Post retirement work: what are your options?

GA,
The seniors in my area are working legal jobs.
1) Driving for Uber and Lyft.
2) Caregiving and housekeeping for their neighbors, errands.
3) Selling your 'hobbies' online through Amazon, Pay Pal, etc.
4) Process Service, serving legal papers.
or Mobile Notaries.
5) Shopping Service for seniors.
6) Making deliveries for Instacart, and the many delivery apps available.
7) Landscaping and garden advice while senior hires the labor separately.
8) Stipends paid through organizations such as NAMI, Special Needs, and
some charities.
9) Renting out rooms or homes to Air bnb.
10) And, the very popular idea is to teach or sell your expertise to others:
Dancing, yoga, e-oils, or have a blog that somehow makes money.

Would you have any interest in brief hourly respite care? I always wondered about some of our frequent advice givers who are really great at advice (that is DEFINITELY YOU) and whether they would consider something it seems to me there is such a crying need for. We see so many posters who just need to have a few hours a few times a week, to get away with a friend, to go on an appointment of their own. It seems there is no one to provide just a "sitter service" to watch over an elder who cannot be alone. I guess you would have to make clear what services you would or would not provide, but sitters aren't really expected to do hands on care. I considered pet sitting in my home at one time; in my city it pays well and I miss my elder dogs so would enjoy that. Hope you will update us on what you find that might work for you.

Farmers Markets here can increase your monthly income by thousands if you have something that others want.

Homemade items, soaps and organic food are super hot, fresh eggs sell for 7 bucks a dozen. I help a lady and she can clear 800.00 in a day.

Oh, homemade candy sell for 1.50 to 3.00 a piece and she is gone in an hour every Saturday.

Best of luck finding what fits for you.

My husband pursued magic and is now a magician giving shows. I thing the piddly 1% increase in SSI this year was a effing joke! I can’t quite decide where I will spend that extra $15 per month. Where the heck did they come up with that with the cost of living rising as it has?

I sell on eBay and it gives me a good income. I love junk so I go to garage and estate sales, buy what I know will sell, and put it up for auction. You can sell any number of things online.....from the comfort of your own home in your pjs if you like. Books are a big seller.....which can be bought at sales for a quarter. Or sell off some of your own things like costume jewelry and bags you no longer use.

My neighbor does a pretty good business (at least she did...) altering wedding dresses, prom dresses and things like that.
There are always people, like me, that can not operate a sewing machine. For some reason we do not get along. I always said when I took HomeEc in school I had no problem with the cooking but when I even walked past the sewing room the bobbins would jump from the machines and roll away screaming!
I could do a gangbuster business baking and cooking but sewing is out!
I need zippers replaced and would love to have someone do it for me.
If you are good at it, go for it.
For everyone else, if you think you would be good tutoring kids, go for it.
Dog walking, shopping for others, and dozens of other tasks that people are either to busy to do or they are cautious about leaving their house.
If you are good at crafting there are people making things and selling on line.
So...or should I say SEW..if this is something that you think will help out with a few bills go for it. What do you have to loose? (GardenArtist, just don't let it take up so much of your time that we will miss you)

There are so many things you can do! AlvaDeer mentioned providing respite care for families. My cousin recently started this. She made simple business cards and posted her services on a local Facebook page. She is super busy and can pick and choose her schedule. My aunt bakes and makes jams to sell. She makes about 275.00 in a weekend. She closes her kitchen January-March. I think you will be amazed at the opportunities that are available. Consider this a “second act” and do something you enjoy. You are going to do great things!!

Hi there. Try a temp company offering various jobs on a temporary or temp-to-hire basis.

if you dont like the job you can call the company and say you want to give notice and can they find something more satisfactory for you.

i am employed by a company that is using temp workers along with their own employees to screen people ... taking temperatures and asking general questions ... who coming into the business.

but there are other office and industry jobs they offer too.

it’s a really good way of finding out what’s available and if you like the job before you lock yourself into something unpleasant.

GA, I don't know how old you are or your physical abilities, but the goal is to do and invest the least and make the most. There were lots of good suggestions mentioned. There is a need for respite care but if it involves lifting you may want to think carefully about that.

If I were in your shoes and IF I was a dog owner and was in a home with some property I would seriously consider dog sitting for small dogs (not just walking as this can be a scheduling nightmare and physically difficult with large dogs). Tons of people adopted pets during covid without giving much thought to what will happen once everyone goes back to work and school. You can do it on a cash basis and it is a high-demand service therefore you can pick and choose the best clients that need you on a regular basis. You can have more than 1 small dog at a time (probably max of 3) and make $25 per dog per day depending on where you live, especially in an urban or suburban area. I only recommend this if you have actual experience with dogs.

Like others I wasn't sure what you meant by needlework, but if you meant sewing/seamstress work this involves a lot of contact and managing appointments and no-shows, with people coming into your home and needing to do fittings, etc. (I use a seamstress and I know how much effort she puts in it). Plus the ever-present deadlines for when people want things. You can certainly do it if you LOVE it but sometimes working with the public makes you unlove stuff ;-)

Thank you to everyone who responded.   Right now, I'm overwhelmed at the variety of suggestions, but do plan to respond when I can sort them out and address some individually and some collectively.

I really appreciate the time you've spent offering suggestions, and even if it takes a few days, I will be back to respond.

 I do want to address a few aspects:

1.    Needlework:   I had in mind not only sewing (and design alteration), but embroidery, crewel embroidery, knitting, and crocheting.  I gave up on tatting w/o even trying!  

I did some alterations at one time, but wouldn't do it again b/c of the lack of cooperation of the individual to come for fittings.   It would have been too much work to finish the alteration (a challenging one with an underskirt of different material), then redo it.    I don't think the individual really understood that alteration is a personal adaptation to each individual and each garment.

One of the tenants in the cottage my parents had asked me to make a taffeta dress for her to wear while playing piano in a nighttime entertainment facility (restaurant and bar if I remember correctly).   She wanted it that night!

So I did it, and ended up with eye strain; black is very hard to work with.  Taffeta is also a difficult fabric.   Although I was paid, I vowed never to do that again.

Unfortunately, I don't think people who want hand sewn garments or alterations have any concept of the detail or time required.

2.  Teaching:  Needlework:   I've taught sewing, quilting, crocheting, and (don't be surprised!) bowmaking.    The first two were the most popular.   But for some reason, decades ago the local adult classes shifted emphasis from creative classes to sports, sports and more sports.   

One interesting avenue:   I had a  call from someone hired to locate and arrange for classes at car production plants.    Apparently either a union or staff wanted to provide adult ed classes in needlework.   So I was invited to teach a quilting class at an auto plant.  

I thought about it, but the plant was just too far away, not in the best area, and I already had a full schedule.    But it was an interesting concept.

I've also taught academic classes (Stacey, your ESL suggestion reminded me of this):   French, Math, Econ, Business and Computer Science.   This was at a local community college.    This was during the time the USSR was segueing out of that construct and into the Russian mode.   Apparently some charities were helping residents emigrate to the US, arranging for community ed classes and jobs.

I worked with 2 people from the USSR, with a "cradle to grave" approach.    W/o sounding sarcastic, they needed to be spoon fed.    The computer science student refused to do anything; his anticipation was to expect me to do all the work, which he would then turn in to the instructor!   No dice, so he asked that I be fired.   That was fine with me, b/c I wasn't going to go his work.

The most rewarding was math;   one student who had a lot of trouble eventually gave up, very disappointing, but there was nothing I could do to change her mind.   Then one day after exams she came up to me and gave me a big hug, telling me she moved from failing to getting a good passing grade.  She was elated, as was I.  


Sorry, I'm having computer problems and I'm having trouble editing.   Back later!

And thanks again!