What is the definition of retirement? Am I at last retired? I have been contemplating the question.
In the 20th century, retirement for the vast majority of working men and women, was when one stopped going to work in an office, a factory, on a farm or in some other place where people worked. For others, sales representatives, inspectors, contractors, it meant stopping the daily routine of visiting customers or job sites.
Before the Internet age, apart from successful writers and farmers, few people worked from home.
Traditional Retirement
Retirement, generally at age 65, was a clear and distinct transition from leaving home five or six days a week to go to a place of employment and, after a certain birthday, not leaving home each day. For many, there would be a gathering at the place of work. The higher the level in the hierarchy the about to become retiree reached, the more lavish the celebration: some kind words from CEO or department head, perhaps a certificate celebrating years or a lifetime of service, for some a gold watch.
It’s been four weeks since we decided to stop our podcast and video channel in September. With no publishing deadlines to meet, no videos to record and edit, I have lost the sense of urgency those deadlines fed. I have never been a great fan of social media and only spent time on it to promote our podcast. With the exception of X (Twitter), which I find a better news source than most mainstream media, I can easily forget about the other platforms – Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube for weeks.
Now, I have the luxury of walking later on these dark mornings, so I can walk in the sunlight, catching up on reading and outstanding accounting work in the remaining morning hours, then spending the afternoons outside cutting wood or doing some long-neglected maintenance work.
Purpose
But, it’s not enough. I miss the framework of those deadlines, the structure of the day, the sense of accomplishment from creating content and seeing it enjoyed by others. It’s too easy to coast without that sense of urgency, without a clear purpose. Easy to spend 30 minutes on X reading about the disastrous decline of Western society in the UK, Europe, and here in Canada.
I now have a real understanding of why so many others who followed the traditional route of lifelong travelling to a place of work, find retirement soul-destroying. I am lucky; I have been working from home for the last 16 years and working for myself for decades, so the transition was not as abrupt as it is for many.
What’s next?
There has to be more. I do have a few ideas bubbling around in my head. This blog will continue, and there may be another video channel, possibly a newsletter. I have new outdoor projects to do. It will be a balance between computer-based creative work and outdoor activities.
One of my outdoor projects will be to set up a sawmill my son has left with me. I have some Black Walnut logs to saw for lumber to make a kitchen table. There will be logs from neighbours to mill.
Am I retired? Not really, perhaps semi-retired is a more accurate description.
Are you retired? How are you managing it?
p.s.
My book can be ordered from this page.
Here are some of the tools we use to produce this blog and podcast.
Kit for sending emails and caring for subscribers
Hostgator for website hosting.
Airtable for organizing our guest bookings and automations.
VidIQ for video editing & AI
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