I retired young! Now what?

Finding my purpose – Following my passion

“RETIRED”.  The word itself stirs a mix of emotions.  Excitement, fear, worry, anticipation.  And it sounds old, and, well, tired.  After all, the word retire means ‘go to bed’ or ‘stop using’.  But what if, when you retire, you don’t feel old? What if you actually feel quite young for your age? You know you have a lot more to do, see, experience and share, but you don’t know how exactly. That’s why finding your purpose in retirement, before you retire, is an important step in the retirement process.

I’m in my early 50’s and recently retired after nearly 26 years with the same employer. Almost half my life! I worked as an administrator in municipal government, holding several positions over the years. I enjoyed my job, and my co-workers. I learned so much, gained a vast array of experience, was given great opportunities and had many successes. 

I was married shortly before starting my career, and over those working years, my husband and I built a family. We raised our son and had many wonderful adventures, trips and experiences, which supported and fueled our passions. But they were fit in to life based on vacation time accrued and what projects were going on at work. And going back to the office after a vacation… let me tell you the number of emails and amount of work to catch up on!  I always felt somewhat that I wasn’t living for myself and my family. I wasn’t living my passion. So when the time came that I was eligible to retire, I gave it serious consideration.

Finding my purpose

When I reached retirement eligibility, my husband and I discussed it at length. I struggled with the decision. As much as I wanted to do something different, it’s difficult to give up what you are familiar with, and what you’ve built at least part of your identity on. There was more that I wanted to do in life but I didn’t have a clear picture of what or how. And I didn’t want to retire without a plan. So, I confided in a friend who had retired a few years prior, and she shared with me how she went about finding her purpose in retirement.  

At her urging, I made a list. Not just in my head, but on paper, with a pen, and some serious thought. I answered these questions, which my friend had given me:

What are my talents/gifts/what was I blessed with?

What am I good at?  What have people told me I was good at?

What do I LOVE to do?

What are my hobbies?

What do I want to learn?

What are my dreams?

Then I asked myself, how can I use the abilities I have been given to be a blessing or inspiration to others, and how do I actually do that?  

My friend said, once I do this, it will make it easier to see things clearly, and they will start to come together.  She said “Sometimes in life we have to take a leap of faith, step out, and in doing that, trust God with the outcome! Although I have to admit, that can be scary too, as we are human.”

Following my passion

And she was right. Things did seem clearer, and they did come together, and it is scary.  But I have determined that for me, the best way to use my talents, share my gifts, and do what I love, is to live a Fun Loving Life and share it with others by writing, in hopes of inspiring and encouraging.  That is how the Fun Loving Life blog came to be. I am excited to be here, and a little scared, but I’m so happy that you are here too! Thank you for being part of this adventure with me. Let’s see where it goes! 

(And thank you, Monica, for your friendship, advice and guidance.)