Working Retirement
The cultural norm in most (relatively wealthy) countries is that at some point we can all stop working and set aside all the norms that have shaped our lives up till that point, completely recalibrating away from productivity and toward an everlasting state of mellowness.
There are several things wrong with this vision, unfortunately, including the economics of this long-held, widespread assumption.
A few generations ago, when the average expected lifespan was still in the 60s, it was conceivable that most folks could stop working in their early 60s and spend the last (maybe) decade of their lives just chilling out on the government's dime, but the mechanics of those social systems don't work as well when people pay the same amount into the collective coffers of these retirement systems, but then go on living for several years or decades longer, on average.
Retirement systems are thus undergoing a slow-motion collapse around the world, and governments are sleep-walking into a problem that is in some cases mere years away, in other cases a (comparably less-terrifying) decade or so from disaster.
In either case, what worked no longer works, economically, and something will need to change (in how it’s paid for, what we expect to get, or something else—France upped their retirement age recently, for instance, with predictable consequences) if these systems are going to last another few generations.
We're also, on average, enjoying longer healthspans, not just lifespans.
That means we're living longer before we die, but we're also increasing the number of years we're healthy and conscious enough to do the things we want to do.
Many health-related efforts are refocusing on healthspan after decades of lifespan orientation because, first, we've reached a point of diminishing returns with lifespan (because of all the success we’ve enjoyed up till this point), so it'll take a lot more heavy-lifting and spending to achieve further advances in that space (while health span may see less-speedy, more immediate gains), and second, because people seem to glean more benefit from healthspan-related interventions and innovations: few of us want more years in which we're suffering or borderline vegetative, while most of us would probably love to have an additional five or ten years of active cognition, adventure, time with loved ones, etc.
We're mentally and physically healthy for longer than ever before in history, and the social systems that previously allowed and incentivized us to eventually just kick back and do nothing (after a life of doing perhaps too much) are breaking down and becoming less reliable.
That's a perfect storm for rethinking what "retirement" means at a practical, foundational level.
Beyond that, though, I think there's also a social dynamic here, where folks reaching retirement age aren't as interested in the "kicking back and doing nothing" component of that earlier, late-life dream.
I've seen this in my own parents (both of whom are recently retired) as they've consciously built lives for themselves that are full of stuff to do: hobbies and interests and activities, yes, including the stereotypical cruises and similar vacation-like fare, but also responsibilities, work—things that keep them connected to the world, meeting new people and doing new things, stuff that forces them out of the house, forces them to struggle and engage and exercise their bodies and minds.
When I talk to people who are older, those who are approaching retirement age or who have been retired for some time, I hear similar stories about how they're going out of their way to ensure they don't just disappear from the world as soon as they're no longer required to walk the standard career path.
In some cases that actually means taking on new jobs, though often they're either jobs with less pressure and intense responsibility (not a manager or CEO, but instead working at a lower position with more of a social component) or jobs that orient around their interests, rather than jobs that pay the most money. They're no longer paying for their kids' educations, perhaps, and thus are more keen to have a place to go while fiddling around with a skillset they weren't previously able to develop as much as they would have liked, while simultaneously earning a little extra spending money here and there.
This lines up with the way I've always thought about retirement, for myself.
I don't understand wanting to step away from doing productive things, and have always assumed I would just continue trying to refine my life so that I'm always doing work I enjoy, which would allow me to continue benefitting from that flavor of purpose and fulfillment, without stressing myself to death, as I get older.
Such purpose and fulfillment has been shown to be healthful for people of all ages, as it helps center us within communities, helps us maintain and build and spark new relationships, and allows us to feel needed and wanted. There are other ways to achieve variations of the same, but doing some kind of work, consistently, throughout our lives, is one of the most reliable means of maintaining that self-perception of “necessary member of society” while also allowing us to contribute something to efforts beyond ourselves.
This can also be achieved through other means, of course, like helping family, doing charitable work, or creating our own, unpaid and noncollaborative projects.
But keeping some kind of next-step career path in mind as we get older seems prudent, as it can serve those internal fulfillment-related purposes—challenging us, helping us grow, and keeping us connected to others—while also addressing the safety-net related issues (monetary and otherwise) that will likely continue to plague many societies for the foreseeable future.
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