This question is mainly directed to nurses my age - 50's and up, but I would enjoy hearing from all ages. My reason for asking is because I am just starting my nursing career and I'm trying to realistically gauge how long my career will be. I have personally heard of a nurse 75 years old who still works in LTC full-time, and a 70 year-old who work per diem rather often. Also, I've met a 76 year-old nurse who retired from clinical teaching approximately two years ago.
Aside from health issues, what is reasonable to expect? Thanks in advance
Due to sound financial planning and a highly-paid 1st career (while being single with inexpensive tastes), my retirement is already fully funded. All I have to do is make it to retirement age being able to provide for my family in the meanwhile.
I'll retire the day I am old enough to start drawing from my retirement accounts without coughing up 50% to the gooberment. Life is too short to spend all of it working.
For most people, "the more they make, the more they spend." Dedicating a portion of each raise to your retirment funds helps prevent that from happening.
Good luck,
llg
Excellent advice.
Guilty as charged, but as I said I'm a late bloomer. The main indulgence being a new mid-sized car instead of the tiny ones I always drove. But that new car smell cost me. I have one more car payment and have vowed to stash that money away. It makes sense what you say as "I've never had it". This is the first time in about 15 years I haven't had a car payment, and next time it's not going to be a brand spanking new car and it can be a smaller one.
Also we bought a house, which with the rapid rise in real estate (including rental properties) the past five years it was money in the bank even though it was one of those "more money/more spent deals".
Realistically, I figure I have another 30 yrs of working in me. When I start my nursing career is when I start my "real job(s)". My other degree being finance, but I was working in jobs for minimum wage and didn't have enough even working to save. So nursing (in addition to giving me so much more) will give me enough to eat and live on, maybe to enjoy a little, and importantly, save for my retirement.
I was pretty good about retirement planning in my first career, but then I was unemployed for about 8 yrs when DD was young and when I went back to school. Then I was working part-time and not doing anything about retirement. Now DH and I are in our 50's and I am in the position of trying to play catch-up as much as possible with the college tuition bill we now have for our daughter! When I grad. nursing school a few years ago I estimated I would be able to work about 20 years at most-we'll see how that goes! I'm looking into less physical options in the field for the future.
I am a 65 year old RN ,have been for 44 years. I retired Nov 2005 and went back to work the next day prn. Same hospital and unit I've worked on for past 20 years. I got the plauqe and a cake,no lunch! But do receive a retirement plus my full social securty. Our hospital has a 403b plan. I did not start saving with it until 1991 but it has added up to a good nest egg that I don't plan to start useing just yet. I am trying to keep my prn hours to 2 12 hr shifts a week, down from 3 or 4. Even tho I have aches and pains I don't have any physical problems working on the medical floor for a 12 shift. I want to keep up the prn as long as I can unltil the travel bug hits or something more fun turns up to do.
Your schedule is very encouraging. I also like the thoughts posted on getting as much education as possible to prepare for other fields in nursing. I was thinking of teaching and writing as I get older. I would really like to provide nursing students with a better experience than I had.
clee1
832 Posts
I'm 38 and in NS for my second career.
Due to sound financial planning and a highly-paid 1st career (while being single with inexpensive tastes), my retirement is already fully funded. All I have to do is make it to retirement age being able to provide for my family in the meanwhile.
I'll retire the day I am old enough to start drawing from my retirement accounts without coughing up 50% to the gooberment. Life is too short to spend all of it working.