A Retiree's Guide to Side Gigs

A Retiree's Guide to Side Gigs

There are numerous advantages to finding a part-time side job as a senior. The most obvious is probably the money, which can give you a financial cushion and allow you extra funds for travel, dream purchases and general enjoyment of your golden years. But money isn’t everything — a side gig can help you stave off boredom, engage your brain and give you an enjoyable way to keep yourself moving forward during retirement.

Gigs for seniors who love people

Having a job through retirement gives you the opportunity to get up, get out and get moving. If you think you’d like to work with people (of all ages), consider fulfilling part-time jobs including babysitting, substitute teaching or driving for Uber or Lyft. Not only can you make some solid side income with any of these jobs, but they will also keep you social and engaged.

Gigs for seniors with professional skills

If you spent your career in a professional field, you can easily turn those lifelong skills into a cozy little part-time retirement gig. If you have expertise in finance, accounting, investing, law, architecture, or engineering, consider consulting. Starting your own side consulting business can be accomplished in a matter of weeks. Most of it can be done from home if you need to.

Tutoring also is a fine option for anyone skilled in academic or professional fields. Starting a small tutoring business is fairly simple, and a lot of it can be done online.

Gigs for seniors who are artistic

If you have an artistic streak in you, there’s a good chance that you can make some money doing something you truly love. If you paint, sculpt, make pottery, cross-stitch, embroider, knit or woodwork, you may be able to make cash selling your wares on a marketplace like Etsy. You can ship from home and receive payment online on a site like PayPal — this means this gig is 100% from-home. There are several online marketplaces to check out.

Another way to share your art and get paid doing it is through lessons. If you are a skilled painter or even a musician, hosting private lessons at your home can be rather lucrative.

Gigs for seniors who don’t want to leave the house

Being able to work from home is amazing, and if you don’t want to give up this ultimate flexibility in order to make money during retirement, that’s completely understandable. The good news is you don’t have to. AARP has some suggestions for you including writing/editing, call center work, customer service rep and virtual assistant work. Transcription work is also easy to come by — especially in the medical field. If you speak multiple languages, translation work is fun and fairly competitive in terms of compensation.

You’re retired. So, why in the world would you want to spend your time working? Here’s a small list of reasons: physical engagement, mental stimulation, socialization, distraction and purpose. Oh yeah — there’s also the money. That money can not only make you and your family’s life easier through your retirement, but it could also help you do some of the things you’ve always wanted to do. Your golden years are what you make of them. You can still work a little and enjoy all the freedom retirement offers. Just remember to always think about how you can achieve a healthy balance.
Article dedicated by Lucy Reed Contact:[email protected]
Photo by Dan Gold on Unsplash


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