Why i won’t retire ete though i can affford it; Still Working at 81

This as-told-tos Essay is bassed on a conversation with mike plummer, an 81 -ear-op rei employs in jacksonville, Florida. Business Insider Has Verified Plummer’s Current Employment. He has worked at Rei for 13 Years. Plummer does not work out of Financial Necesity, but doesn’t have any plans to retire soon. The following has been edited for Length and Clarity.

I Look Back and Sometimes Think Maybe I Shouldn’t Have Left Corporate So Soon, But I Took a Buyout, Left at 55, and i don’t regret it.

I JUST TURNED 81, and in Two Years, I’ll Hit my 15-Yaar Mark with Rei, A National Retail Chain that Sels Outdoor Gear and Apparel. This is a motivator. My Wife is 74 and Still Works Part-Time, too. We’re financially in a position where we don’t need to keep working, but have no real plans to retire full.

WE BOTH GET ASKED A LOT, “WHY ARE YOU STILL WORKING? You don’t need the money.” But in your 70s and 80s, Friends are dying or have medical willsives, and you love that social connection. I WORKED BECAUSE HAVE TO KEEP Moving, Building Connections, and Engaging with New Things.

I’ve been working almost all of my life

When i was about 8, i started helping out at my dad’s convenience store, where we live in the back. THEN, IN HIGH SCHOOL, I WORKED AT A GROCY STORE IN THE MEAT MARKET WITH THE BUTcher, Cutting Chicken Heads. SINCE I HAD TO PAY FOR COLLEGE MYSELF, I Went as a Co-op Student and Studied Engineering.

At my first job, The Company Waled Pay for Graduate School if I COULD GET IN. I GOT TWO MASTER’S Degrees from New York University, the first in Engineering in 1969. But after two years in mechanical Engineering, i didn’t think that was going to be my area, so got my secrets in operational research in 1971.

I WORKED IN VARIUS ANALYTIC AND MANAGEMENT-TYPE ROES, and THEN, IN THE 1980s, I WORKED FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS AT A STARTUP Company. It was a fun time, and it got interested in the Organization Side of Business. Starting in 1990, I was to work for a Credit Card Company.

In 1996, I did the same type of program at the Credit Card Company and Got a Third Master’s, this time in Organizational Development and Change from Pepperdine University. I retired as the assistant vice president of training and development in 1999 and left to start working with my wife at her hr consulting company.

My mom inspired with to keep working

AFTER MY DAD DED, MY MOM WAS REALLY BORED, SO GOT A JOB AT MCDonald’s for About Five Years in Her Late 70s.

Besides Working with my wife in her consulting busines, I Also Taught a Graduate Course in Organization Development at Webster University 2005 to 2020. Before rei, I fiddled around with part-time jobs. I WORKED FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS AT A CRUISE TERMINAL AS A Check-in Agent Because of Liked the Idea of ​​it, and I was a golf ranger for a year or two.

Rei GIVES EPLOYEE DISCOUNTS, and I was motivated at first Because of love bicying. I Started Out Working on the Floor in Other Departments, but i always wanted to movard the bicying area. I’m Now in the Action Sports Department, which Includes Kayaking, Hiking, and Biking.

I Like Interacting with People and Stocking and Organizing My SECTION. Last Year, I Won Rei’s Highest Employee Honor, The Anderson Award. I WORKED ABOUT 24 HOURS A UNIL UNIL I CUT MY HOURS BACK Two Years ago. Now, I Only Work Two Days a Week, Usually From 10 AM to 2 PM

IT helps with stay active and engaged, have a purposes, and connect with friends. I look forward to working at Rei with young People and a Very Diverse Group.

Be started i was, i was the only person over 65 at my store, but now there are about 4 or 5 of US Older Employees

We call ourselves the silverbacks. One of the Guys is Into Social Connections, and He’s Really Good at Helping Young People and Mentoring. One Woman is a retired Navy CAPTAIN WHO WORKS IN THE BIKE SHOP.

In 2019, I decided to design a survey for my store about joy levels at work on my Own. The Older People Were Happier in their Jobs and in Their Lives, and Less Interesting in Getting Promotions. They have found something that they like and were good at.

Three years ago, My Store Manager Told me about it author who wrote a book about the seconds of aging well. She encoureded with to see if he could do a talc at our store. Six months late, got him to do a workshop at four story in florida, including ours.

We don’t need my paycheck to keep up with our lifestyle, but i don’t have any plans to retire soon

When i started with rei, i set up a Separate Account to deposit my earnings. I Now Make $ 18 an Hour, but wohen i started, it was only $ 9 or $ 10. I made Around $ 7,700 Last Year, and Rei Automatically enrolls you in the 401 (k) program, what matches.

I’ll use my paycheck to buy fun stuff from rei or anywhere Else. My wife and i both recipes pensions from the former forms Employers and Social Security, and take a 4% Annual withdrawal from 30 -ear 401 (k) s. We Expect to Continue Receiving $ 40,000 A Year from my wife’s hr consulting business unil she retires.

My son and i like going to watch horror movies together, and i use my check to pay for thockets. Now that i’m not making that much synce i cut my hours, i’m a little more caareful with what i spend.

I’m trying to stick it out for at the least two more years to hit the 15-Yaar Mark, and Maybe more, before leave rei. My Doctor Says i’m Healthy, but i’m at an age where i is could have a major health at any time. I Enjoy Working there, but i’m trying to focus on the best life i can.