This year was meant to be the start of my retirement. What a year for it! Overseas holiday cancelled, Andrew’s long service leave spent entirely at home, plans for long walks, long lunches and coffee mornings all wiped away by one tiny virus!

So, that meant that I had to re-think my idea of retirement and find my way again i.e. I had to find things to keep me busy at home. A lot of my time this year has been spent knitting and sewing. I know that there is a negative stereotype out there of the old woman sitting at home knitting and sewing – but I say – what is wrong with that? Particularly when we are safer at home than anywhere else.

As well as doing all that knitting I managed to find a volunteer job that allowed me to use lots of my skills for good at a time when I needed to be busy and when people needed what I could do for them!

It was the needs that arose from the pandemic that kept me the busiest for most of the year. Without even looking for a volunteer position, one found me and I was thrown into the frenzy of running ( with a team of leaders) a country wide organisation to make and supply cloth face masks to people in need. I also resurrected my sewing skills and made hundreds of masks.

The only reason I could do this effectively is because of the skills I had developed over past years working as a consultant and skills developed in my childhood i.e. the sewing skills. I spent many years working in educational compliance, building teams and organisations, developing courses and assessments etc. In other words I have a logical brain, I am methodical and have learned to juggle lots of things at one time, going into overdrive when needed. All these things were essential for me to contribute in a positive way to the mask making organisation.

In addition to all the mask making I have been able to indulge my passion for swimming, walking and yoga. I created a yoga studio at home and still attend my weekly class (online), in the comfort of my own home.

So am I busy now at this end of the year when the pandemic appears to be under control in Australia? Busy enough – and of course I can now spend my time making home made gifts for Christmas and writing my blog.

So you might be asking what my 5 tips are for you. The ideas are actually all related to who you are, what you are good at and what you love doing the most.

If we can’t take long holidays at the moment and we have to be prepared for partial lock downs and continued restrictions on what we do, I believe we are better off being occupied than just sitting at home worrying!

And what an opportunity this presents for us! Some of us are lucky enough to do what we love during our working lives. But if not, then why not make sure you do what you love during your retirement? Here are the 5 tips to help you find your way

Tip #1 Ask yourself who you really are.

Answering this question may help you decide what you will do in retirement. For example, I am not very social and don’t catch up with people for coffee. I have always been a workaholic and so my social interactions have come through work. So in retirement, I am not seeking extensive social contact and could take on a volunteer job that keeps me at home e.g. doing administrative work for a volunteer organisation.

Some helpful questions for you:

• Do you like going out a lot?
• Do you like to be around people?
• Do you like working in a team or on your own?
• Do you like to be busy all the time or do you value your downtime?
• Is getting credit for what you do important or are you a quiet achiever?

You might like to ask someone who knows you to answer these questions too so you can talk about how your personality and preferences would impact on future volunteer roles your might be thinking about.

Tip # 2 Ask yourself what you are good at.

• Working with people?
• Managing people?
• Being Strategic or more operational and hands on?
• Working with information?
• Working with numbers?
• Researching and planning?
• Managing results?
• Communication or presentation?
• Household management?
• Cooking?
• Sewing?
• Gardening?

I know the list could go on but I think you get the idea – it is important to think about your skills before taking on a new challenge!

Tip # 3 Ask yourself what you enjoy doing.

So many of us spend our lives doing things we don’t enjoy. It is possible to be good at things we don’t like doing. When we are working to support ourselves and/or our families, we may not have the luxury of changing jobs to find things to do that we enjoy. So why not take the time now to think about what you enjoy. For example, you may be an excellent cook but don’t really enjoy cooking. So you probably wouldn’t take on a job in a soup kitchen working at the stove!! You may, however, love talking to people and also be good at it, so you could consider working as a meet and greet person at that same soup kitchen!! Work through some of the questions above again, asking yourself this time what you enjoy. Keep your answers honest and refer to them when you are ready for your next challenge.

Tip # 4 Consider what is important to you in terms of leisure and downtime.

I think this is important – particularly if you have always been a busy person. It would be very easy for me to turn a volunteer retirement role into something that takes over my whole life. Why? Because I am a self confessed workaholic who has had to work hard to let go over the years.

So defining what is important in terms of leisure is essential so I can set aside the time for what I love.

Do you like to walk, are you a swimmer, are you a gym junkie or a yoga freak? Do you garden to relax or do you enjoy knitting in front of the TV?

Make sure you plan time to enjoy yourself and treat yourself each day. This is important for your physical and mental health. Keeping active is good for you!

Tip # 5 Consider what is important to you in terms of family relationships.

Don’t let your new found passions/volunteer jobs etc. take over your time to spend with loved ones. Can you find something to do with your family? Have you thought about balancing out your time in line with their time and availability?

We hope this post has been helpful for you.

Let us know what you think about our tips and how you get along with your planning.

I’m not sure what I will be doing next year but I will continue to be open to new possibilities and willing to be helpful.

Of course writing my blog will feature – because I guess I am just helpful by nature!!!

What Next?

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Until next time,

 

 

Gillian (and Andrew)