What to do with all your time?

Beddie

zagfles said:

Linton said:

michaels said:

Whereas I would love to wake up of a day and think there is absolutely nothing I have to or even should do.....

That may be great for the first 2 weeks.  After a month it might begin to pall a bit.  Why even bother to get up?

Then you go out, or go online etc, and find stuff to do! It's easy.

I agree - it's pretty much how I live my mostly retired life. I rarely have anything important or urgent to do, but when I do have, there's enough time to do it. But if I decide to do very little, then it's my choice - great!

I understand others might need a routine, or need to be busy, but that's never been the way with me.

mumf

If you are fit and well and are able to do it,then do it! Anyone sharp enough to be on this thread can do just that. Please don’t stress about being fed up. There’s loads to do out there. 

  I am 57 and now consider myself retired. Right now I try to work out what I can do each day. I’m not well,in fact I am terminally ill. On the days I feel fair I consider myself to be retired. It cheers me up! 

If you are ,or will be retired,then please embrace it. Enjoy it. Take care . Thanks. 

cfw1994

Ciprico said:

I'm surprised no one has mentioned pickleball, one of the fastest growing sports in the world, especially for those of us getting on a bit...

Can’t say I was massively aware of pickle ball: do you play regularly?
Curiously enough, only yesterday some friends mentioned a local leisure centre has a taster session today, so we are all heading across later this morning to try it 👍
ETA: turned out whoever had offered the session had forgotten to book the leisure centre, who were unaware of it 👀.  With no bats (raquets?) or ‘instructor’, we had a few games of badminton instead.  Reminded all 4 of us how terrible we were at it, but was good fun nevertheless!


Other jobs to do….pack now-dry tent & kit away, wash now-dried-on-dirt bicycle, paint door.  Maybe wash windows.  It’s going to be a busy week to fit all this in 🤪

twopenny

Table tennis x 2, great laugh, tea & chocolate. Swimming & sauna x2, followed by coffee and cake over looking the bay.
Walking with a friendly group and yes, coffee. Dancing. Have to take your own drink.
Photography with challenges and outings.
Off watching deer,  seals, wild swimming, theater, cinema etc.

Sometimes I have to do gardening, grow my own fruit and veg and housework and decorating.

Finding time to relax is the problem   

katejo

cfw1994 said:

I thought it might be interesting to get some perspectives from the hive mind here running: might help others.  

We all know that those who have bitten the bullet almost all wonder how they had time to work, but perhaps this thread could give others ideas?   

Not wanting to focus on the financial aspects - most threads here do that, perhaps understandably, and many things need money….but some don’t, or don’t need much 🤷‍♂️

I stepped away from the coalface (well, keyboard) in May 2020 after an active time in the world of IT.
I was talking with another pal recently about his looming retirement.  He does have a lot of hobbies, but was still unsure what he will do with his time.  

We went on a ‘retirement seminar’ offered by a local IFA firm a few years ago.  Lovely afternoon tea, but they did focus a lot on the 21 slots you have to fill (morning, afternoon, evening, 7 days a week), & I guess my mate is mentally figuring that out 🧐

I began on Day 1 by reinvigorating my love for cycling 🚴‍♂️
I’m not very fast, & have never been one to pedal in a group who have a weekly ride (still not), but took on an awesome solo LEJoG, with a few pals joining me for bits of it.  Since done a couple of others, and off soon with a pal for a mini adventure - circular ride, camping in the middle.  Little adventures!

Partner and I enjoy festivals, and camping…. we have thrown ourselves into a few in the past 30months - great music, some good comedy, only one horrendously cold and wet day (Latitude this July 👀).  Discovered https://www.concertarchives.org - a *briliant* site to log all your gigs/festivals, etc.  Spent a few hours since Radio 2 in the Park the other weekend popping ours in.  Go on, take a look!

Comedy nights and Beer festivals also get my personal vote as a fine way to spend an afternoon/evening, from time to time….got to avoid drinking too much though 🍻

We enjoy films and some TV, including (gasp, dirty secret) late afternoon quiz shows (frequent watches of HoG, Chase and even Tipping Point….shhh 🤭).

It’s good for the soul to do some volunteering, & mine is split: one half helping a popular volleyball club to operate.  Even wrote a Club Constitution the other day, with help from ChatGPT & Volleyball England.  Might be my last year or so for actually playing, mind 👀 …the other half is with young people for DofE (supervising and sometimes assessing Gold expeditions) 🏕️

Outside of that, as we all know, there are always things needing doing around the house & garden.

Oh, & holidays that can be taken off-peak…..we snapped up 2 month 1st class Interrail tickets in their crazy ‘50 year sale’ last year, and had the most incredible time rolling around 10,000km, 68 places and 14 countries 🚂🚞🚠🚟



So….what other ways have you found to spend their time, filling those 21 slots?

I am 60 and have only just reduced to working 4 days a week instead of 5 as a stepping stone towards retirement. My one day off still feels 'odd' and I find myself wondering about the best way to use it. I have ideas which won't work until I have more days free. eg. I don't want to commit myself to  regular voluntary work until I have more days. However, on my day off, I feel I should be doing something purposeful not just lazing around !   I do want to to travel more once I stop completely.  I also belong to a social group in which many members are fully retired and have started to go on mid week trips but these haven't yet been on my free day. 

buyhighselllow

Retired end of July. 55yo. Had 2 months off and now doing 2 days a week till xmas then will be FT retired. Loving it so far ( less so the 2 days back at work but its paying well )
Got an allotment just as I retired, with previous zero experience but several months reading up while on waiting list. Absolutely loving it but need to take it steady with back etc. Its totally different to Gym sessions which I enjoy but am lately too knackered from the plot to go to the gym as much, but will find a balance.
I cook everything from scratch and do our shopping and meal planning.
Have dipped my toe into model aircraft making with a view to it being a rainy afternoon winter pastime.
Gonna try PickleBall tomorrow !!

My wife is still working PT so I tend to get up when or before she goes out.
I'm so far rarely lost for something to do, sometimes an afternoon snooze is welcome. Interested in Novels, Theatre, short trips abroad and days /weekends away in UK. 

So far I thoroughly recommend it if your are able and slightly unsure as I was. 

barnstar2077

katejo said:

cfw1994 said:

I thought it might be interesting to get some perspectives from the hive mind here running: might help others.  

We all know that those who have bitten the bullet almost all wonder how they had time to work, but perhaps this thread could give others ideas?   

Not wanting to focus on the financial aspects - most threads here do that, perhaps understandably, and many things need money….but some don’t, or don’t need much 🤷‍♂️

I stepped away from the coalface (well, keyboard) in May 2020 after an active time in the world of IT.
I was talking with another pal recently about his looming retirement.  He does have a lot of hobbies, but was still unsure what he will do with his time.  

We went on a ‘retirement seminar’ offered by a local IFA firm a few years ago.  Lovely afternoon tea, but they did focus a lot on the 21 slots you have to fill (morning, afternoon, evening, 7 days a week), & I guess my mate is mentally figuring that out 🧐

I began on Day 1 by reinvigorating my love for cycling 🚴‍♂️
I’m not very fast, & have never been one to pedal in a group who have a weekly ride (still not), but took on an awesome solo LEJoG, with a few pals joining me for bits of it.  Since done a couple of others, and off soon with a pal for a mini adventure - circular ride, camping in the middle.  Little adventures!

Partner and I enjoy festivals, and camping…. we have thrown ourselves into a few in the past 30months - great music, some good comedy, only one horrendously cold and wet day (Latitude this July 👀).  Discovered https://www.concertarchives.org - a *briliant* site to log all your gigs/festivals, etc.  Spent a few hours since Radio 2 in the Park the other weekend popping ours in.  Go on, take a look!

Comedy nights and Beer festivals also get my personal vote as a fine way to spend an afternoon/evening, from time to time….got to avoid drinking too much though 🍻

We enjoy films and some TV, including (gasp, dirty secret) late afternoon quiz shows (frequent watches of HoG, Chase and even Tipping Point….shhh 🤭).

It’s good for the soul to do some volunteering, & mine is split: one half helping a popular volleyball club to operate.  Even wrote a Club Constitution the other day, with help from ChatGPT & Volleyball England.  Might be my last year or so for actually playing, mind 👀 …the other half is with young people for DofE (supervising and sometimes assessing Gold expeditions) 🏕️

Outside of that, as we all know, there are always things needing doing around the house & garden.

Oh, & holidays that can be taken off-peak…..we snapped up 2 month 1st class Interrail tickets in their crazy ‘50 year sale’ last year, and had the most incredible time rolling around 10,000km, 68 places and 14 countries 🚂🚞🚠🚟



So….what other ways have you found to spend their time, filling those 21 slots?

I am 60 and have only just reduced to working 4 days a week instead of 5 as a stepping stone towards retirement. My one day off still feels 'odd' and I find myself wondering about the best way to use it. I have ideas which won't work until I have more days free. eg. I don't want to commit myself to  regular voluntary work until I have more days. However, on my day off, I feel I should be doing something purposeful not just lazing around !   I do want to to travel more once I stop completely.  I also belong to a social group in which many members are fully retired and have started to go on mid week trips but these haven't yet been on my free day. 

I dropped down to a four day week a couple of years ago.  I normally do my washing on the morning of that day, then meet a friend for lunch and do some food shopping on the way home.  If I don't have anyone lined up to meet then I still go out, have lunch in the usual cafe (they know me and what I always order :  )  and then take my time getting the shopping.  It is a lovely feeling knowing that you are not in any hurry.

The stress relief from the usual five day week has been a life saver for me, I was really burnt out before I started taking the Wednesday off.

Hope you manage to find a rhythm, a few months from now you will wonder how you ever did five days!

jim8888

Interesting post on what is a serious subject. I've not found retirement to be easy and I often find myself pining for work after taking redundancy and retirement two years ago at 58. I do wonder about going back to work, but would work impose on the sometime absolute luxury of being fully retired? I feel as if I have loads of hobbies and interests and I work really hard at keeping as wide a circle of friends as I can, but there's still a hole that work used to fill. I'm not sure I can explain this, but I did enjoy my career and found it fulfilling in a way that hobbies and interests just aren't! It's something to do with the way I used to feel on a Friday evening heading for a pint with friends after a challenging week at work, feeling as if I'd really earned it. How do I get that feeling back in retirement? Where's the challenge in doing whatever you like all week? 
All I can say is that I'm working hard to try and replace this missing sense of fulfilment. Maybe I will have to try a part time job, or maybe I can find something in myself and my attitude to help settle me down. As usual it seems that the answer to my question of what to do in fulfilling my time is up to me! 

SarahB16

jim8888 said:

Interesting post on what is a serious subject. I've not found retirement to be easy and I often find myself pining for work after taking redundancy and retirement two years ago at 58. I do wonder about going back to work, but would work impose on the sometime absolute luxury of being fully retired? I feel as if I have loads of hobbies and interests and I work really hard at keeping as wide a circle of friends as I can, but there's still a hole that work used to fill. I'm not sure I can explain this, but I did enjoy my career and found it fulfilling in a way that hobbies and interests just aren't! It's something to do with the way I used to feel on a Friday evening heading for a pint with friends after a challenging week at work, feeling as if I'd really earned it. How do I get that feeling back in retirement? Where's the challenge in doing whatever you like all week? 
All I can say is that I'm working hard to try and replace this missing sense of fulfilment. Maybe I will have to try a part time job, or maybe I can find something in myself and my attitude to help settle me down. As usual it seems that the answer to my question of what to do in fulfilling my time is up to me! 

I work full time and can't wait to be able to retire but God willing probably about 10-12 years away for me.  Even though I work full time there is a local community group that I'm a member of and we really do look at improving the local area where we live.  I'd prefer not to go into too much detail but these are big projects that will make a real difference to the area. 

There are always things that can be done to improve your local area and you may be the person that creates this group and you may ask for volunteers with whatever skillset you require.  I'm sure that would not only give you a sense of achievement (yes, an element of frustration at times) but also a new group of local people with a shared passion for improving whatever you want to set your mind to improving in your local area. 

Now is your time for giving back and you will welcome those local connections more and more as you get older.  

Phossy

jim8888 said:

Interesting post on what is a serious subject. I've not found retirement to be easy and I often find myself pining for work after taking redundancy and retirement two years ago at 58. I do wonder about going back to work, but would work impose on the sometime absolute luxury of being fully retired? I feel as if I have loads of hobbies and interests and I work really hard at keeping as wide a circle of friends as I can, but there's still a hole that work used to fill. I'm not sure I can explain this, but I did enjoy my career and found it fulfilling in a way that hobbies and interests just aren't! It's something to do with the way I used to feel on a Friday evening heading for a pint with friends after a challenging week at work, feeling as if I'd really earned it. How do I get that feeling back in retirement? Where's the challenge in doing whatever you like all week? 
All I can say is that I'm working hard to try and replace this missing sense of fulfilment. Maybe I will have to try a part time job, or maybe I can find something in myself and my attitude to help settle me down. As usual it seems that the answer to my question of what to do in fulfilling my time is up to me! 

This is a concern for me as I approach retirement. I have no doubt I can fill my time - I have plenty of hobbies and interests, but what work gives me is a sense of purpose, something that is bigger than me. I expect I may find that purpose through helping others, be that family or  the local community. We'll see.