to retirement. If I make a change, it would be then, and only because I feel like it and looking for a challenge on my own term.
I had the chance to take 2 summers off work about 7-8 years ago (in between permanent jobs). It was the best time ever I had. Hubby came home and had nothing to do. I cut the grass, took care of the house, etc. It was soooo much more fun. No stress, no commute. We had all our weekends with NO errands to do. But it did not pay the rent or would not if I had not gone back to reach our future goals. I never got bored either when I was home. No way.
No hijack ny biker,I think you're on to something. I'd be willing to but many of us would be happy to work, at least part time, if we were doing something we loved or that allowed us to follow our passion. If I were more creative I'd try the entrepreneurial route, see if that's more fulfilling.
I pretty much have despised my job for the last 24 years, but it pays well, has flexible hours and 5 weeks of vacation each year. If I could go it again I'd go in a totally different direction. I think I could take a pay cut if I LOVED my job, but that ship has sailed. It's why I've told both my boys to pick a profession you can love.
A good share of our company has the opportunity to work at home. Unfortunately our department does not participate in that. If it did it would probably reduce my stress by 50%. Houston traffic sucks.
When my job moved last year and my commute became longer, I thought about asking to work from home one day per week. But then winter kicked in, and I ended up working from home almost that often because when you combine the traffic in this area with snow and ice, you get 8 hour epic commutes trying to get home, so it makes sense to just stay home. I was very productive, but over time I decided I did not like working from home. I think the problem is that my home is only a one-bedroom 711-square-foot condo, and I have to work in my living room. So I basically spend the whole day in one small space with no chance to get up and walk around. If I had a larger home where I could go to another floor or another part of the house and work in a home office, it would probably be better.
I, too, have been working since age 14. That's 24 years of work for me now. I'm very tired of being a nurse. Long hours, no autonomy, often very thankless, and most of the time I feel like a glorified servant/waitress. I'm too young to feel this way! So over the summer I enrolled in grad school to study as a family nurse practitioner. Tons of autonomy, better hours, and I won't have to work any more nights, weekends or holidays. Hoping these two years pass quickly. Hugs to everyone else not enjoying their jobs.
VeganBikeChick….congrats on going for nurse practitioner!!!!...two years is going to pass in any case, might as well be a nurse practitioner at the end.
I’m happy with my job but then it’s my first post college full time one. I’ve always chosen work that could motivate me in positive ways though. Hopefully that can continue. I try to learn new or reinforce existing positive strategies for dealing with things that go wrong, especially those that can produce stress and less performance in my work. That’s also how the woman I work for is and how I try to be with my 4 person team. The reason I took my job was how that woman's approach to work made me feel in the interview.....and the salary/benefits are pluses. She started the company in her early 40's and is a good role model for me.....perhaps I'll start one sooner than that. I’d say we are all on a learning journey…….just want to make mine as positive as possible while getting a good sense of accomplishment and intellectual stimulation.
I’m easy…:)
YES!!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by VeganBikeChick
When I was a teacher, I experienced the same issues as Veronica. However, my last 4 years in AZ I participated in a merit pay program, and eventually became a teacher leader in it. It added about an extra 10K a year to my salary, at a time we really needed it. Yes, I had to produce a portfolio, but I had the evidence. When I moved here, I became a National Board certified teacher, which was almost as hard as passing my licensing exam to become a therapist. The state paid me 50K over 10 years for achieving this. This paid for my older son's college education. I also became a mentor. I never passed up any opportunity for professional development, was involved in a Spencer Foundation Grant about teaching writing, and several other things. I started the process to become a principal, but by that time, I realized I didn't really want that crap to deal with, and I was making about 70K a year, which is about the starting salary for principals, unless you get a job in a prestigious district right outside of Boston. Since I did not go to an Ivy League school, that was not going to happen. When my younger son joined the military, I lost the need to continue teaching for a few more years. We had been living on DH's salary for quite a while and using mine to pay for college and save. If I had not moved out of state after 13 years of teaching, and withdrawn my contribution to the pension (which we needed to buy a house in MA), I could have retired with my full pension, as I had been working for 30+ years. I also could have "bought back" the years, by paying the commonwealth 13K, but, I didn't. I pulled my $ out of the MA retirement system and reinvested it in the stock market. I've more than doubled it since 2007, and it's helped get us to our goal. Yet, it took me a long time to get used to no income/low income, even with a spouse who works at a good job. Money is power. I always used to keep the fact that on my salary, I could have done OK without a spouse. And I don't like thinking about what i would be making now, if I had stayed teaching. The thing is, I wasn't burned out; I thought I wanted to play, and what I found was I didn't know anyone as young as I was who wasn't working, and I felt like I had no meaning in my life.
I really love my job and I love the flexible schedule even more. I even loved going to grad school for 3 years. If I had done this 10 years earlier, I would definitely open my own practice, but I have no stomach for the business end of that now. My DH is 3 years younger than me, and is probably going to work 7 more years, to maximize our retirement income. We do plenty of fun things already, so no complaints here. My dad worked until about 2 years ago, up until age 87. My grandfather was 91 when he died, and had a very successful career as a scrap metal dealer right up until the day he died. His colleagues kept asking him when he was going to quit, so they could get his clients. He didn't even start to make a lot of $ until he was past age 65.
I like my job where I am so far....I say so far, because the game-changer would be organizational changes/change in leadership ranks later, if/whenever that happens. I always thought I would like to complete my full-time career by working in the final decade or so, in the non-profit sector/govn't and so that's where I am now. I've had my experience in several private firms --medium, national and global firms which I'm really grateful to provide more intelligent internal consultation when working in govn't. (I have also worked previously in govn't, for 2 other provincial jurisdictions.) So things have worked out well, experience wise and learning opportunities. I've worked in my career after university for the last 31 yrs. I've been unemployed twice --lst time 3 months, 2nd time 18 months. I prefer to work while still under 65, at a job I enjoy. I wish I could retire early but have never worked for an employer long enough to build up sizable employer backed pension. However I don't regret learning so much after working for a diverse set of employers and across different industry sectors.
My partner retired (early) over a decade ago and yes, I can see up close what it means to dive into passions and offer up some expertise....as well, as also go on long cycle touring rides solo (he does, but I don't quite see myself comfortable doing many consecutive weeks of solo bike touring...maybe several days for a trip).
In response to Crankin, who indicated that retirement volunteer work might feel like slave labour. I know what you mean but for non-profit organizations that have no budget and are just coalescing as an entity, this is an area of greatest need. This is the capacity my partner has worked. Right now, he is riding high...he loves facilitating groups on organizational visioning, business planning and understanding market needs. Right now he is building momentum at the grass-roots level on marketing of British Columbia as a cycle touring destination . So it means meeting businesses, govn't authorities, etc. and yes, getting funding for some pilot projects.
He is also providing business advice to his son on establishing his sandwich, butcher shop...which means hours of advice to son on contract analysis/negotiation and financial modelling. Dearie is also handling all the book-keeping to help son save service fees. His son is VERY lucky to get this level of business (MBA-backed) expertise from father for free. For the first time, his son finally realizes what his father did in part of his paid career! (Bring kid to work day, doesn't educate a kid much, if parent's job is primarily intellectual and lots of writing, meeting people, etc.) I think dearie is addicted..he loves looking at the daily sales on e-commerce site when son's shop closes. Dearie rides his bike on errands to pick up supplies for his son's shop, loves being at the farmers' market stall for his son's business, etc. This year, he was unable to do lengthy cycle tours because of his volunteer commitments.
So yea, certainly giving expertise to a loved one to jump start the next generation....can be satisfying "volunteer" work.
What do I desire to do when I retire? I know partially already, because some of it I do already, but can't do it a lot due to full-time job: cycling, art, blogging. I haven't figured out volunteer work and am not concerned right now. I've done volunteer work for organizations for 5 years stretches each in race relations+immigrant matters & cycling.
I hope to work only up to 65 yrs.full time. If an interesting part-time and temporarily job that's not stressful, comes up...great. If not, I'm not banking on it. So finances have to be figured out properly now..
Note: The cycling advocacy world tends to attract well-intentioned, passionate folks ... some who may lack business strategic planning and consistent business execution on plans. This is where expertise and real work in the non-profit organizations with no budget (except for membership-based budget) may be needed the most.
This.Quote:
Originally Posted by Crankin
When DH and I got together, with his lifestyle, the only work I'd have been able to do is the kind that I'd spend tied to computers, but what I really loved about my work was the part where I was face to face with my clients. There were other complications, too, that made it much easier for me to just retire. I never really wanted to, and at this point it's too late to go back unless I were to go back to school again. But, lack of continuity would still be a huge issue. Lots of things would have to change for me to be able to go back to work, and I'm just not sure I have the energy for all those changes - moving, selling two houses, convincing DH of it, school.
Not working really saps one's energy. Seems counterintuitive, but it's true.
I am so so so happy that I was able to retire at age 50. Had also worked since age 15 (12 if you count paid babysitting jobs!) and was just so read to get out of the commuting traffic grind, always doing what someone else wanted me to do (rather than what I wanted to do), constantly shifting and changing priorities, and adapting to ever-faster-changing technology (I too was a software developer). I loved MOST of the people I worked with but had been very tired of the general work environment, low morale, more work with fewer people, constant fear of layoffs and seeing so many good people and friends get the ax for over a decade before I was finally able to say "Buh-bye".
I miss some of my co-workers (though most of them are no longer "there" either), but have never missed the politics, meetings, commuting/traffic, and other junk that went with my role. I know I'm fortunate and am very grateful that I am financially able to do this. We never were able to have children and because of that, and investing as much as humanly possible in the early years, DH and I are able to have a comfortable (though not lavish) early retired lifestyle, travel, and do what we want to do, not what someone else decides we should be doing. We are truly blessed.
I've worked full time since about '76 and with da' phone company since '95. I lost all seniority when I moved to Seattle and took a deep cut in pay. But on January 22 2018 I should get all my seniority back that is if I can stand the micromanagement, rule bound, negativity, extremely unhealthy sedentary job till then.
At that time I'll be eligible for a full pension and may say see ya later. I'd love to do something else.
Shooting Star, I have done a lot of volunteer work with non-profits. I absolutely loved being on the board of the JCC in Tempe, AZ. I ran a few large events, in addition to teaching fitness classes (paid) there, while my kids went to preschool. Then, when I moved here, I threw myself into volunteering at my synagogue. Bleh. After the 1 millionth discussion of what we should serve at an event and dealing with people who had no clue, I stopped cold turkey... I even quit being president of the school board for religious school in the middle of the year as it was upsetting me so much.
My volunteering now consists of leading rides for the AMC and presenting at the Bike Workshop every spring. I really enjoy this, but I have cut down on the number of rides I lead. When it starts to feel like a job, it's too much. I wouldn't be adverse to doing different types of volunteering for them as I cut down my work even more.
Trek - I suggested to my honey this morning that when her telecommuting contract is done (1-2 years from May 2015), we should load up a van and hit the road for six months to a year. We would be existing on our tiny little pensions, but what an adventure; she was thrilled with the idea!
I've been lucky that I've had a great (most of the time) job for 25 years. But I am tired. And so I'll be retiring next week and heading off to Norway for a short trip! I'm not quite 50. I plan to take time off to myself and then figure out what I want to do. I can't see sitting around doing nothing, so I hope to work or volunteer a couple of day a week, explore new hobbies, and since winter's approaching, maybe get some of those projects done around the house.
I've worked shifts and weekends for my entire career and feel I've missed out on a lot. Time to start living.
I am also a teacher and wish I could see a clear way to at least re-direct my career. I would love to move out of the classroom and into science curriculum work or some kind of environmental field (I also have my MS in Ecology) but I don't see a way clear to do that. I accumulated the 80 points (age plus years of service) to retire last year. I took advantage of an opportunity to officially "retire" and get my pension, but continue working and get paid by a contractor. The company takes 10%. So I am getting a paycheck and the pension and am hoping to get all of our debts paid in the next 2-3 years. We have erased all of our credit card debt and expect to pay off the car in January or February. Then it's just the house....
I wish my district would consider a science curriculum position but they are just focused on math and reading because that is where the state testing is focused. Maybe if Arizona adopts the Next Generation Science Standards.....
Crankin- I am nowhere near 70k here after 23 years in the classroom. We can earn money for extra curricular activities and home visits to students, which adds a little (about $2500 this year I think).
But actual retirement from the classroom will hopefully give me a chance to find something part time or different.
California still has a state science test at 5th grade. Unfortunately, very little of our time goes to teaching science in elementary school. Our house will be paid off in April and we have no other debt. I'd love to go part time, but that would mean a reduction in our travel funds and Thom only gets 5 weeks of vacation time a year. He still likes his job and it's a good gig. I'm too young to actually retire, only going to be 48 this year. Most of the job I still really love. Our population has changed greatly and now we have several foster kids at our school. I have compassion for these kids, but they have a whole host of issues that we're just not equipped to deal with. The general ed kids seem less able to problem solve and have a whole slew of social issues themselves. They can't or don't think. They give up far too easily. I hate to sound like an old grump but I don't know what's wrong with kids these days. Actually I have some ideas - Ten year olds watching The Walking Dead? I have at least 1/5 of my class of 25 watching it. So inappropriate... Many parents don't parent in my school.
Veronica
Congratulations on going for NP! It's really a great job. I am an acute care NP and work on the inpatient side so I do work my share of nights, weekends and holidays but as an FNP working in a clinic you will most likely have normal hours. And, I really can't complain about my schedule either...I work 7 days on/7 days off (this is pretty typical for hospitalist groups) so I end up having lots of time to do other things including taking a trip out of town if I want during my week off. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.Quote:
Originally Posted by VeganBikeChick
Thanks so much for the offer, Jolt! I'm very excited to be in the program, and glad I have a brain I can pick for questions relating to my practice.
Good idea. I've made an appointment with a financial planner to see if I can retire from Ma Bell in 2018. Would like to keep working till I'm 67 but do something, most anything low stress. Knott's younger than I am so will have to work longer. At 67 I'd have pension, social security if it still is there (probably will be) a little invested and should be good. I'd get higher social security if I can wait to take it till then. So I may have a few years with pension and some manner of part time work till at full retirement it's pension and ss. :cool:Quote:
Originally Posted by Pax
We are about 2.5 years out from retiring as teachers. We have worked really hard to pay off our house and live debt free. I can't go until I turn 55, but I still love my job, so it is ok. We teach at two neighboring schools, 10 miles apart. It might as well be a million miles apart. My school is AWESOME. Great admin, strong union, great kids. My hubby, not so much. So we will go when we can.
I lost both parents to cancer before they were 70. From where we are sitting, that is looking pretty darn close. It has made us very aware of how precious time is, and we want to go and do while we are still very fit and active. I still think at some point I may want a part time gig. I have a feeling there is a second career lurking in there somewhere. Hopefully it will not involved spending 6 hours a weekend grading papers!
If you enjoy what you are doing, then the drudgery of work is just not there. I lost my job four years ago. At my age and payscale, there is no way I would find another job. "Besides, its that well you are woman..." fill in the blank. They don't say it, but you get a feeling its there. That "you've got a man to take care of you so you really don't need a job kind of thing" NO! I never remarried. Once was enough.
I'm not bitter about it. I was really happy and really sad that I lost my high paying job. It took sometime to pick up the pieces. I still have my days of doubt. I worried most of my working life that eventually I would lose my job, so I squirreled away as much as I could. Didn't go on a Safari, or buy a new car every two years or go on an annual vacay to Europe (never been there). Lucky I saved all those years.
So just recently, I was able to buy a farm. Hope to make a modest income from it. Farm has a house on it too so now I have two houses and all paid for. I don't have a pension and not sure what social security will be when I reach the magic number. It keeps going up. Anyway, I always loved gardening and it just got out of hand so I don't see "working" on a farm as work. It's something I've wanted to do for a long time. No terrible commute. I'm okay with getting soaking wet from the rain in the cold. Roasted from the hot sun in middle of the summer. My worries these days is will I make it in vegetable (row crop) farming? Running a truck farm aka market farm.
I hope my magic touch of pulling a rabbit out of a hat continues. I've always had a knack of the magic trick in the past. (roll in a pile of poo and still come out smelling like rose is what one of my co-worker said about me) Some of my vision has been disturbing and others fascinating.
So when did I start work? My father said, your work is to excel in school. That was my #1 priority growing up. This was told to me when I was around 12 or 13. No baby sitting job for me. Then it was my job to get into one of the top uni then grad school. Because of it, I'm not suffering financially now.
Smilingcat, I'm glad to hear you say that. It was starting to sound like the stress and doubt of starting up your farm was getting overwhelming. I sure wish you the best of luck with it. Though, when it comes to vegetables, putting rabbits back IN hats might be a better magic trick!
We told our kids their work was school, too, but, we also made them get small part time jobs. Believe me, in our affluent area, they were outliers. It paid off for both of them. Very few kids today have any work experience of the labor type variety, experience with budgeting, or knowing how to handle a bank account. They both started babysitting at age 11-12, after taking the Red Cross course. Both were teacher assistants at Hebrew School (paid) starting at age 13, for a couple of years. Older son worked at Rite Aid for one year, and then was a barista through his last 2 years of HS and college. He painted houses for 2 summers in college. Younger son worked at the LBS for a year and then the natural foods grocery store in town in HS.Somehow, that was enough to prepare him for the military!
Hope you stay healthy smilingcat..farm will do that but hard work too. Maybe one day soon you'll have a market stall or supply to a restaurant or 2? My partner's son, bought his greens for sandwich shop, from a small farmer who had a stall beside his at the weekly farmers' market.Quote:
So just recently, I was able to buy a farm. Hope to make a modest income from it. Farm has a house on it too so now I have two houses and all paid for. I don't have a pension and not sure what social security will be when I reach the magic number. It keeps going up. Anyway, I always loved gardening and it just got out of hand so I don't see "working" on a farm as work. It's something I've wanted to do for a long time. No terrible commute. I'm okay with getting soaking wet from the rain in the cold. Roasted from the hot sun in middle of the summer. My worries these days is will I make it in vegetable (row crop) farming? Running a truck farm aka market farm.
I haven't quite reached burning retirement envy yet --even though my partner has retired for awhile. We'll see when my closest friends around my age take early retirement. 1-2 of them are eligible within the next 3 years or less.
Because I've had some periods of long unemployment, maybe it's because I appreciate some extra change ..