Retirement, Part 1: Time Management

by Audra Harders

I am retired from my day job.

There, I said it. Actually, I’ve been saying that to everyone who will listen, including the dog, my spring planted deck flowers and, most of all, myself. I no longer need to protect my weekends, count down the days to vacation or scramble to clean the house - among so many other things that competed with my 8:00 - 4:30, M-F, for my time and head space.

When I realized I now had time to blog in Seekerville - rather than just handling a few administrative duties - my stomach dropped as I searched for topics. Composing a post on writing didn’t seem wise when, like the Tin Man of Wizard of Oz, my writing joints and muscles are rusty and in need of a bit of exercise and oiling. Trying to bluff my way through marketing and trends was a foolish idea, as I need to learn them myself before I can pass along secrets. Personal growth and insight? Well, I have a lot, but it centers around the realm of 4-H and everything Extension Office (my life the last 25 years) with very little left over for discovering the aha moments of characterization, theme, or story truth.

So, where does that leave me? 

Square One on the checker board of the next phase of my life. 

Retirement. It’s a concept we work toward our entire career. Think about the stereotypes of playing golf all day, letting that inner social butterfly free to meet friends over coffee or lunch and squeeze into the latest Bunko evenings, or even sitting back with popcorn in a bowl and catching up on all those shows you’ve recorded over the years. 

Me? I’ve been working on cleaning up the clutter of 32 years of family life in our house. Throwing away precious mementos, I can’t even remember why I saved in the first place; dumping out closets and realizing the fashions I’d saved look a bit dated and really, will I ever fit in that again?; digging out my home office, throwing away old how-to-write books and awful manuscript fragments, and creating a room that invites me to write once again. It felt good to de-clutter, but my life remained off-kilter. 

Hmmm, why is that?

Over the next few months, join me on my journey as I discover what to do with that brass ring called retirement and how I return to the author life I had to set aside just as the carpet of success was being rolled out before me.

Whitney Nichols @therandomvibez

I will not get into all that right now. Let’s just say, God’s timing is so perfect all I had to do was obey and His plans for me would all come together and it would be better than I ever imagined.

So, back on track. To truly enjoy retirement, one must realize there are some rules I recommend following. This month, let’s talk about TIME MANAGEMENT. 

My first month seemed like a long vacation and I enjoyed it.

I retired from the Extension Office on March 31 and the entire month of April felt like one big vacation. By the end of 4 weeks, the stress had left, and I could tackle the world again. The problem was, my vacation mindset had also suspended little pesky tasks like paying bills, setting appointments, remembering events, etc. I scrambled to catch up on all the things I had overlooked because my routine of checking my calendar at work first thing in the morning on my computer was no longer in place. 

TAKEAWAY: Find a method of accountability that will work for you and keep you on task. Since snipping the strings tethering me to the computer, I wasn’t in a hurry to recreate the Outlook calendar system at home. Instead, I opted for a simple little planner by Moleskin that lets me look at a week at a glance on one page and the opposite page allows me to list my to-dos so they don’t stray far for me to get them to-done.

Photo by Elena Mozhvilo on Unsplash

My days grew together.

From the time our children were born until my eldest got her driver’s license and I went back to work, I kept a central scheduling system in the kitchen - a calendar chosen at Christmas with large daily squares displayed next to the refrigerator. If an appointment or task wasn’t on that calendar, it would not get done. That habit of looking at the calendar on the wall may have gone dormant once the kids no longer needed parental assistance, but within a day, my brain recaptured the habit of glancing at the calendar to see what was on tap for my day.

TAKEAWAY: Though the refrigerator has changed (twice!) and the wallpaper upgraded with the times, I need a focal point to ground my day. I’m making do with my Weeds of the West freebie calendar, but next year, those daily boxes are going to come in size XL!

Sleeping in is great, but…

You’ve heard the term, “when you rest, you rust,” right? Just because no one is essentially calling the shots for you anymore, doesn’t mean you can kick back and ride that banana boat through the canals of life for the next however many years. You need a plan; you need purpose; you need to claim your own sense of accomplishment!! There were 4 of us long-time employees who retired from the Extension office within 10 months. Of the 4, 3 of us had a definite goal in mind as we filled out the paperwork and began looking forward to “punching out” for the last time. My goal was to return to writing while the other two looked forward to “grandmother” duties and unlimited volunteer work. Our 4th compadre, retired without a plan in mind. She has not gotten involved in the community, she hasn’t discovered new (or long buried) hobby talents, she hasn’t explored the possibilities of her new phase in life. She was the first to leave 10 months ago and her outlook on retirement now is so much a burden rather than a joy. 

TAKEAWAY: Don’t let this happen to you! What’s your dream? What’s your heart’s desire? What’s your REWARD for all the hard work you’ve put in over the years? Embrace it now! Mold it, shape it, envision the joy it will give you. Have a plan! Remember how I mentioned the carpet of my dreams snatched away from under my feet just as I experienced the first euphoria of success? Oh, how that hurt! I just knew I was a one-and-done author. Well, God didn’t see it that way. He kept the fire burning in me to write. You see, I didn’t retire to fill my days with house cleaning or volunteering (though both are very honorable endeavors), I retired because stories in me are clamoring to be told. I’ve met untold sources along the way to feed reality into my novels. I’ve made dear friends and visited places that kept the creative flame alive in me. I HAD FUN!

What are your plans? Have you looked ahead to prepare for those dreams tucked within and waiting for the call action that is coming? Please share and let’s make some plans!

Audra Harders writes "rugged stories with heart" featuring fearless men who haven't a clue about relationships, rescued by ladies who think they have all the answers. In real life, she's married to her own patient hero, has two adult children, and a very strong-willed Corgi. She began writing right after her son was born and sold her first book to Love Inspired mere months before that same son graduated from high school. Surviving those years in between reminds her God does have her plan for her life...and that He has a tremendous sense of humor. You can visit Audra at:

Website: www.audraharders.com

Facebook: Audra Harders, Author

Twitter: @audraharders