The Retirement Newsletter: Am I happy in my retirement?

Issue Number: 173 (26) — a surprisingly simple answer

Photo by Author — an afternoon walk in the woods

Welcome

Welcome to issue 173 (26) — Am I happy in my retirement?

This week’s newsletter will be very short as the answer to my question is (spoiler alert) — yes. See you next week. However, please keep reading to find out why I am happy in my retirement.

Retirement and Happiness

I had been looking forward to retirement for many years. The big danger when you are looking forward to something so much is that it turns out to be an anticlimax. I was worried that might be the case with my retirement. I worried it would not live up to everything I hoped and expected.

Happiness in retirement is important. I could not imagine anything worse than being retired and unhappy. I liked my job. I enjoyed it a lot. I enjoyed the teaching, the research, and the company of the people I worked with. I was happy at work, meaning retirement had a high bar to clear.

In a way, I envied people who were unhappy in their work because retirement must be a release for them. They have a lower bar to clear to obtain retirement happiness.

What I didn’t like about my job, which was one of the significant deciding facts about retiring, was all the politicking and administration that went with it. And being retired, all the politics and administration have got. I no longer have to do it as I don’t have that job. However, I have been lucky to still have my interest and enjoyment of what first took me into my career: my love and interest in science.

Going into science as a career is an interesting choice, requiring skill and luck. You need to be good at science at school and enjoy the subjects. You need to have a mind that is good at science. Plus, you need to have practical skills and be able to work in a lab — in other words, not a klutz. You have to pass your exams, and eventually, after many years, you are a "scientist". Over the years, I have worked with many people with great minds and insights into science, but I couldn’t design and do experiments. I wouldn’t trust some of them to boil an egg. It is not easy doing science. It is a lot of work.

Interestingly, most people start life on the path to being a scientist and don’t realise it. I have never met a kid under eight who isn’t a scientist. Think about it — what is the one thing that most kids do? They ask questions about things. Why does it rain? Why is the sky blue? What’s that insect? What’s that plant? How does that work? Those are all scientific questions; they show an inquiring and curious mind. And somehow, after age eight or nine, the education system manages to beat that curiosity out of most kids, and they lose that scientific interest in the world. It is a shame.

I was lucky; I kept that scientific curiosity throughout school, and even after working as a scientist for over 40 years, I still have that curiosity.

When I retired, I wondered if I would stop reading and thinking about science. That is, was it a habit from my job? But that has not proved to be the case. If anything, my scientific curiosity is stronger than ever because I now have the time and opportunity to pursue my interests. And it appears I am not alone.

The other weekend, I was at a barbecue with some former colleagues, most of whom are now retired. All my colleagues were from science backgrounds, and it was interesting because I discovered when talking to them that most had continued to do science in some way in their retirement. Some were still reading about science, some were involved in environmental work, some in scientific surveys, and some were writing science books. They had stopped working as scientists and yet were still being scientists.

I think this is where I’ve been lucky in life. I’ve been able to take my interest in science, which gave me a career, into my retirement. However, do other careers have that opportunity? Is this more common in careers that involve science? Please let me know in the comments if you could (or even wanted to) follow your career interests into retirement. Was it possible?

So, in my retirement, I have science as a hobby to keep me busy and engaged. I spend my time thinking and reading about science, making science videos, writing books about science, and running my science blog. I’m doing science on my terms and having fun.

I am also interested in travelling, photography, and walking, which you can see on my travel blog. So, it’s not all science.

I get to do what I want when I want. Hence, I’m not bored, I’m busy, I’m having fun, and I am very happy in my retirement.

How is your retirement going? Please let me know in the comments.

This week in the Retirement Hustle

This week in The Retirement Side Hustle, I looked at Planning videos with PowerPoint and Apple Keynote.

In the video, I demonstrate the use of presentation software to create structured videos. I explain how I build and rearrange material using the software and discuss its limitations compared to mind maps.

The Retirement Side Hustle Newsletter is subscription-based. However, each video comes with a free minute or so that allows you to confirm the content, and if you take out a free subscription, you get full access to one edition.

Travel — Nostalgia Corner

Welcome to Laos. Stories from the start of my visit to Laos:

• Laos — Le Bel Air Resort, 1 Old Bridge, Luang Prabang (ຫລວງພະບາງ/ຫຼວງພະບາງ), Laos — My base for five days.

• Toast and hotels — Just a little bit of toast. Why do I have so much trouble with toast in hotels?

• Laos — Viewpoint Café, Luang Prabang (ຫລວງພະບາງ/ຫຼວງພະບາງ), Laos — After a hot morning exploring a new town, there is nothing like an iced coffee to help you cool off.

• Exploring Luang Prabang (ຫລວງພະບາງ/ຫຼວງພະບາງ), Laos — part 1 of 3 — What did I find around town?

• Laos — Exploring Luang Prabang (ຫລວງພະບາງ/ຫຼວງພະບາງ), Laos — part 2 of 3 — Part 2 of exploring Luang Prabang (ຫລວງພະບາງ/ຫຼວງພະບາງ).

• Laos — Exploring Luang Prabang (ຫລວງພະບາງ/ຫຼວງພະບາງ), Laos — part 3 of 3 — The final part of exploring Luang Prabang (ຫລວງພະບາງ/ຫຼວງພະບາງ): the nearby countryside.

Next week, more stories from my Laos.

Next week

Next week, in issue 174 (27), I reflect on my first six months of retirement — I can’t believe it has been six months. It doesn’t seem possible. The time has flown by.

Thanks

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Until next time,

Nick

PS: If you would like to contribute a story, give advice, or provide anything else to the newsletter, please get in touch.