Occasionally we hear sad stories about people who retire one day then die the next, or count down till retirement only to find it unsatisfying and boring. I'm trying to be strategic about my transition to retirement … gradually reducing the amount of paid work I do while increasing voluntary and leisure activities.
In 2006 I dropped from five work days to four (taking a 20% pay cut; this was long before current ideas of four-day weeks) and took up two volunteer jobs. In 2012 I started doing some freelance work on the side of my day job, and in 2018 I left the day job to make freelancing my main activity. Self-employment can be a bit of a roller coaster, time-wise, and some weeks I'd work 30+ hours; other weeks it was fewer than ten. Early on, I felt compelled to accept most work I was offered in case the offers dried up. Over the past couple of years I haven't needed to do that; I have enough work (and enough income) to support myself so can afford to slow down and smell the roses.
Not my roses. One of our neighbours has a great collection though!
Anyway, it's been fun. Life, these days, features gardening, volunteering, socialising, exercise (boot camp, barre classes and cycling), a community orchestra, random lectures and webinars, and still some paid work. And while I exercise, cook and do housework, I listen to podcasts. They fill gaps in my brain! I didn't always pay attention in school, or take notice of momentous world events happening around me in the seventies and eighties, so am grateful to a whole flock of podcasters for letting me know what I missed. A few current favourites:
Global Roaming – current world affairs with Geraldine Doogue and Hamish Macdonald
Empire – how empires have shaped the world, with William Dalrymple and Anita Anand
Legacy – stories of influential people, with Peter Frankopan and Afua Hirsch
Cautionary Tales – mistakes and what we can learn from them, with Tim Harford
Radio Atlantic – stories and conversations with various hosts
Lady Killers – Lucy Worsley explores historical crimes by women
7am – stories in the news
Full Story – stories in the news
The Waves – news stories from a gender perspective
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to buy myself a coffee. And listen to a podcast on the way :-)
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