My Incentives to Work in Retirement

Prior to taking early retirement, my primary reason for working was to earn money for everyday expenses and savings. First, I majored in a degree (engineering) that would lead to a good paying job. Then, after a mediocre first 10 years, I refocused my career, began taking assignments and positions of greater responsibility, and advanced in level and compensation.

Since taken early retirement in 2007, I have worked several part time jobs, which are seasonal. While I still work for pay, the incentives for choosing the job are often other than money. Here are some of the non-money reasons for the jobs I have taken.

Personal interest. I've always had an interest in personal finance. The first part time job I did was a seasonal position in a financial service company. Since I'm good with numbers and the relevant financial concepts, I enjoyed doing the work, even though the pay was little more than minimum wage.

In addition, the company provides continuing education training for a small cost, saving me hundreds, perhaps thousands, of dollars each year.

Personal development. I may be retired, but I still enjoy intellectual challenges. A job that that enables me to learn new skills and use them is appealing to me. One of my part time jobs is with a small business that is a franchise. In addition to learning the skills to do the work, I've been learning about how a franchise business operates.

Intellectual stimulation and emotional satisfaction. I enjoy the variety of doing three or four different jobs during the year, which require different skills, customer interactions, in different industries. The jobs I do last between a couple weeks to four months. In most cases, I'm ready for the job to be over when the season is finished.

Jobs that leverage my personal strengths are very energizing. In addition, I like the satisfaction of completing a project, which happens frequently in a seasonal job.

Of course, the pay is still important to me, since I am trying to earn 20% of our retirement expenses through part time jobs to avoid outliving our savings. However, nowadays, pay is no longer the primary reason that I accept a job.

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This is not financial, career or job advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

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