my next life 5

[denoid]

I’ll try to say this as short as possible. In December, 2011, I finished my 37th year of engineering practice in the private sector. Prior to 2008, I thought I could actually retire someday, but it’s not looking good coming up on age 60. While I’ve mostly enjoyed many aspects of my career, it’s becoming obvious to me that my next adventure needs to be something different, especially if I need to work for another 10 - 15 years. Frankly, the responsibility and the stress weigh on me heavily from time to time.

Walmart Greeter is out, since I have some golden handcuffs, (mortgage, 1 kid still in college, etc). Scaling back on my current job doesn’t sound real good either, since the same deadlines and stress will always be there, even with a reduced workload.

I still work fulltime; my wife & I are still healthy; I have hobbies; I’m trying to teach myself a foreign language (German); I volunteer regularly for a couple of organizations; my wife and I love to travel, but I didn’t have to travel much for my career.

Somehow, I’d like to combine my “other skills” picked up over 37 years, as well as language and travel, into my next adventure. The kicker is that I’ll need to pay the bills and cover healthcare costs for another 10 – 15 years until I really can retire.

Does anybody know of any success stories of friends, acquaintances, or co-workers who have rolled their life skills into a successful second (non-engineering) career, and actually made it work?

 

[MacGyverS2000]

You'll have to define "successful"... it sounds like you define that (at least partially) as making a similar amount of money as if you were still an engineer. I know a few who have switched careers completely, taken from their hobby, but I don't believe any of them have continued to make similar amounts of money.

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com

 

[denoid]

Unfortunately, "successful" does involve still making a living, including benefits. It doesn't have to be from my hobbies, either...actually, I'm not so sure I want to turn my hobbies into another job. I'm more interested in convincing my "next life" employer that my talents run deeper than operating a calculator, and making structural drawings.

 

[tygerdawg]

My buddy from graduate school chucked all his "Engineering" a few years ago. Even though he believes (like me) that an Engineering education teaches you how to solve problems, any problems. He's about your age I would think. I think it was meant to be. We have been carrying on a joke between ourselves for years about being labelled by those cretins and other inferior reptiles inhabiting the management ranks as having "bad attitudes" and not being "team players." His first major venture was with his wife starting, growing, then selling a dotcom. Timed it perfectly (late 90's) and walked away quite happy monetarily, sad to see all their employees get sacked by the new Evil Overlords. Just before "their child" got thrown under the dotcom-bust-bus and died an inglorious death. Now he does high-end photography, like Ansel Adams stuff, for sale. He won't relate what revenue he generates, but he doesn't complain about not making ends meet. His wife keeps busy, her latest venture was to write a niche-variety book on cooking or something like that I believe.

They don't have kids.
To the best of my knowledge, the [blue]Inevitable Express Train Of Life's Pain & Sorrow [/blue] hasn't run them over, either.

TygerDawg
Blue Technik LLC
Virtuoso Robotics Engineering

http://www.bluetechnik.com

 

[SomptingGuy]

Why would anyone give up the technical challenges and intellectual enjoyment of engineering, just because they've hit retirement age? Where I work, we have dozens of retired people working part time, because it still gives them the horn and supplements their pension, cherry-picking the interesting work and leaving the paperwork to others. Sounds like heaven to me.

If you've given up engineering, learning German is a waste of time. Learn something more beautiful, like Lain. Note to self: "learn Latin".

- Steve

 

[JRESE]

Denoid, your post sounds just like me with a few inconsequential variations. Thirty-five years in structural engineering for me. Twenty-two of those self employed. Everything collapsed in 2008-2009. Moved from a high cost of living state to a much lower one just a year ago. Kids are out of college, and no mortgage, paid cash for the new house.

I have the desire to work in some other field than engineering. I can't for the life of me figure out what to do next.

I've worked since age 13, always had a job through high school and college. It sucks not having work to do everyday. Got real close to taking a part-time job at Home Depot at $8.50 an hour.

I, too, believe that a career (and that's what 35+ years is) of engineering develops skills which should be transferable. But.... no luck for me so far.

I truly wish you the best, and hope you are able to find a way.

 

[MiketheEngineer]

I am just shy your age. I have a "blonde" wife and dark haired "blond" daughter who in turn has four great children. I love my g-kids and would do ANYTHING for them and HAVE!! Unfortunately, she and her husband don't make sh&t - salary wise - but seem good at making babies!!. Half of everything my wife buys as Costco or Sams ends up in their house.

I also maintain a "side" practice which pays for for a lot of more fun things.

So - I figure I will work until I die......

Do you want some cheese with that whine???

 

[SomptingGuy]

Are blond and blonde different? As I said, I must take up Latin.


- Steve

 

[DRWeig]

Chuck the mortgage, tell the kid to pay his or her own way through the rest of college (He or she will find a way, even if it's later on). Take a year off to figure out what you want to do. Maybe you'll discover you have a talent for designing jewelry. You could be the next Cartier. You'll never know if you don't try.

I'm only half kidding. Life is short. Make a plan and get rid of the stress.

Good on ya,

Goober Dave

Haven't see the forum policies? Do so now: Forum Policies

 

[denoid]

Thanks to everybody, so far and whatever else is posted later, for their ideas. Like you, JRESE, I've been thinking about this for a while, but can't figure out what all of these life experiences mean, as far as capitalizing on them, anyway. Sorry to those of you who think this is a "whine", but it isn't really...like I said, I've enjoyed the career I've had - I think it's just time to move on.

Oh, BTW, SomptingGuy, part of my life skills are 4 years of High School Latin, so I'm done with that too.

Auf Wiedersehen.

 

[MacGyverS2000]

I think when it's time to retire I will have a difficult time doing anything that doesn't require problem-solving to some degree. I couldn't handle being a door greeter, for example, but teaching crafts to middle-school kids might be fun.

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com

 

[europipe]

Yeah Dan, when they want to learn;

 

[denoid]

"The goal of every engineer is to retire without being blamed for a major catastrophe"...Dilbert

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Blonde or blond - might be a typo or it might be that I am an engineer and sometimes make a mistake!! Spell check didn't bitch - so...

 

[Forensic74]

Man, you guys are depressing to listen to

I'm probably mid way through my career and will add that more often than not the grass is always greener on the other side. I look at a lot of friends, doctors, lawyers, engineers, pharmacists, and none of them seem to be in a great position.

If the OP is in a position to drop everything and switch professions, have you considered becoming a Realtor or getting into the property insurance business? Not engineering, but it would give you an interesting background to build upon.

And of course, buying lottery tickets couldn't hurt.

 

[europipe]

Mainman, and we are depressing??

 

[rmw]

I consider that while I have moved into my "next life" I have done just the opposite. Got all the way to owning my own engineering business (owned more than one and some simultaneously); enjoyed all I could stand with all that goes with that on the non-technical side, personnel issues, cash flow and payroll problems (always having to pay the help but sometimes putting my own paycheck in my desk drawer until cash flow could cover it - real unpopular with the wife especially when there were several checks in my desk) gov't regs, tax reports, client relations, etc., etc. Overall I enjoyed it and made a decent living. Put all my kids through private high school and college without borrowing a penny. Got lots of good and varied technical experience along the way.

Enron vastly changed the market my business covered so in the aftermath of that debacle I had to go back to a day job as I was at a station in life where I felt it was too late to start over and do it all over again. I collected my first SS check as well last year too, so that will give a guess at my age range.

Now I have moved back into pure engineering and work with a company that has little to no in-house experience in the areas I do while needing about 10 more with my type of background and one that has a large department of young engineers. After letting me go through the learning process of the paperwork "system", they now keep me away from it preferring to let the younger kids do that tedious work while utilizing my experience to guide and direct their work technically. I don't use the word kids in a negative way, they are probably all better Engineers than I, just that they have no real world experience and their hands are pretty "unsoiled." I have hard knocks all over me.

After all those years of fighting cash flow and holding on to pay checks before cashing them, there is something really kind of magic about a paycheck just showing up in my bank account twice every month no matter what. It is a very adequate check too.

Even though I typically work a few more hours than 40 hours every week, I work much less hours than I did when I was my own boss.

I tell my close friends and former business associates that I am having the time of my life - don't know if I ever had this much fun. I am valued and highly sought out all across the business and have a deep sense of satisfaction that I contribute in a meaningful way.

I work hard at staying fit so that I can keep on working and in general enjoy good health. I take no medication. One of the unfortunate things about being your own boss for so many years is that it is always difficult to be able to pull enough out of your company to do a good job of retirement planning, (not that a lot of peers with 401K's are any better off) so not working means living under a bridge.

I feel I have to maintain my health to keep going, but as of right now, I have no desire to do anything else. How could retirement ever be this much fun?

rmw

 

[denoid]

Like MacGyverS2000, I think I need something that would entail some type of problem solving and working with my hands.

MainMan10, thanks for the suggestions, but I know I couldn't be a Realtor - I value my evenings and weekends too much. I doubt that property insurance would be a fit, either.

 

[cvg]

blondes can come in all colors, it's a state of mind...

how about flipping houses as a money making hobby? better to learn spanish, not german

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Do taxes for H&R Block - you should be good at numbers by now!!