5 Signs It’s Better To Retire Than Seek Another Job
Written by
John Csiszar
Edited by
Cory Dudak
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If you’re nearing the end of your career and you either lose or leave your job, you’ll have to face an important decision: is it better to retire or to seek another job? The answer may not be obvious, and the right choice will vary from person to person.
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If you find yourself in this position, here are some of the signs that would suggest it’s better to retire than seek another job.
You’re Financially Secure
The most obvious indication that retirement might trump job-hunting is if you’re financially secure. By the time you approach retirement age, you likely have a variety of potential income sources, from Social Security and a pension or 401(k) plan to an IRA and individual savings.
If even under the worst-case scenario you’ll have enough income to fund a long lifetime, there isn’t much financial incentive to continue working. Just bear in mind that a multi-decade retirement can be filled with financial surprises, from healthcare costs to rising inflation to falling interest rates, which could cut your income significantly if you’re relying on fixed-income investments.
Your Health Is Deteriorating
If you find yourself in poor or declining health, working another job might actually make things worse. Retirement can do wonders for mental and physical health, reducing stressors and allowing you to focus on your well-being. If you have a serious or terminal illness, you might prefer spending the last chapter of your life retired rather than having to spend the bulk of your time at work.
An exception might be if you can find a job that offers excellent healthcare that covers pre-existing conditions. In this case, having to work might be the preferred or even necessary path to pay for the care that you need.
You Have a Skill or Talent To Generate Retirement Income
Many retired Americans continue to work in some capacity in retirement. In most cases, this doesn’t involve going into an actual office, or even working for an employer. Rather, many retirees combine their hobbies and passions with their work, using their skills and talents to create marketable products.
For example, if you’ve got a knack for keeping people’s attention and sharing your knowledge or talents, you could create a blog, vlog or YouTube channel. If you’re more of a hands-on person, you could create arts and crafts to sell online. If you’re an academic, you could consider freelance writing, tutoring or creating educational materials online to generate some income.
Whatever specific avenue you pursue, if you’ve got a way to keep yourself entertained while simultaneously generating some income in your golden years, “retirement” might be the preferred option over finding another traditional job.
You’re at Full Retirement Age
Once you’ve reached full retirement age — which is 67 for most workers today — it’s usually a good time to think about retiring. While your Social Security benefit will keep increasing until age 70, it’s not always the best option to wait.
AARP quoted Matthew Rutledge, an economics professor at Boston College and a research fellow at BC’s Center for Retirement Research, who advised, “Try delaying as long as possible, but once it becomes uncomfortable to do so — because you have to hang onto a job you hate, or one you can’t do adequately anymore, or you have to go through the tough task of looking for a job (though now is a good time to do so) — giving in isn’t the worst thing.”
You Don’t Enjoy Working
Burnout is a real thing. If you’re nearing the end of your career and simply feel like you can’t take it anymore, you might be better off hanging it up and heading off into retirement instead of trying to find another job that you may also not enjoy. Of course, there are lots of caveats to this advice, including the aforementioned need to be financially secure to start a retirement that could last 30 years or more. But if you’re the type of person that doesn’t find fulfillment through working a job, retirement might suit your personality better.
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