Why Traditional Retirement is Dead: How I Started a Business After 50

When people find out that I’m self-employed, one question comes up now and then.

How are you planning for retirement?

The short answer is… I’m not.

At least not in the traditional sense. You know, where you turn 65, stop everything to golf all day, OR jump in a Winnebago and hit the road.

Nope, not my style.

And, by the time you finish reading this post, you’ll see that it may not be your style either.

Onward…

For 17 years, I worked as a mechanical draftsman in architectural lighting.

But I started reading the tea leaves, I realized the old "work until 65" model was broken. I didn't want to retire from work; I wanted to retire from mandatory work.

I had other skills like music, PPC consulting and blogging, but I needed a way to package them. I didn't want to trade hours for dollars anymore. I wanted leverage.

That’s when I realized the most valuable asset for any Gen Xer right now isn't a 401k; it's an audience.

When I realized I needed to pursue self-employment, I knew I needed to find something that was long-term and flexible enough to be future-proof.

At that point in my life, I had already held 19 different jobs and reinvented myself a couple of times, and as exciting as it can be, it’s also not easy.

I also knew I didn’t want to do something to tide me over until retirement because I didn’t want to retire.

There are way too many stories of people who get to retirement, lose their sense of purpose, and then die.

I want to be as productive as possible until the day of my funeral.

I don’t want to be forced to “work” either.

I want to love what I’m doing.

Which is precisely what I’ve been doing for the past ten years.

I’ve been helping business owners and entrepreneurs.

I love learning new things.

And I love the challenge of making money at it.

I love what I’m doing so much that it doesn’t even feel like I’m working.

And if it doesn’t feel like working and I love doing it, why the hell would I retire?

I already feel like I’m retired.

Instead of viewing retirement as a one-way ticket to leisure town, let's redefine it.

I see retirement as living each day by my rules, doing what I love most.

So, am I retired? In a traditional sense, no.

But in a redefined version, I’ve been living my retirement for ten years now.

It's an empowering journey where the destination is the journey itself.

Who’s with me?

Join me in this version of retirement, one that is filled with Gen X-style fun, purpose, and discovery.

Speaking of never retiring, last week we talked about Metallica still bringing it in their 60s. But how about Willie Nelson?

Check out this performance from just a few months ago. It was his 90th birthday party, and he was joined by Snoop Dogg.

A lot of forgotten lyrics. Not sure it’s the weed or the age, but he’s still givin’ er’.

If we play our cards right, we’ll all be doing what we love with a bunch of cool people at our 90th birthday party.

And who better to do it with than Gen Xers. For more on that, read this Gen X guide on never really retiring.

Until next time,

Corey