My sister and brother found jobs at much older age then 60. But we’re in area with plentiful jobs.
@greenbutton I am NOT suggesting that you do what I did! But as a point of information, I applied to go to school for my MSW when I was 68, started when I was 69, graduated a few weeks before my 71st birthday, and started working at a job where have very satisfying work, can control how much and where I work, and make some money too.
Sure, it felt totally bizarre to always be the oldest person in the classroom, fieldwork site, and job, but no one else had any issues with it! I went to school and started work before the pandemic, and it’s hard to remember that every single client came to the ofice to see me every single week for my first six months on the job. There are many more flexible jobs out there. I would never say that age is just a number; for sure, at 74 I know better. But it means a lot less than I thought it would! I remember being in class on my 70th birthday thinking, ok, now I really am old. But that’s not how I feel or other people appear to perceive me most of the time: I’m not just the old lady on the 4th floor of my apartment building.
Best to you!
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Wow! Kudos to you!
I would love to switch careers right now at almost 60. You are giving me inspiration!
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Perhaps OP might enjoy the flexibility of occasional work, rather than having to commit to a part-time job.
Do any posters have totally flexible part-time positions post retirement that are outside of your background or training (not consultant work related to your former position)? What type of work? How did you find the position (temp-agency, networking, etc. )?
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I am almost 72 and thinking about going back to school. Thanks @oldmom4896 !
I had breast cancer 8 years ago and am realizing the psychological effect was to not plan for a future in many ways. I am still healthy so what the heck, right? We are not too old to reinvent ourselves, but at the same time, the reality is that in many jobs, it is hard to get hired over 45, let alone 70. So we need to be smart about what we try to get into.
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Substitute teachers. Usually a bachelors degree in any field is required (state dependent). If you are not available or don’t want to work…you just say no. Big shortage of substitutes these days.
Substitutes in schools are also needed for clerical staff, and paraprofessionals.
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I was a substitute teacher for 5 years. It was flexible, but it wasn’t easy work. Of course, I’m a chronic overachiever, so I definitely did more than I needed to do. If I decide to do it again in the future, I’m going to be a lot less worried about what/whether kids learn while I’m there … I’ll just concentrate on making sure they behave.
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I’m a patient advocate and sometimes get honoraria for giving input. It’s not a heck of a lot but a few hundred dollars here and there. Annually, it adds up to a few thousand. My bachelor’s was sociology and I have a law degree. I don’t have any healthcare training
I started patient advocacy at age 50 after stopping out of my law career. I’m still doing it now, 15 years later.
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Funny you should ask. I am considering doing what a lot of people I know do – work at various arts and sports venue as event staff. Pay ranges from $15-$22/hour but is really flexible. That sounds kind of fun. The people I know who do it love it.
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OP- Life is too short to be in a job that makes you miserable. But life is also too short to feel guilty. If you want to be working, you’ll find another job, hopefully one that makes you less miserable.
An acquaintance retired last year at 87-- CFO of a large non-profit. When he told the board (a year before he was planning to leave so they could launch a search for his replacement) the reaction was “What, now? Why?” He told me this story- laughing hysterically- since it seemed that they had basically forgotten his age. (He got the job at age 70).
I know a least a dozen people IRL who have made career switches at 60 or 65 (the CFO had been a CFO of a large nonprofit beforehand, so it doesn’t count as a career switch in my book, just a guy changing jobs). I don’t think you should let fear of not finding something better hold you back.
A neighbor of mine decided to “downshift” (her words-- so not retire, but less stress and responsibility). She’s working at a local early childcare facility as an aide. I know the pay is terrible, but she loves the kids, the other teachers, says the director is “inspirational” and is learning so much from her about leadership, and she only commits to her shifts a week in advance, so can leave at 1 pm (if she wants to) to meet a friend for lunch, or come in at 10 if need be.
Wouldn’t work for everyone- especially giving up a corporate salary for hourly with no benefits, but it works for her.
Other friends have started small businesses in their 60s-- one has taken her experience dealing with aging parents and assisted living and all that jazz (including selling the house, getting rid of the Limoges which nobody wants) and is now an “Eldercare Concierge”. She bills by the hour at a very nice rate and has taken what was her painfully gained knowledge of eldercare and has turned it into a business. She plans to hire a social worker next year if business continues to boom. She has zero “credentials” in this area, but she’s good at mediating between the “warring parties”, i.e. Mom who won’t leave the family home, and Kids who know that between the steps and the snow shoveling and the only shower which is upstairs, the house is an accident waiting to happen.
I’m sure you’ve got skills and experience which you’ll put to great use. But don’t stay in a lousy job out of guilt. HUGS.
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Not to hijack the thread, but I have to say that going back to school for my MSW was HARD! I got my undergraduate degree in 1971 and there was a very steep learning curve! In the end, I did very well, but I am grateful that I’ll never have to do that again!
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Re: substitute teaching. I did that years ago as a SAHM. Quickly found out that while classroom management was challenging (this was elementary school and the kids liked to goof around when there was a sub), I loved subbing in Special Ed and ESOL working one on one with the kids. I also became the go-to library sub which I also loved. So you can find a niche you like.
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In our state, sub teachers need to be certified just as if they were permanent hires. Teachers’ aides do not need that, but it was my long time job as exactly that , that I lost to restructuring.
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So you were a teacher’s aide in a school system? That was the job you enjoyed? If you were in the schools did you also have summers off? That is one aspect that can be a little harder to replicate.
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@greenbutton have you reached out to school districts recently? Many many are experiencing significant difficulty hiring para educators. You might find that there is now an opening where one previously was eliminated.
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As others have said, there is literally no reason not to quit this job. You can then see how you feel and whether you want to look for another job, sub, become a teacher’s aide or retire. Right now jobs are pretty plentiful and if you don’t need to earn a lot of money, probably easy to find something. Even a clerical job at a non-profit might be more rewarding than the current situation.
Good luck and let go of the guilt! I am not quite ready to retire and part of that is feeling like that would make me really “old” and not very useful. I also have one kid that is having some mental health challenges and needs some assistance so the cost of that weighs on my decision as well.
A few thoughts to consider:
- given the current job market, why would you stay at a job that pays horribly and a job that you don’t like?
- anything can happen. Speaking from experience, for example, you could end up with some sort of health emergency which permanently changes your future or your outlook on life. Don’t spend the rest of your life thinking, “Gee, I wish I hadn’t stayed so long at that lousy job.”
- since financially, you can afford to pretty much do whatever you want, THIS is your opportunity now to do something that matters to you. Something that makes a difference in your community. Something that’s important to you.
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I subbed a lot for high school, and I was called for many math/science jobs. It became a matter of personal pride for me to re-learn things I once knew in order to help students. 20 years older makes me 20 years less interested in that kind of prep!
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A biggie on these kind of decisions is medical coverage. I’m assuming you can arrange that as spouse on your husband’s policy. So as long as you’re ok without that income, I say go ahead and resign. It may or may not be your last job. But for now, it sounds like you have some other worthy endeavors to consider. Best of luck!!
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Great jobs supply some of community, meaning and structure. All are important to mental health. @greenbutton, it sounds like this job gives you negative meaning (condescending, poorly paid). It probably provides some community (if you are friends/friendly with some of your coworkers) and certainly provides structure to your daily life. So, I would think about how you can replace the community and structure if you leave and most importantly how you can organize your activities to provide more meaning than the job provided. That can be volunteer. it could also be another job. There is no reason why leaving a job you don’t enjoy and that does not give you meaning implies that you can’t seek another, more meaningful job if that is what you want.
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