Post Retirement Job Recommendations

[rwbil]

I am looking for some retirement jobs that would be a good fit for me. I am retiring early from the Northeast and moving to Florida, because I hate cold weather. I have a degree in Engineering, but there are not many engineering jobs down here, plus it is not something I really enjoy doing. I am looking for a job that would be flexible. Ideally I would want to work 20 hours a week or so and be able to take off for several vacations per year. It has to be something I would enjoy doing and has to pay more than minimum wage, otherwise I would just do volunteer work. I would want to make at least $20/hour or it would not be worth my time. Mostly I want the job, because I get bored easily and want something fun to do, get a chance to meet people being I know nobody else down here, and to earn a little extra money to travel. I would not mind going back to school for a couple of years in order to find a job I would really enjoy. One thought is to go back and get my Master in Accounting. That way I could work part time at an accounting firm or just work during the tax season. I ran my own business for years and did my own accounting and always enjoyed it. Of course, you never know until you are actually doing it for a living whether you will really like it or not. Also with my Master’s Degree I could be adjunct teacher at a community college. I would appreciate any information on those jobs as a retiree part time job. To give a better idea of the type of job I think I would like, I always thought about being an Optometrist. But I really do not want to go back to a full time school for 4 plus years. Maybe somebody here has an idea of another job like that. What I like about that career is:

1) You are not dealing with surgery and for the most part the people you see are healthy (I could not draw blood or deal with sick people all day),
2) I have a natural interest and ability in math and science,
3) You are not selling anything. I hate selling,
4) You are helping people,
5) The job pays well,
6) You work in a comfortable indoor setting,
7) You can work part-time,
8) You are meeting new people all the time and get paid to socialize. I love talking to people as long as it is not selling or dealing constantly with complaining people.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

[REWahoo]

Isn't a retirement job an oxymoron?

[Leonidas]

I have to second this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by REWahoo Isn't a retirement job an oxymoron?

My first thought was tutoring in math and science. I paid for tutoring for my oldest son during his last two year in HS for Calculus and Physics and paid $30-40 an hour. One was a HS teacher, but the others included a guy who worked at NASA and just loved to teach math and a physics doctoral student who was doing research in carbon nanotubes at Rice.

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rwbil I am looking for some retirement jobs that would be a good fit for me. I am retiring early from the Northeast and moving to Florida, because I hate cold weather. I have a degree in Engineering, but there are not many engineering jobs down here, plus it is not something I really enjoy doing. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Welcome to the board, rwbil. I think. I have to admit that this is one of the more unusual "Life after FIRE" or even "Hi, I am..." posts I've ever read.

Why are you coming to an early-retirement board looking for career/job advice? Isn't that sort of like going to a Catholic church for advice on your sex life? You're sure to get plenty of opinions, but you're also going to get lots of disapproval from people who are likely to be quite evangelically disapproving of your lifestyle. And most of the opinions will lack credibility to begin with.

If you have a pension, then great. You have some financial flexibility and plenty of time to search for your "dream job". (I know, REW, this might be oxymoronic too.) But instead of asking retirees what jobs they like, perhaps you should approach your upcoming relocation as a career change instead of a retirement.

[Boxkicker]

Welcome to the board....

I am "retiring" from the Navy (basically collecting retainer pay) in less than 2 months and my "job" will be sitting on my hind-end for awhile since I am on terminal leave (getting the same pay but not working for 83 days).

On January 1, 2009, I will be waking up a new man!!! I plan on finishing my 6 semester hours of college left for my Bachelor's Degree.

My retirement "job" is going to be umpiring baseball games and playing golf as much as possible.

[lazygood4nothinbum]

i'm considering teaching. i think i'd be good at that. a while back i was in a pool and this kid was splashing horribly, trying to swim. so in about five or ten minutes i taught him a few strokes. he was so happy that he could swim that he asked me to teach him more. i remember thinking, wow, someone who appreciates me. this is a lot better than my day job.

after reading about the op wanting to become an optometrist, not my idea of life fullfilling but to each their own, i went to the local school board career web site. they pay substitutes $10.67 to $12/hour with no degree & what they call an interim sub with a bachelors gets $23.81, which is a beginner teacher's wage.

my local community college has training classes in september. maybe i'll get trained, do some subbing and see if i like teaching enough to head back to school for (cover your ears, eyes and mouths everybody) a new career. done by 3 pm, summers for travel, state pension, plus something to do all day. i should have done this 30 years ago; i could retire today.

[ohfrugalone]

You might check out your local University and find that they have some sort of accelerated teaching certificate program for those already with a bachelor's

[ladypatriot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rwbil I am looking for some retirement jobs that would be a good fit for me. I am retiring early from the Northeast and moving to Florida, because I hate cold weather. I have a degree in Engineering, but there are not many engineering jobs down here, plus it is not something I really enjoy doing. I am looking for a job that would be flexible. Ideally I would want to work 20 hours a week or so and be able to take off for several vacations per year. It has to be something I would enjoy doing and has to pay more than minimum wage, otherwise I would just do volunteer work. I would want to make at least $20/hour or it would not be worth my time. Mostly I want the job, because I get bored easily and want something fun to do, get a chance to meet people being I know nobody else down here, and to earn a little extra money to travel. I would not mind going back to school for a couple of years in order to find a job I would really enjoy. One thought is to go back and get my Master in Accounting. That way I could work part time at an accounting firm or just work during the tax season. I ran my own business for years and did my own accounting and always enjoyed it. Of course, you never know until you are actually doing it for a living whether you will really like it or not. Also with my Master’s Degree I could be adjunct teacher at a community college. I would appreciate any information on those jobs as a retiree part time job. To give a better idea of the type of job I think I would like, I always thought about being an Optometrist. But I really do not want to go back to a full time school for 4 plus years. Maybe somebody here has an idea of another job like that. What I like about that career is: 1) You are not dealing with surgery and for the most part the people you see are healthy (I could not draw blood or deal with sick people all day), 2) I have a natural interest and ability in math and science, 3) You are not selling anything. I hate selling, 4) You are helping people, 5) The job pays well, 6) You work in a comfortable indoor setting, 7) You can work part-time, 8) You are meeting new people all the time and get paid to socialize. I love talking to people as long as it is not selling or dealing constantly with complaining people. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Well, are you retired or not? Moving from the Northeast and leaving one job to relocate in Florida and find another job isn't really retiring, even if your new job is part-time. Can you afford to retire? Or do you financially need a part-time job? Retiring to pursue a life-long passion is one path, but it doesn't sound like being an optometrist is a long-held secret desire for you.

What does retirement mean for you? You mention that you enjoy socializing, but you don't need a job for that. Volunteering and community activities can provide many opportunities for socializing. You mentioned going back to school, and many retirees take classes - not to train themselves for another job, but for FUN. Nothing in your post mentions FUN. Retirement is about relaxing and having FUN.

My DH is fully retired, but I work part-time doing something I love to do. I'm still paying into social security, so I'm not really retired. I'm just doing something I've always loved doing, and I'm lucky enough to get paid for it. DH is having FUN, and I'm delighted that he's having fun, and I have fun with him when I'm not working. I plan to work for three more years, until our youngest child is off to college. Then I'm going to have even MORE FUN with him.

Your post doesn't sound like you're retiring; it sounds like you're just tired of doing what you're doing now and want a change of job and scenery. It also sounds like you can't imagine not working. That is a big obstacle to retirement, because retirement is about not working.

[ladypatriot]

My apologies to the forum. I meant to trim the quote included in my post. Scrolling can be exhausting .

[Caroline]

Quote:

My DH is fully retired, but I work part-time doing something I love to do.

Forgive my ignorance, but what IS that part-time work you love to do?

[haha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ladypatriot It also sounds like you can't imagine not working. That is a big obstacle to retirement, because retirement is about not working.

Are you the Merriam-Webster of Retirement?

Ha

[ladypatriot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caroline Forgive my ignorance, but what IS that part-time work you love to do?

I teach preschool.

[ladypatriot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by haha Are you the Merriam-Webster of Retirement? Ha

No, nor did I claim to be. I believe posts on this forum are generally considered to be statements of opinion, not research driven facts. Any annuity thread supports this observation. Naturally you may define retirement differently, but I won't hold your feet to the fire of Merriam-Webster.

[Milton]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rwbil I would want to make at least $20/hour or it would not be worth my time.... with my Master’s Degree I could be adjunct teacher at a community college.

Major reality check needed here!

When you consider all the unpaid time adjuncts are effectively compelled to put in (office hours, setting / marking term papers, writing / marking exams, preparing letters of recommendation, etc.), the hourly rate works out to something like $3.00. Unfair, but that's the nature of the gig.

[kumquat]

'Post retirement' and 'job' do not belong in any sentence that does not include 'former'.

[Moemg]

Good Luck with your job hunt . Hopefully you are moving to a major city or near one in Florida .

[socca]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rwbil I love talking to people as long as it is not selling or dealing constantly with complaining people.

Maybe I was in corporate America for too long, but this requirement eliminates about 99.999% of the jobs I'm aware of Just about every job involves some type of selling and dealing with complainers. What's left? Ummm... :confused: :confused:

[jambo101]

Go for a groundskeeping job on a golf course,doesnt pay that much but its a great work environment and you can get to golf for free when the day is done.

[lazygood4nothinbum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ohfrugalone You might check out your local University and find that they have some sort of accelerated teaching certificate program for those already with a bachelor's

thanx, good idea, checked. this is way easier than i'd've thought. can get teaching certificate in less than a year for under $1500 bucks (in-state tuition). my local school system has a ton of positions open starting at about $38k/year. also i scoped out tampa which has a bunch of positions open but looks like a hiring freeze currently in place.

my local community college has a two-week long substitute certifying class for just $65. will start with that.

oh good, another option in life because i wasn't confused enough.

[Finance Dave]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rwbil I am looking for some retirement jobs that would be a good fit for me.

Are you an expert at anything? Expert witness may be a good choice.

And as for these people putting you down for wanting to work in retirement, just ignore them.

I plan to do something similar...I just call it rehirement. To me, retirement means to withdraw from the stress of my current job. If I can find a low-stress, easy schedule, reduced hours position, then work would be a much more relaxing experience and I would want to do it for some time.

dave