Years ago when I turned 50 I took stock of my life. I realized that even if it is illegal, age discrimination exist. The older I got, the more likley I would be let go. That was not so much of a problem as the fact that I knew the older I got, the less likely I would be able to find another job in my field. (It was/is dominated by young people). I realized that my then current job would most likely be my last.
I than wondered to my self what are the odds I will be able to hang on unti I was 62. Although at the time I was a highly valuable employee technology was changing at a rapid pace. I was no longer sure I would be able to keep up, so the odds were against me making it to my 62nd birthday.
I had to accept the idea that I would be unemployed (and unemployable) for a few years before I begin drawing any Social Security.
What could I do to make the transistion less painful?
I had two things going for me. One my wife was in a secure job and would be able to work until she decides to retire. Second, we have alway lived modestly but still had a few debts.
So we had a three prong attack.
1. Get out of all debt
2. Save as much as possible
3. Do major home repairs while I was working (and paying cash) so they would not show up after I stopped working.
Two years ago, just a few days after I turned 59 I got the news my job was going away. My last day of workd was more a day of celebration than sorrow.
If you are already 59 and unemployed my advise won’t do you much good. However for you young people out there, begin planning for your last day of work today. It is going to arrive sooner than you expect.
I will probably be doing this when my current job ends.
Tough finding a job when you are approaching 60, your expenses also tend to be a bit higher than a 20 year old. I am 52 and thinking more along the lines of self employment, these are going to be a tough 10 years ahead no matter what.
If you have, or can develop, machinist or craft skills, there are opportunities to start a business along these lines as well. These kinds of businesses are also well suited to low-overhead operation.
Here is a link to a very popular thread on the Popular Machinist forum on starting one's own craft or low-tech manufactured product business.
There are many available niches where a product or a service can solve a problem, even in a down economy. String enough of these opportunities together, and you can cover more of your monthly overhead--sure beats working at the Home Depot.
The author of the article is Dee DePass.
You can only go so far on part-time jobs — it’s time to *cut back* drastically in life-style, which may include dumping a lot of stuff that people took for granted before....
Fortunatly for me, my career choice is firefighting and the departments in my state of AR haven’t ceased doing the hiring tests. In the meantime, I’m currently working as a server/barista in a privately-owned cafe. I don’t get any benefits (I’m one of the few logical enough to understand I’m not entitled to them), but I make enough to pay the bills and live rather well, plus we’ll be opening a second cafe in a few weeks, which hopefully means we’re doing good.