The wife and I are getting older. We have been working for decades at this point. But we are too young to retire, and we had kids late. But one of us could totally switch over to a lower stress second career. Ideally something with benefits, maybe even a chance to get a pension. And since we still have kids, needs to be flexible. One of our kids has autism, so lots of random doctors appointment and stuff.
We both work with computers all day. What are some good options for a second career that doesn’t need to have long term growth potential. We have 8 years where ideally both of us are working so we can cover each other with benefits if something happens. After that, the kids are out of high school at least. So it isn’t like it would be a “short” term career/job. Just not a 30 year thing. And ideally, something that could at least partially be done at home.
Got a friend who got his CDL and drives a school bus in the morning and afternoon. It came with benefits and mediocre pay. And lots of unruly kids!
I just met someone who was going through the same question. They decided to take a two-year course and become a Physical Therapist, focusing on the elderly.
Said options were working with a medical group, at a nursing home, visiting people at home, or opening an office. Maybe a combination.
Their thinking was there was no way to get ‘disrupted’ and there would be endless demand. Made a lot of sense.
Do note, this is a very physically taxing job. A lot of nurses end up with back issues.
Nurses absolutely, especially since they physically have to move patients around. I wouldn’t expect that physical therapists would need to do that, but I also admit to not having any knowledge about the job.
Physical therapists are going to be physically manipulating people around helping them to do their exercises and such. You’re going to be physically taxed a fair bit. Although in theory, PT’s won’t have to help a patient every time they need to get up to use the toilet like a nurse or nurse’s aid would.
Have nurses in the family and have a few retired nurses as friends, they’re pretty damn beat up. Almost everyone of them has either back or hip or joint problems. And the US is becoming more and more obese, were at like 40% now of the population, which obesity comes with more problems so your more prone to being in the hospital. I’m betting there are going to be even more nurses in the next 25 years with serious physical damages because of it.
Some friends of mine in new Zealand had their own company growing and selling lily’s and other plants. Became a huge thing, bought a huge house. A decade ago they sold their entire company and went to picking strawberries. They just pick strawberries all day every day, and they love it. I was pretty jealous. So maybe you could stay in your field but just a completely different position. You’ll already have connections and experience.
Most of the sailing classes I’ve taken have been taught by older guys in their 2nd career.
OF feet pics obvs
Learn to fix things: get small a set of good tools (don’t bother buying cheap ones because they break easily and will also break the things you’re fixing) andthen practice with stuff from friends and family first
Conversely, go the harbor freight route. If you use it until it wears out then upgrade.
I don’t know how much money there is in fixing things though? Between hard to find parts, general lack of repairability, and the fairly low cost of new it doesn’t seem like there’s much opportunity there.
Conversely, go the harbor freight route. If you use it until it wears out then upgrade.
If you have a faulty wrench you’ll strip your bolts and turn your next hour into a nightmare. It’s objectively better to get a small set of essential quality tools and expand your game later.
I don’t know how much money there is in fixing things though?
Well, there are still things that are worth repairing and need constant maintenance, like bicycles and guitars. If you specialyze you’ll always have clients.
Not what you asked, but make sure you’re accessing all of the benefits available for your kiddo with autism, as well as getting guardianship paperwork ready before they’re 18 - if that applies in your situation. Your school district may have a transition specialist or someone who can help you with it.
On topic, do you have any hobbies that could be marketable? Woodworking, knowledge of plants and gardening, etc? Could you get the library or senior center to pay you to teach basic computer classes or help people set up their phones?
The doctors are very hopefully he will be self sufficient when he matures… but until puberty, we have very little energy left for hobbies.
Infinity has a subscription concierge service.
https://www.infinitipersonalassistant.com/
I don’t know how to apply or what qualifications they’re looking for, but it sounds like it could be a good gig for computer-savvy telework.
Does working with computers mean that you know programming? Then I would suggest cybersecurity.
I work for a cybersecurity software company. My wife doesn’t do software stuff, she mentally could but has no taste for it. I just get tired of how the software process has to cut soo many corners to make money.
Pornstar …
Edit, not for you probably, but who knows
Real-talk, pensions don’t exist anymore.
Best bet for getting benefits and flexibility is working for the government.
If you have a government job, pensions are still very much a thing. Something like 1/3 of jobs are in the public sector and the majority of them offer a pension, and they’re pretty rare but there are still some private sector jobs offering pensions as well, though I wouldn’t hold my breath trying to get one of those.
It takes a whole lot of people to keep the local, state, and federal governments running, pull up your county job listings sometimes, they’re probably hiring for a few different jobs at any given time, some require very specific skills, training, or education, others are going to be basic janitorial work, office clerks, etc. and everything in between that pretty much anyone could manage, and everything in between, and almost all of them will qualify for a pension plan.
Source- am 911 dispatcher, vested in my pension, still another 15-20ish years before I can collect on it
If you have a government job, pensions are still very much a thing.
I just retired from a government job 2 years ago (US military). I received a pension, but only because I was grandfathered into the old pension plan. The military stopped giving out pensions in 2017. They switched to the BRS (Basic Retirement System), which is basically their version of a 401K.
When they switched, they gave all service members with less than 12 years of service the option to switch to the BRS or stick with the old pension program. Anyone who joined after the switch doesn’t get a choice. They’re automatically enrolled in the BRS.
I had 15 years of service at the time, so I didn’t qualify for BRS. It wouldn’t have benefited me anyway; there’s no way I could’ve saved up enough money to retire on in my 5 remaining years. I much prefer my monthly direct deposit for the rest of my life.
It’s sad that, really, you just have to hope they break you enough to get VA comp as a pseudo-pension.
Pensions are dead sink ur pay into stocks top 500 spread is pretty decent. Property is always a gods bet too.
I already have a 401k and such. But a pension would pay as long as I live. Just in case I live too long. Also, such jobs usualy make you eligible for some kind of health insurance for life to. Gotta pay for it, but usually a better deal than the open market.
Ahh i forget u Americans dont have socialised healthcare I guess thats something u want guaranteed.
