Sometimes we can get bogged down by the emotional challenges that retirement poses. Challenges like figuring out who we are without a job title. Finding a post-work sense of purpose. Making new friends outside the workplace. Sorting out how to structure our free time.
But what about the upside of retirement? As a perennial glass-half-full kind of person, I see retirement as freedom from a panoply of pains-in-the-arse. So, to share a little merriment as we wind up this hellacious year, I offer you this mostly lighthearted list of things that retirement liberates us from:
- Alarm clocks—Ahhh…the joy of waking up when your body says it wants to!
- Wearing panty hose, bras and other shapewear—What does retirement have to do with going commando? Well, we can choose to lose those constricting foundation garments designed to keep our busts, butts and other jiggly parts in place in the workplace.
- High heels—No more risking bunions or a bad back by cramming our feet into high-style but low-comfort shoes that often are de rigueur in the corporate world.
- Wardrobe planning—Buying and maintaining a work wardrobe and planning what to wear each day are tasks that assume much less importance in retirement (especially during the pandemic when many of us are living in low-maintenance sweats, yoga pants or pajamas).
- Dreading Mondays—In retirement, the beginning of the week is just another day, so we can ditch the Sunday night blues/stress/insomnia.
- Limiting fun stuff to the weekend—When we’re retired, we can do whatever we like, any day of the week. Places also tend to be less crowded during the week (another plus!).
- Eating up the weekend doing chores and errands—Strapped for time during the workweek, we often relegate grocery shopping, housecleaning, laundry, etc. to the weekend, chewing up precious downtime. In retirement, we have 7 whole days to get it all done.
- Daily commuting—Say buh-bye to the stress and hassle of fighting traffic at the beginning and end of each workday. To getting stuck behind a school bus, invariably when you’re already rushed. To worrying about the weather and how it’ll affect your commute. To going to work and coming home in the dark in winter.
- Complying with dumb workplace “rules”—Sexist dress code policies. Restrictive work-at-home policies. Stringent bathroom break rules. Rigid attendance policies. When you’re retired, you make your own rules. You are an adult, after all.
- Office politics—Whether it’s kowtowing to an authoritarian boss, reporting to someone who embodies the Peter Principle and has risen to his/her level of incompetence, or dealing with a bullying coworker, navigating on-the-job issues can be soul-sucking. Retirement puts them in the rear-view mirror.
- Deadlines imposed by others—In retirement, you (mostly) get to set your own priorities in terms of how you spend your time and energy. Let’s hear it for autonomy!
- Having to take on a project you don’t want—It’s pretty hard to tell your boss “no” to an assignment without risking your job or, at the very least, advancement. When you’re retired, you get to pick and choose what you’ll spend your time on.
- Meetings—You know, those interminable ones that have no apparent purpose but to create more work that you have no time to do because you’re stuck in meetings.
- Contributing to birthday/shower/other gifts for coworkers—Especially ones you barely know and/or can’t stand.
- Wearing makeup every day—While I’d like to think that wearing makeup to work is a choice, a 2016 study by sociologists at the University of Chicago and the University of California, Irvine found that women who wear makeup to work are paid more. Retirement certainly removes that
- Having to DVR TV shows that are on past your bedtime—What bedtime? In retirement, you can stay up as late as you want to watch shows when they air (if you so choose).
- Limiting vacation to 2 or 3 weeks a year—In retirement, you have more latitude to create a life you don’t need a vacation from. And if you want to get away, you can do so for as long as you wish (finances and COVID travel restrictions permitting).
- Eating up sick time when you need a mental health day—Every day’s a mental health day in retirement, and you don’t need anyone’s permission to just chill and enjoy “me” time.
- The “no time” excuse—All those things you’ve been putting off (exercise, catching up with friends, cleaning out closets) because you don’t have the time when you’re working full time? When you’re retired, you do have the time. It doesn’t mean you’ll actually get around to doing those things, but there’s no more “no time” excuse!
- Guilt—When we’re working, we invariably feel guilty about something we’re not doing due to work demands. When those demands cease in retirement, we’re freed up to do those other things and let go of the guilt. (Unless we still don’t do those things and continue to feel guilty about it!)
- Putting off medical appointments—Too many of us delay making doctor or dentist appointments because we don’t want to take time off work. Once we retire, that’s no longer an excuse for not taking care of ourselves.
- The myth of thinking we’re indispensable—This is kind of a corollary to the last 3 items. All too often, we put the job ahead of our relationships and our health, deluding ourselves into thinking that the job just won’t get done (right) if we aren’t the one doing it. In retirement, we can lay down that burden and realize that the organization we leave will survive just fine without us. Really!
- Holiday pressures—The holidays are stressful enough without having to also decorate your workspace, get a Secret Santa gift for someone you barely know, figure out an appropriate gift for your boss, send holiday cards to coworkers or make cookies for the department party. Whew.
Whether you’re closing in on retirement or already there, I hope this list reminds you that while you may be transitioning away from a career, you’re heading toward a time of your life that offers tremendous gifts in the form of freedom and flexibility. And that’s a cause for celebration at any time of the year!
Happy holidays to you and yours!
What about you? What has retirement liberated you from? Or, if you’re not yet retired, what are you looking forward to being freed from? Please share!
Thank you for the upsides. I can relate to not having to wear makeup everyday. Or being able to wear sweat pants everyday if I want to!
Let’s hear it for the upside! No makeup and sweats–love it! Thanks for commenting, and happiest of holidays to you!
I still DVR shows that I might fall asleep during. I still use an alarm clock for those early tee times. HA HA
Sounds like a good strategy, John–DVRs and alarm clocks do still have their uses after we retire! Thanks for commenting.
Great list, I would add, Having to be civil to people outside of work you would never in a million years talk with, never mind stand or sit close to!!
Nice to see you here, Haralee! Yes, being able to choose with whom to socialize (or even speak to) is certainly another upside to being away from the “enforced” fraternization of the workplace. My best to you!
I think you covered it all. I can’t say it enough, but I absolutely love being retired. It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I worked hard for so many years and I’m enjoying this time to the fullest. I can’t imagine working now!!
Your happiness is almost palpable, Linda! Yay, you–this is what retirement can and should be. Thank you for sharing your thoughts!
Love the list. After 30+ years of working so much, I feel so blessed to be retired from my full-time corporate job. I’m actually busier now but more fulfilled in giving back to others. I have a picture hanging in my home office that says “I’m retired so go ask your silly little questions to someone else who cares.”
Love the sentiment of the sign in your home office, Judy! It does feel good when it’s no longer your job to take care of/resolve other people’s “issues.” Thanks for sharing that!
Working from home during COVID during the last month of my full time employment liberated me from a lot of things (commuting, dress codes, and so forth). Working part time at the same job as before I retired has been, in some ways, the best of both worlds – especially when a medical issue cropped up and I felt, even if it was a workday, I could just take the time if I had to see a doctor right away – which I needed to do a couple of times. And another thing – my stress eating evaporated. I lost weight during the lockdown.
Things on the work front have worked out so well for you, Alana. Having the guilt-free freedom to seek medical care when you need to do so (without stressing about the time away from the office) is a real gift. And to have lost the stress-eating urge–excellent! I find myself wandering into the kitchen WAY too often…:-)
Wonderful post! Cheers to all of these! Thank you for your voice here. Happy Holidays!
Thanks so much, Judi! Happy holidays to you as well!
Boy, this brings back (bad) memories. When I was working full time in my HR career, between the long days and long commute, I had no time or energy to write. I used to get depressed about not following my dream, but how I managed it was to remind myself that I was using a ton of creativity in my job, mediating disputes, solving problems, etc. And that was true! But it wasn’t writing. Now my days are devoted to my dream career. Thanks for the memories and merry Christmas!
And you made it happen–look at all you’ve achieved in so-called retirement! Thanks for joining the conversation, Lynne. Merry Christmas to you, too!
Oh, this was so good to read! No more office politics, dumb rules, being called a hysterical woman, wardrobe planning, continual frustrations – I don’t miss much at all – you’ve nailed this list!! Considering I fought my redundancy tooth and nail 4 years ago, I often look back and think – what were you thinking, Debbie??? Life is sooo good now.
So glad to know you’re in a good place now, Debbie! When the leave-taking is as fraught as yours was, it can be difficult to see the upside of retirement. But it’s there, as you’ve discovered. Yay! Thanks so much for commenting.
The absence of a commute means no more mile-ing out a car going to work. The retirement wardrobe changed the frequency of laundry and the extra attention needed for handwashing, ironing and dry cleaning. Mealtime schedule became much more relaxed; eat when hungry not when the work schedule says it’s time. I gave up the habit of an end-of-the-day alcohol beverage when the stress level decreased in retirement. I declined a lot of social invitations prior to retirement – Sorry, can’t, have to get to bed so I can get up and go to work/get chores done. There are more yeses now. I also gave up a solid excuse for saying no or not having time. Retirement is when you quit living at work and start working at living.
These are all excellent additions to the “list,” Mona–thank you for sharing your upsides to retirement. I also love your last line–it’s a great perspective on how retirement liberates us!
Gosh, I didn’t have many of those. In my profession, wardrobe was scrubs. I didn’t wear heels (couldn’t stand them anyway so flats for dressing up), makeup, pantyhose or shapewear. I didn’t dread Mondays. I did use my vacation time for play and didn’t need to use sick time for mental health. (I got to cash out 25% of those hours at my final pay rate-bonus!) My commute was 12 minutes. Once a week I did my errands on my way home from work. I did laundry and cleaning after work. These habits kept weekends FUN and time for play.
As I read this list, it makes me sad that so many had so much to dislike about their careers 🙁
You are to be commended for forging a work life that ticked so many boxes in your favor! Yay, you! Thanks for sharing a glimpse of what the upside can look like.