what else would I do?

[medved]

The other day, I attended a reception to honor a judge who was retiring after many years. The judge had worked for the last ten or more of those years for free. (He got paid those years, but he would have received the same amount as pension if he had not worked -- so in that sense he was working for free).

I mentioned to an attorney and an investment banker who were sitting near me how surprised I am that judges often work for many years for no pay -- they must really enjoy the job to do it for free. The attorney and the banker both had the same reaction -- "what else would they possibly do if they were not working?" I said "maybe travel, or go fishing, or babysit their grandchildren or play golf or study a language...." They looked at me like I had lost my mind. So I said to the investment banker "would you continue to work for free?" He said "Well I would much rather get paid for working, but if the only choices were to do my job for free or not to do it at all, then I would do it for free -- because if I were not working, what else would I do?"

Now this is not a hiking guide or a charity worker who I could understand working for free. This is an investment banker!

I know so many people who think ER is extremely odd. Maybe that is a part of why I have not yet done it, even though I have enough money. I think I cannot help but be somewhat influenced by people around me. I need to get past that -- and I will. But I would be lying if I said the prevailing ethos among those who I am surrounded by did not have some influence on me, even if I wish it didn't.

 

[Gotadimple]

It's the what would you do all day syndrome. As a matter of fact there is a long thread on here about the subject.

It is wonderful to have a vocation that is so mentally intriguing that one can't imagine what else they would do with their time. But, there is so much more out in the world that is equally intriguing. That said, working in a field for a long time is a habit, starting something totally new is a challenge.

Retiring (early or otherwise) is like your first day of college. You generally think you know what to expect but it is presented in new ways that can be very interesting (most of the time).

- Rita

 

[97guns]

The "what else would I do" mentality is supplement for the mentality of "I will never retire" which is the reality of "I can not financially retire"

I never understood the meaning of "I love my job" or even "I like my job", I've never had a job I liked, tolerate yes but like, hardly... loved, for sure never had that feeling towards a job. . I guess you can't see any of it until your on the other side of the fence

 

[Dawg52]

Lot's of folks think this way. Glad I'm not one of them.

 

[kimcdougc]

Lot's of folks think this way. Glad I'm not one of them.

+1

 

[ABQ2015]

Serving as a judge is an honorable position with privilege and status. For an attorney working in litigation, it can be their ultimate goal. People in some professions tend to work to an older age - probably because they work for themselves or don't require/have much supervision or can set their own hours and workload (e.g., clergy, real estate, dentists, college professors). Not so much in IT and engineering where most of us work for larger companies. There is a college professor on this forum that could easily retire but enjoys their job and it is not stressful so keeps working.

 

[razztazz]

Serving as a judge is an honorable position with privilege and status. For an attorney working in litigation, it can be their ultimate goal. People in some professions tend to work to an older age - probably because they work for themselves or don't require/have much supervision or can set their own hours and workload (e.g., clergy, real estate, dentists, college professors). Not so much in IT and engineering where most of us work for larger companies. There is a college professor on this forum that could easily retire but enjoys their job and it is not stressful so keeps working.

This. SOme positions carry a lot of power and near total control over what happens and how it happens. And no chance of downside responsibility. They can essentially work to tickle their fancy, enjoy the power, the perks, and the status and not have to answer for anything. Most humans don't have it that good after the age of 1 or 2.

 

[97guns]

My attorney's partner has to be over 80, he sure looks and moves like it. She uses him to type out statements from her clients and I had to use him 2 times, at $300/hr I sure wish he had retired before taking my statements, he took 5 hours to write up around 4 pages, pecking at the keyboard

 

[Letj]

The other day, I attended a reception to honor a judge who was retiring after many years. The judge had worked for the last ten or more of those years for free. (He got paid those years, but he would have received the same amount as pension if he had not worked -- so in that sense he was working for free).

I mentioned to an attorney and an investment banker who were sitting near me how surprised I am that judges often work for many years for no pay -- they must really enjoy the job to do it for free. The attorney and the banker both had the same reaction -- "what else would they possibly do if they were not working?" I said "maybe travel, or go fishing, or babysit their grandchildren or play golf or study a language...." They looked at me like I had lost my mind. So I said to the investment banker "would you continue to work for free?" He said "Well I would much rather get paid for working, but if the only choices were to do my job for free or not to do it at all, then I would do it for free -- because if I were not working, what else would I do?"

Now this is not a hiking guide or a charity worker who I could understand working for free. This is an investment banker!

I know so many people who think ER is extremely odd. Maybe that is a part of why I have not yet done it, even though I have enough money. I think I cannot help but be somewhat influenced by people around me. I need to get past that -- and I will. But I would be lying if I said the prevailing ethos among those who I am surrounded by did not have some influence on me, even if I wish it didn't.

I have a suggestion that is guaranteed to work. Learn to dance!! It's the greatest fun you will have and you will meet great people and if you like socializing, ample opportunity for that. Better yet, learn Argentine Tango. It's a lifetime pursuit and you will never perfect it so no opportunity for boredom. And then you can go to Argentina and learn from the best followed by traveling to dance Tango in as many major cities as you can. I dance Argentine Tango and other dances and I can tell you work really gets in the way.

 

[braumeister]

This. SOme positions carry a lot of power and near total control over what happens and how it happens. And no chance of downside responsibility. They can essentially work to tickle their fancy, enjoy the power, the perks, and the status and not have to answer for anything. Most humans don't have it that good after the age of 1 or 2.

Obviously, this is why so few Supreme Court justices retire. But you don't even have to have such a powerful, prestigious job.

We used to have a retired businessman around here who simply loved being in his old work environment. When he sold his business, he kept his personal office in a downtown high rise building. Every morning he would get dressed in his suit and tie, then walk to the bus stop near his home. Rode the bus downtown, bought a newspaper and sat in his office to read it, drink coffee and chat with people. After lunch, he took the bus home again. He kept this up until the age of 101 and felt he had a wonderful life.

 

[ivinsfan]

This. SOme positions carry a lot of power and near total control over what happens and how it happens. And no chance of downside responsibility. They can essentially work to tickle their fancy, enjoy the power, the perks, and the status and not have to answer for anything. Most humans don't have it that good after the age of 1 or 2.

This isn't always true. We farm and believe me the power is minimal, the control is zip, and the perks and status aren't much either. My DH doesn't want to quit, he enjoys the challenge of it all, feels he's productive in a way that helps people and likes staying mentally and physically active.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

He said "Well I would much rather get paid for working, but if the only choices were to do my job for free or not to do it at all, then I would do it for free -- because if I were not working, what else would I do?"

Uh? ANYTHING other than w*rk!

Oh my. I am so very, VERY glad that I don't have that outlook on life. I am coming up on 3 years retired and it has been the BEST 3 years of my life...no question about it.

Speaking of which, we had a couple over last night for dinner. The husband works for the city and will get a pension in 6 years and is trying to get himself in the position to not *have* to work. Inevitably, my retirement "routine" came up and he mentioned that he can't wait to have similar freedom to which his wife responded, "OH NO! You can take a couple of months off...then you will get back to W*RK!!!". Those are divorce words to me!

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

My attorney's partner has to be over 80, he sure looks and moves like it. She uses him to type out statements from her clients and I had to use him 2 times, at $300/hr I sure wish he had retired before taking my statements, he took 5 hours to write up around 4 pages, pecking at the keyboard

 

[Rianne]

Isn't DNA interesting! I don't like the feeling of anyone having power over my choices in my day to day activities. I started working at @ 10 yrs. old for my dad in his restaurant. It was fun and I had little kid responsibilities. My bosses were my parents and they made me feel a part of a family sort of thing, outside of the typical family thing. My friends thought it was cool that I could work for money. It was a great start to understanding work.

As I got older, college and graduate school, I'm still my own boss. I decide about going to class, working hard at achieving good grades etc. I enjoyed that challenge and competitiveness. Made me feel empowered. Then, when I had a boss who dictated what I did, what my goals were, how I acted in meetings, who I had to kiss up to, how I dressed, what jokes I could laugh at, how to behave at company parties, on and on...I felt repressed and owned by someone else. I got reviewed, judged and controlled. I had to put up with all that and adjust because I believed in FIRE! Thanks to my DH who felt the same way, put up with the BS for as long as we could possibly stand it and then FIRE!

Position of prominence is a whole different ballgame. My brother is a professor, wrote and published a book and many articles. His opinion is valued and his work is interesting. He will never "really" retire. He has a very nice pension, great health insurance through the state and is tenured. He makes his own schedule and loves his research because he is honestly interested in everything he does. We are talking about 2 different worlds here. It's the difference between passion and drudgery. Farming can be a passion, I get that. There are many occupations that require passionate people who love helping people or creating a small business pleasing customers. I was stuck in the corporate BS world and so was my DH. UGGHH, so glad I'm FIRED and doing my own thing and I am pretty darn busy and still healthy TG.

 

[Which Roger]

Different occupations attract different personality types. An attorney may be attracted to that profession because he/she thrives on dealing with day-to-day conflict, drama, exerting power, etc., which are all essential personality traits to support the attorney's end goal of "winning".

Many of us (myself included) ERd because the above were what filled our BS buckets. But one person's bucket contents is another person's fuel.

 

[Walt34]

...at $300/hr I sure wish he had retired before taking my statements, he took 5 hours to write up around 4 pages, pecking at the keyboard

Well, if I was getting paid $300/hour I'd type real slow too. Wouldn't you?

 

[razztazz]

This isn't always true.

Didn't say it was. Some people are just just "true Givers" "For Duty and Humanity". Altho one could say that, to them, is status.

We farm and believe me the power is minimal, the control is zip, and the perks and status aren't much either. My DH doesn't want to quit, he enjoys the challenge of it all, feels he's productive in a way that helps people and likes staying mentally and physically active.

Doing what he likes... no downside... all ego involvement/fulfillment... All that is power. Power doesn't need to be something used on externals. Otherwise same the Judge... or the entrenched academic... or police chief... lawyer... Dr Gillespie type....

 

[daylatedollarshort]

I have wondered where people live who find nothing else do to all day other than work. If we don't have any events planned for a given day we go hiking some place scenic. We did that yesterday - hiked around a pretty lake with lots of trees, hills and even a few flocks of wild turkeys.

 

[DrRoy]

5 months since RE, haven't been bored yet, love the reduced stress and sleeping better.

https://youtu.be/x-t6SoAGRE0

 

[gamboolman]

"Well I would much rather get paid for working, but if the only choices were to do my job for free or not to do it at all, then I would do it for free -- because if I were not working, what else would I do?"

Words escape me as to to folks being this way ...... their choice, Different strokes for different folks and all....I do respect their wish though, and I hope they die on the job so they can die happy....

I am planning on retiring in about 2 years and God willing I will not do any consulting - if I do it will be only because of some unplanned for financial catastrophe.

Sometimes a picture is worth a lot of words...This expresses my sentiments towards them folks whose life's goal is to work till they drop literally ....

 

[Bestwifeever]

I bet the judge didn't have to fill out any TPS reports detailing what he did all day, or brownbag his lunch. I bet his staff handled the mundane stuff for him (and I imagine they all retire as soon as they can) so he could focus on what he enjoyed. He probably had generous vacation time and money to afford it. I would guess the people at the judge's reception have similar working conditions so they don't feel the need to escape their occupations. But even the judge retired so hopefully he has something to escape to.

 

[pb4uski]

I think that some people are just wired that way. I have a cousin who is in her 70s and she and her husband still work during the summers. We're pretty sure that there is no need for them to do so financially.... they just enjoy work and being busier.

I have always wondered what drives guys like Warren Buffett and other "old" guys who have plenty of money but keep working... I think they are just wired that way.

OTOH, I'm not... retired at 56 and love it... have found all sorts of things to keep me as busy as I want and despite being a slacker in a go-go environment when I was working, I have been pleasantly surprised how content I can be simply puttering around not doing much of anything.

 

[brucethebroker]

Obviously, this is why so few Supreme Court justices retire. But you don't even have to have such a powerful, prestigious job.

We used to have a retired businessman around here who simply loved being in his old work environment. When he sold his business, he kept his personal office in a downtown high rise building. Every morning he would get dressed in his suit and tie, then walk to the bus stop near his home. Rode the bus downtown, bought a newspaper and sat in his office to read it, drink coffee and chat with people. After lunch, he took the bus home again. He kept this up until the age of 101 and felt he had a wonderful life.

Ditto his wife.........

 

[Rummy]

My business owner mother died on a Wednesday and was still giving orders on the Monday before. Age 93. In fact, she gave the minister who gave her eulogy a list (her thing) of orders to pass along to the family.

She tried to spend a month in Florida with my father in an RV and flew home by the end of the first week.

The business was her LOVE....

 

[38Chevy454]

I've said it many times, "you can have a job to retire from, but you need something to retire to". I think this applies to the case of OP's question of what else would I do. So many people do not have outside interests and activities beyond their work. So the concept of being free all day is totally foreign and they are not able to understand.

Most on here do not have this issue, we have the mentality to be happy with not working and able to do what we want all day.