To ask if anyone else over 50 isn't desperate to retire

I'm 51 and worked in education all my life (admin side of things). I'm so done now. Funding, expectations and workload get worse each year and working FT in education just feels like it takes over your whole life.

I just want more proper quality down time on a regular basis. Not collapsing at the end of term having "survived it". And I want more regular free time to use how I see fit. Not lurching from one thing to the other, especially this time of year. I'm jealous of friends and family going for weekends away or cheap breaks in term time, and I can't go with them. There's only so many times people will arrange their trips round my school schedule once their children are independent and they can go all year round.

My children are young adults, one lives mainly away from home and I'm tired of not being able to take a Friday afternoon off to travel to see him for the weekend. Or any time at all during term time. I'm fed up of everywhere being full of kids when I go on holiday, when my own are finally grown up, and i'm surrounded by them all day in work.

I don't want the stress of telling my boss I need to attend a medical appointment, or take family to them. Or even phoning in sick. I'm in a junior position but my work is essential and if I'm not there it makes a massive difference and impacts on everyone else so much, as well as just creating as making it more stressful when I DO go back as work has just built up. Obviously the fact I'm needed gives some element of job satisfaction when I'm actually there but it does make it doubly stressful when I'm not.

So while I'll miss the people and the routine of getting up and being needed etc, it's just got too much and taken away far too much freedom the past couple of years as my family situation has changed. I don't think part time is an option, and anyway, it's the fact that term time only jobs are so damned tying that is the main issue.

I've got enough to retire right now but I'm scared to really as it feels far too early, and one son is about to start uni. So I've said I'll wait till he's finished, in about 3 maybe 4 years' time when I'll be 55. The long and short of it is that I want to travel on my schedule, not someone else's, and while my health is good enough to do it.

Same OP - did I post this and forget ?? 🤣🤣

@Summertimer why was there outrage? I agree with Mary Beard, and Oxford University where they have a 70 age limit for retirement as well. Of course lots of professors would like to sit there on a professorial salary pottering about and if they can stay part-time or do consulting work, I think that's fine, but they rarely can take on the whole role and cost twice as much if not more than two junior colleagues whose careers can't get off the ground til they retire.

I think Mary Beard is right, there's plenty for retired academics to do, they can still publish, write, give talks and travel or even be on grants if they retain some role at the university, but beyond that, no I don't think they should be using up a whole academic career space after 70.

Maybe it depends on the role.
I am apparently „at the top of my game“ (according to my DH).
but I can’t do this anymore. I’m exhausted. Even thinking about presenting and about spreadsheets makes me feel sick.

My dad "retired" at 50. He was a secondary school teacher, and announced that teaching was "a young persons game". At that point, he'd recently lost his dad, and his mum had just gone into a home for people with dementia. I can totally understand why he thought "fuck this" at the thought of continuing with work.

As it happens, he dropped dead at 62 after a year of poor health. So he did get to have 11 good years of retirement. Which many people of his age wouldn't have done.

I'm very soon turning 40, and am hopeful of still enjoying my work 10+ years from now. Like you, I like the routine of work.

Academia is not the same as most jobs though. My DH is 74 and an academic. He has long given up teaching but still does advisory and consultancy work, writes and books and articles, and supervises the occasional PhD student.

Your health - mental and physical - can give way at any point. If you are serious about retiring at some point it makes sense to do so while you are still fit and healthy enough to enjoy it.

There was outrage about this in our house this morning
www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/article/2024/jun/29/cambridge-university-retirement-age-job-blocker-mary-beard

I shan't retire. Apart from the fact I only have a state pension and no property, I love my job! I'll be there till I drop. 😊

All depends on your health.
If you have good mental and physical health, enjoy your job and earn well, then obviously early retirement isn't necessarily on the radar.

However, if you get struck down with a life limiting condition, or disease, then you may need to think again.

yes that is of course the reason

@Willmafrockfit presumably the title of this thread made it more likely that people feeling the opposite will click on it and post.

strange, previous posts on this topic have been full of people saying that Cannot wait for retirement.

I did love my job but a personal circumstance plus a health issue made me reevaluate. So I retired early at 55 and took my pension, DH still works but he wasn’t ready to retire and is also a bit younger than me. We had three friends die in their fifties so he has decided to retire by 57.

I currently volunteer a morning or two a week and also go to U3A classes and belong to two hiking groups.

Once DH retires we will buy a motorhome and travel round the UK and Europe.

I'm with you all the way OP. I'm past retirement age, love my job and don't want to retire !
After a couple of weeks leave I'm really keen to go back to work !

I don't want to retire, not yet anyway. I enjoy my job, but I'm self employed and have been for about 15 years. If I had to go into an office everyday I suspect I'd feel very different 😂

We have 2 people over 70 still working in our team. One is 78, he’s partially retired but still work 3 days a week, at home now. I know another lady who is still working late 70’s too. I’m 48 this year and I can imagine myself feeling like you, I have a couple of weeks off and think oh no I’m going to miss my job / colleagues. I like the structure it brings to my life I think so can feel a bit out of sorts when not working. If you’re enjoying work absolutely no need to retire. You can always review in the future

No I'm doing it so well and have loads of wisdom to offer. I know this makes me sound like a knobhead but it's probably true

It was so offensive it just wasn’t worth responding to.

I can't wait to retire (49) in a couple of years but retirement for me will still mean full time caring responsibilities for my younger child. But I do also love my job (self-employed) but I am so tired of the juggling between work & caring, I find it very mentally draining.
I was widowed at 42 after 2 years of illness & whilst working (different job) saved my sanity in some ways during this time it also taught me that at some point I have to start to put myself first. But that job wasn't sustainable as my child's needs escalated. My caring responsibilities also mean my retirement ideas all have to change but my job is very full on & very physical so looking forward to not having to constantly juggle everything

Joe Biden wasn't, be maybe he is now? 🤷‍♀️

stewarding is great if you are into festivals …..commit to 4 or 5 days at a time ….as many or few festivals as you like ….it’s great fun….lots of charities offer stewarding positions