Posted on 02/15/2024 8:00:45 PM PST by DoodleBob
In an episode of “The Sopranos”, a popular television series which started airing in the 1990s, a gangster tells Tony, from the titular family, that he wants to retire. “What are you, a hockey player?” Tony snaps back. Non-fictional non-criminals who are considering an end to their working lives need not worry about broken fingers or other bodily harm. But they must still contend with other potentially painful losses: of income, purpose or, most poignantly, relevance.
Some simply won’t quit. Giorgio Armani refuses to relinquish his role as chief executive of his fashion house at the age of 89. Being Italy’s second-richest man has not dampened his work ethic. Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s sidekick at Berkshire Hathaway, worked for the investment powerhouse until he died late last year at the age of 99. Mr Buffett himself is going strong at 93.
People like Messrs Armani, Buffett or Munger are exceptional. But in remaining professionally active into what would historically be considered dotage, they are not unique. One poll this year found that almost one in three Americans say they may never retire. The majority of the nevers said they could not afford to give up a full-time job, especially when inflation was eating into an already measly Social Security cheque. But suppose you are one of the lucky ones who can choose to step aside. Should you do it?
The arc of corporate life used to be predictable. You made your way up the career ladder, acquiring more prestige and bigger salaries at every step. Then, in your early 60s, there was a Friday-afternoon retirement party, maybe a gold watch, and that was that. The next day the world of meetings, objectives, tasks and other busyness faded. If you were moderately restless, you could play bridge or help out with the grandchildren. If you weren’t, there were crossword puzzles, TV and a blanket.
Although intellectual stimulation tends to keep depression and cognitive impairment at bay, many professionals in the technology sector retire at the earliest recommended date to make space for the younger generation, conceding it would be unrealistic to maintain their edge in the field. Still, to step down means to leave centre stage—leisure gives you all the time in the world but tends to marginalise you as you are no longer in the game.
Things have changed. Lifespans are getting longer. It is true that although the post-retirement, twilight years are stretching, they do not have to lead to boredom or to a life devoid of meaning. Once you retire after 32 years as a lawyer at the World Bank, you can begin to split your time between photography and scrounging flea markets for a collection of Americana. You don’t have to miss your job or suffer from a lack of purpose. If you are no longer head of the hospital, you can join Médecins Sans Frontières for occasional stints, teach or help out at your local clinic. Self-worth and personal growth can derive from many places, including non-profit work or mentoring others on how to set up a business.
But can anything truly replace the framework and buzz of being part of the action? You can have a packed diary devoid of deadlines, meetings and spreadsheets and flourish as a consumer of theatre matinees, art exhibitions and badminton lessons. Hobbies are all well and good for many. But for the extremely driven, they can feel pointless and even slightly embarrassing.
That is because there is depth in being useful. And excitement, even in significantly lower doses than are typical earlier in a career, can act as an anti-ageing serum. Whenever Mr Armani is told to retire and enjoy the fruits of his labour, he replies “absolutely not”. Instead he is clearly energised by being involved in the running of the business day to day, signing off on every design, document and figure.
In “Seinfeld”, another television show of the 1990s, Jerry goes to visit his parents, middle-class Americans who moved to Florida when they retired, having dinner in the afternoon. “I’m not force-feeding myself a steak at 4.30 just to save a couple of bucks!” Jerry protests. When this guest Bartleby entered the job market, she assumed that when the day came she too would be a pensioner in a pastel-coloured shirt opting for the “early-bird special”. A quarter of a century on, your 48-year-old columnist hopes to be writing for The Economist decades from now, even if she trundles to her interviews supported by a Zimmer frame; Mr Seinfeld is still going strong at 69, after all. But ask her again in 21 years.
Ditto. We also are having a great time in retirement. We cruise about once a year. No golf. I spend my time quilting, and Hubby does astrophotography. Stuff we didn’t have time for while working.
You sound like my husband, a contractor for Uncle Sugar. Was told he was a “national treasure” for the work he did. DEI in the company was too much to deal with so he retired early.
He volunteered for Hospice before Covid. He’d like to go back, but being vaxed now is required and he won’t do that.
I think he should hook up with a homeschool pod and teach math and physics. We’ll see...
I disagree. Eight years retired in SW Florida has been great. The best part? No more faculty meetings! No mission statements! No break out discussion groups! I can build computers and motorcycles, mow my lawn, play golf and travel in peace. Also, no snow.
The point of the article is that the pursuit of money by itself may be necessary for some to survive economically but by itself doesn’t provide meaning. Work and other constructive activities are meaningful. Relationships provide meaning, spiritual growth and finding ways to be active in the service of others provide meaning. Golf, cruises and afternoon drinking mostly do not.
“Oh wait, I’ve got a better idea: GFY globalist scum.”
That was my response, too. Never retire, always work, work, work. F’em.
bump for later
I’m four years out and am looking forward to it.
My current job is getting to be tough. It’s tons of travel and relatively physical. However, I don’t have the hustle and bustle of the office the article author seems to feel is so beloved. I work solely from home and the road.
I’m in a unique position at my company. But, I also have a volunteer job leading 24 men who report to me. That could easily be a full-time job as it is for some of my retired compatriots.
We have a rooftop tent camper on order and are looking forward to more outdoor adventures.
I’m also considering discussing some sort of consultancy deal with my current employer to represent them at public events, which is what I do now as an employee.
And then of course there is Clint Eastwood. Clint taught us the lesson “Don’t let the old man in”
The fact you continue to work after you retire does not mean you remain in the same old rut. Post retirement work can be about creating a new and very comfortable and even fun rut.
I have now been working at my post retirement part time jobs longer than my real job.
“[W]age slave” is a post WWII category. A luxury. If you had been born prior to then you would have been scraping out a living on your own without employer provided health insurance, employer provided vacations, no paid holidays, etc.
How about volunteer?? Hospice patients just want to talk.
i wish i had spent more time at the office
At the same time, I never saw a tombstone that said “I’m glad I slacked off and buried my talents out back”
As someone wrote, there is spiritual value in work. It is good for the soul. Work honors God’s gifts and the talents received from Him. There are plenty of folks who wrote about retirees dying shortly after leaving the workforce. Does that mean they were invested in their career? Probably, but that’s not evil or sinful. Working into your later years doesn’t mean you’re supporting the WEF or globalists.
I’m sort of surprised at the anti-capitalist mentality woven into this whole thread. Indeed, when searching for this article online (I needed a version that wasn’t behind a paywall) there was a pro-communism website that blasted the article as being capitalist, empirialist, blah blah blah. It’s odd…since the end of 2020, there is a weird anti-company mentality that’s running through consevatism. I believe it’s a knee-jerk response to DEI and the perception that anyone who works in a publicly-traded company is a mouth-breathing wokester and taking one more paycheck from that beast makes you a Collaborator. I also suspect those conservative virtue-signalers are basing their opinion on Gateway Pundit articles etc. News flash: they’re way off.
Comtinung to “work for the man” could be about money/providing for children or grandchildren, personal fulfillment, healthcare…
…and yeah….maybe you ARE in “the Game” and you love it. That does NOT make you a baaaad person. Yes, if you’re blowing off birthday parties, anniversaries, and important family things so you can answer an email, that may be one thing. But if you run a division, have people depending upon you, own a business, and so on, dying with your boots on can be a noble way to go.
The boss who basically hired me and gave me a chance in NYC died a few years ago. I went to his funeral: there were tons of people, from the fire dept for which he volunteered, family, friends…and co-workers. He’d retired and we had lunch from time to time. When his daughter eulogized him, she spoke of his job the people who were important to him from work. It was beautiful.
As someone else wrote, don’t let others tell you what’s right for you. That means if you want to punch out and play golf or go to the range or not work, more power to you. But if you DO continue putting on your overalls, mending the electricity, putting up drywall, presenting to the Board, running your department, or being a teller, that is also a righteous path.
Retirement is the number two killer of retirees.
You didn't know?!
Interesting, and thanks for sharing. There are a great deal of interesting people posting on FR.
Took a bit of research to find the team, Treadway Racing, who competed during the IRL incursion for six years.
What seems missing is the role of “wire guy”.
attempts at scoping that out leads to horse racing terminology which left me wondering.
My take is that it’s a different, perhaps more personal, version of “Don’t try to force a square peg into a round hole.” For example, I’m at the moment considering getting into another field, as the one I’ve been in for 40 years has become infested with two generations of brain-washed, shallow-thinking yayhoos with all the intellectual horsepower of my cat who have been led to believe they’re actually brilliant. My passion for my work (’love’, loosely) and professional collaboration is entirely lost on them. They’re not going anywhere, and their numbers are growing. Time for a Plan “B”.
Well said
I hear ya. I owned and operated a small mortgage brokerage business for 17 years. The stress was so bad if I hadn’t retired I would have died from a stroke. Tending chickens and a garden can be quite stimulating. 😉
>Would you say the same thing about Trump?
Can’t tell if trolling or serious. I guess serious since the neverTrumpers are trying to blur the line between dementiaJoe and high energy Donald.
so: No, that’s not my point at all.
I might apply it to *me* as I am not uniquely positioned to change the nation’s fate, and in the general case as intended in my post. As time goes on I try and spend more time uplifting the people I mentor or lead. The article encourages people to be all about themselves as long as possible.
(and really, Trump running for President is the least egotistic thing he could do with his time, unlike the clawing career politicians who exemplify corruption and nepotism as they grow rich selling influence)
My Fridge is a Perfect spot too!
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