If you are 55 years of age and successful I am sure that you dread the thought that at age 58 or 60 your HR will find no use for you! If 60 is the new 40 and you DO NOT WANT TO RETIRE, you should have the option of not retiring, right? Well many people I know are going through this phase. A far cry from a Millennial who wants to retire at 45 and then “chill”. I am sure at 32 you have no clue how your mind will work at 58, and hence these thoughts.

I met a successful advertising professional who was 50 a few years ago and expressed the feelings that “she does not want to retire EVER”. Over a few cups of coffee (which she paid)..I had given her a “plan of action” and she was thrilled. She has put it to action and now closer to her retirement she has clearly chalked out a plan. She is planning to work with a few clients, continue to write some copy, give up all admin work, go to office 7-8 times a month, attend advertising conferences (paid for by the company, but no professional fees for her time)….and she is excited. Believe me, her “investments” on coffee was worth it. She got a career “longevity” pill and I got a story to tell!!

I know that there are many of you in banking, technology, sales, accounting and feel that you can go on for 10 more years AT LEAST from your technical “Retirement age”. Many people I know do not like to call themselves “retired”. They just hate the word.

What are the real options?

1. Directorships – if you are senior enough and are not bound by  some agreements, you can seek a board position. 4 board positions of mid to large sized companies will keep you busy THROUGHOUT the year in terms of board meetings, committee meetings, reviews, etc. However not everybody is likely to be able to find such opportunities. If you are a woman, rejoice! there is a huge shortage of women available to take up board positions. The government is planning to set up an exam for people wanting to be on Boards – wait for more details. There is a caveat though. There is a huge risk of being on the wrong board. I feel cruel to give “being on board” as a suggestion, but I have always said no to such offers. Being a CA makes me shit scared and suspicious of most boards. I also feel I am too soft to be a banker or a director. However, if you think you can pull it off, this a non-ageing assignment that  you can do till you are 75 years of age.
2. Teaching in coaching classes – teaching in colleges is not really well paying. Of course you can tell yourself “I do not need the money” – but it is difficult to teach a class of 13 when you know that the class strength is 130. Sure, if you are good the class will have more students, but I did not enjoy the process one bit. I tried teaching in a well reputed college (40 km away) and in one college near my house, did not suit me. Remember I started my career in public speaking by being a teacher in a MBA school, but no longer enjoy it. However, teaching in a coaching class – math, operations research, accounting, audit, financial management, – for CA students is a very good option, and there is a shortage of good teachers.
3. Training in corporate Bharat – if you are a sales, advertising professional you can offer to train the kids joining your office. Making a shift to training at the age of 53 makes sense. It is less stressful and you can make a transition to being a “vendor” from your age of 60 till your age of 70. Of course it depends on your fitness, willingness to travel, etc. You can also look to do training for your competitors, clients, friends…etc. and grow the pie.
4. Take charge of your portfolio, and a part of your wife’s work. Women may retire from work, but their household work never goes away. So women are not so scared of retirement as men are. However a recently retired woman said “I keep looking at my email..and feel I am DEAD”. So if social interaction is important for you, make sure that you do some work which keeps you socially active. Working as an accountant in a big society could be very useful for a person wanting to work to keep busy and is not too concerned about ego or money.

…more to go.. at a later date perhaps.