Retirement Hobbies/Hobby Ideas

by Gary Wells
(Oxford, Mich. USA)

Having Retirement hobbies promotes health and happiness. Now you can explore things that you never had time for during your working years. . . a whole new adventure. Today, the average person can expect to spend two decades in retirement—why leave it to chance? For all of its changes and challenges, a well-planned retirement could very well be the best part of your life and a chance to pursue your hobbies and passions.

Baby boomers are turning 60 every 8 seconds and are changing the face of retirement. Retirement is becoming protirement as adults in midlife are finding themselves healthier, wealthier and more full of vim and vigor than ever before. But as you think about retirement, you’ve got facts to face, planning to do, decisions to make and numbers to crunch.

For many people, the thought of retiring is very scary because, (1) you`re not sure if you can afford retirement and, (2) you`re thinking you would have nothing to do if you retired. Many retirees will find that finding a new hobby leads them to develop new skills after retirement and a network of new friends. This is a real help if your job was the mainstay of your friendships. Or just finely having the time to do those hobbies you have always wanted to do but couldn’t find the time because of work.

Researchers find that retired people who get involved in hobbies are happier and tend to live longer. Retirement is not the time to sit back and do nothing, it is a time to get involved with the hobbies or crafts you`ve always wanted to do. Experts will tell you that the secrete to longevity is to keep moving, both mentally and physically, keep yourself preoccupied when you retire.

Retiring and having hobbies is all about doing something fun and not having to answer to the man every day. You may need to try a few things before you find the perfect hobby for you, finding your niche so to speak. It may come as a surprise how easy you can fit in to retirement and why you didn’t do it sooner.

In this current economic climate, it’s important to save, but affordability isn’t the only criteria retirees should consider when picking a hobby now-a-days. According to Kate Lindemann, who runs the site www.Anti-Aging-articles.com, seniors should select an activity that keeps their body, spirit and mind engaged.

If you are good with your hands and like to tinker than finding hobbies will come easy for you, but if you did office work your whole life than maybe something in typing would suit you better like writing articles, novels, or starting a blog on the computer, which is very popular today by the way.

If you’re married, than try and finding hobbies that you both can enjoy, such as golf, travel, walking, gardening: (gardening is a great hobby to carry into retirement. It combines exercise, an appreciation for beauty, sometimes great food - and having to get your hands dirty from time to time!), designing and building bird houses: (make a little business and sell them on the side in front of the house), or antique collecting. The fact is, the list is endless when it comes to hobbies that you and your spouse could enjoy doing together after retirement.

You can also supplement your retirement with your hobby. Do your friends and family express delight when they taste the results of what you ‘cook-up’ in the kitchen? How about those ‘snazzy’ looking scarves, sweaters and mittens which your relatives and friends seem to appreciate getting in their holiday gift bags? If they like them so much, others will too, which presents a money making opportunity for you. Making money from your hobby and doing what you enjoy is a fun way to fund your retirement nest egg.

Scrapbooking is a great way to preserve your most wonderful, valuable and beautiful moments that you shared with the ones you love the most. Especially if you are already retired or about to retire, the beautiful memories that you have collected throughout your life need a place where you can just look back and smile at those memorable times. As a part of retirement hobbies, scrapbooking is surely an enjoyable and fruitful way to preoccupy your time and finally get all those loose photos in order you have collected over the years.

We have huge energy stores inside of us, both mentally and physically, as well as our unique talents, gifts and capabilities. Channeling these gifts and talents into hobbies will give us rewards that will make retirement free time a major contributor to those truly "Golden Years".

For many there is a total mismatch between the things we enjoy doing in our free time and our profession. Yet more than 8 hours every working day is spent in the work place; doing things we don't enjoy doing.

Take the time retirement gives you to find new and fun hobbies. You'll be happy you did. Don`t wait till you’re sick to retire because then it`s too late!

G Wells
NewHobbyIdea.com