How working in retirement can be good for your health
Are you staring down the barrel of retirement and unsure what to do? Did you ever consider that working in retirement may actually be your best option? Whether you need the money or not, there are many advantages to continue working in retirement
Keeping your mind fresh
No matter the job, you’ll be exercising your mind with problem-solving, critical thinking skills, and staying active. As you age, your brain is not as sharp as it was early in life. Therefore, you need to do everything you can to stay sharp and keep your mind fresh. Working is the perfect workout for your brain that will keep it fresh and active.
Maintaining a healthy body
Your body loses 3–8% of its muscle mass each decade as an adult. That means you have to work hard as you age to keep your body feeling good. But you don’t necessarily have to hit the gym or lift weights to stay active. Working can do the trick. Studies have shown that people who work in retirement have fewer health problems like high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease.
Continuing your personal growth
Just because you’re getting older doesn’t mean you want to stop growing as a person. Work can provide a great way to continue your personal development. Through your job or volunteer opportunity, you can learn a new skill or stay up-to-date on the latest technology and trends in your industry. This can help you feel like you’re still growing and learning, leading to increased self-worth and motivation.
Doing what you want, when you want
If you decide to work in retirement, you will have more flexibility on what you choose to do. This could include volunteering for a local cause which is close to your heart, or taking a pay cut to take a role which has always interested you. In this retirement life, your work isn’t something you dread, it instead gives you a sense of purpose and energizes you. Plus, you may have the flexibility to work when you want, leading to less pressure and more joy.
Avoiding loneliness
You may not have realized it during your early working life, but your job was likely one place where you socialized often. Even if it is small talk or quick conversations, maintaining a working life can help you stay connected with other people. This is especially important during retirement, when people report increased feelings of loneliness and depression. Working with others can help you maintain your social life and even enjoy the company of your co-workers or other volunteers.
Your finances still matter
In retirement you’ll likely have more streams of income from Social Security, a pension, retirement accounts, and other sources. But for many people, maintaining their job income can be a helpful way to afford the extra perks of their later years, like traveling and leaving an inheritance to loved ones. While you likely won’t want to work exclusively for the money, it sure doesn’t hurt.
A byproduct of continuing to work is that you are more likely to afford putting off Social Security benefits. Remember, you can receive more money for each year you delay taking benefits, and working can help you do just that.
Your chance to redefining “work”
When thinking about whether to work in retirement, stop thinking about your current job as it is. Start thinking about what you would love to do, whether for money or not. Then, you can redefine working in retirement as something that’s exciting, fun, and good for your health.
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2804956/
Source: https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-021-11423-2