In work, there is the stock character: the office pest. On the learning curve of adjusting to the work world we figure out how to prevent that annoyance from intruding on our professional life.
As we age and more and more of our colleagues have decided to retire, too many of them morph into what could be called "Retirement Pests." My hunch is that they are seeking to maintain some kind of identity in a capitalistic system in which personal value is based on bringing in income.
Since the rest of us who continue to work have our own struggle to stay relevant, we tend not to have compassion for Retirement Pests. The reality is this: Unlike in the office, we don't have to put up with them. So we don't. Consequently they become increasingly isolated.
If you perceive you are sliding into isolation now that you are retired, here are 4 tips on how to co-exist with the working.
Experiment to find a post-work identity which fits. That could be anything, as long as you experience value in that new sense of self. Ego is not your amigo. The role itself has to make you feel whole. It's not enough to derive status from the whatever. Otherwise, because you are still unfulfilled you will become a pest by talking about it so much.
Stop recruiting. When I blew into this small town in Ohio, I was hungry for companionship. Sure enough the Retirement Pest made a beeline for me. She recruited me for every activity in the county, ranging from meetings of Friends of the Library to music recitals. What could have been a helpful introduction to what was going on the community became a nuisance. After all, lion's share of my energy goes to operating my communications boutique. Gently, I phased out of that relationship.
Get it that no one gives a damn about your previous life at work. When I visited Seton Hill University classmate Kathleen Huebner in her retirement community in Oro Valley, Arizona, most of the residents seemed frozen in time. Their focus was recounting anecdotes from their former jobs. Since their information and insights about all that were dated, the conversations didn't help me in my own professional game. They would have been far more interesting had they taken a part-time job in a convenience store.
Refrain from giving advice about others' professional life. Everything had changed since you were in the workforce. I deeply resent recommendations on how I should run my business.
Retirement seems to be a rite of passage few aging adults master. Therefore, perhaps it should be the road less traveled.
Retiring from a high-pressure career doesn't have to mean throwing in the towel on working. There are myriad options to remain bringing in income. They range from self-employment to training for a new career. After leaving pharmacy, an over-60 acquaintance enrolled in an eight-week school to be licensed in long-haul driving.
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