Emeritx Tips from Beyond the Podium
One of the most challenging aspects of retirement is imagining life without teaching and advising, professional travel, and committee work! Many of us are living that life, or are still developing it. All are welcome to share thoughts, reflections, and “two-cents”.
Wise words from faculty colleagues.
Sharon K: Don’t rush to create a busy “schedule.” Give yourself some time to rest, to perhaps “putter around,” and to find out who you are now. Some unstructured time could be invaluable and revealing.
If you plan to wait before starting Social Security income, you might want to explore the benefits of converting some of your taxable retirement accumulation to a Roth IRA.
Jane C: Allow yourself to wander; and take time sorting through your books. I left Hedge last May and transported a ridiculous number of books to our basement (or rather my husband David did!), and this fall I’ve been slowly sorting through them. It has provided a wonderful and really tactile chance to think about what I’m interested in, what I want to keep, what I’m ready to part with – what’s staying in boxes, what’s going to Goodwill or to grad students, what I want to bring “upstairs” to live with me. It looks like a used book store down there – I’ve been sorting and sifting and there are in fact certain things that I’ve put in the recycling box. I’m really grateful I didn’t just immediately chuck or sell (or whatever else it is you do with all this paper).
Becky C: I have a number of thoughts about retirement, which for me has been a pleasure although astonishingly busy, and not simply because of Covid19. My advice would be to enjoy having the time and space to work on old and new projects and also to learn new things. This has been a very important year for exploring and questioning our own preconceptions and assumptions and for listening to and learning from other people. John and I both think of this as a time to think about who we were or thought we were before the hard work of teaching took over our lives, and go back and reclaim what we want and can, but also move on with what we are learning that might seem new or at least deeper.
Have words of wisdom you’d like to share with others? Email Leslie (lhill @ bates.edu) or Margaret (mcreight @ bates.edu).
Have a resource that helped you process the transition to retirement? Share it with folks by sending the reference or link to Leslie Hill or Margaret Creighton.
Want a one-to-one chat with a colleague about these matters? Contact Sharon Kinsman (skinsman @ bates.edu) or Becky Corrie (rcorrie @ bates.edu).