Reaching retirement is a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, after decades of following other peoples’ rules, there is a sense of relief that you will finally get to live the way that you want to.

On the other hand, it’s easy to feel lost, fearful or sad when reaching this important milestone. You know logically that you are retiring from work, not life, but, it doesn’t always feel like that.

As you work through these various emotions, it’s important to remember that life after retirement can be anything that you want it to be. You have earned the freedom to chart your own course.

But, with freedom comes responsibility. No one is going to tell you how to get the most from life after 60. It’s up to you to decide which passions to pursue, which people to have in your life and which places to visit.

At the same time, while we need to make our own decisions, it’s often helpful to see how others have dealt with similar situations. So, I asked the women in the Sixty and Me community to share their insights about how to get the most from life after retirement.

Their answers were diverse, but, their message was clear. Go out into the world and meet interesting people. After decades of work, learn to renew, explore, travel, inspire and relax. Embrace life with energy, creativity and passion. Don’t let yourself get bored – or boring for that matter!

Many women in our community did not have a firm plan for their lives when they entered retirement. But, by applying their life experience and wisdom to the challenges that life presented them, they emerged victorious on the other end. I’m confident that you will do the same!

Here’s how 60 women in our community are planning on getting the most from life after retirement. I hope that you will find their answers inspiring!

Here’s the question that I asked:

You’ve retired. Now what? I would love to hear all your suggestions for getting the most from life after retirement. Did you retire with a plan or are you just making it up as you go?

Following are the suggestions that I received from the women in our community about how to get more from life after retirement.

60 Ways to Get More from Life After Retirement

Enjoy plenty of hobbies

Take days out and lunches with my friends and family

Breed French Bulldogs and Chihuahuas as a hobby

Enjoy crafts, coffee and painting

Go on outings with my grandchildren

Use my free bus pass to go anywhere I want

Fly by the seat of my pants and enjoy whatever I choose to do!

Join a group called Sisters on the Fly

Make it up as I go along and enjoy every moment

Help with my fabulous grandbabies

Cook and craft

Hang out at the library

Do gentle yoga

Enjoy a simple life, adapting as I go

Work with first graders as a school chaplain

Meet a man ten years younger and get married!

Live every day as if it were an adventure!

Learn new things, meet new people and see new places

Write children’s books

Go to the gym every day and to the cinema at any time I want

Read and write as much as I can

Wing it and just see how it goes!

Join the Women’s Institute

Drive my new car

Go to Jazzersise

Volunteer at a retirement home

Have lunch, movies and more with friends

Explore my spirituality

I will never retire! I love my job!

No plans. Just enjoy life and the journey that I am on

Care for my mum with dementia

Go to a senior center and take an art class

Learn how to do origami

Go to massage therapy school

I’m a breast cancer survivor, so I volunteer in this area

Spend time with my grandchildren, read, walk, and do yoga

Do anything that tickles my fancy for one year

Train to be a chaplain in a hospital or hospice setting

Work part time as a substitute teacher

Volunteer as a Medicare counsellor

Move to Costa Rica, my sweetheart’s home and raise 4 grandsons

Work with my husband in the garden

Volunteer in our local parish and find time to read

Read books and meet up with the book club once a month

Look after my grandchildren, since my daughter is gone

Get involved with a political organization

Babysit my grandchildren

Get very involved with church activities and help lonely people

Spend time with my daughter and granddaughter

Sell my house and move to a beach hut

Study the bible, do crafts, read and research my ancestry

Join a volunteer board and give back to my community

Go to Italy and open a bed and breakfast

Follow my dream owning a small acreage and a herd of alpacas

Open a business to support artists of heirloom-hand crafted items

I keep myself busy with U3A

Spend more time caring for my horses and competing in daytime dressage competitions

Go with what pleases me! I love dancing and music – they make me happy

Go shopping

Get started on that travel bucket list

I love all of these answers because, while they are diverse, they show that retirement doesn’t need to be about “aging gracefully.” Women in their 60s today are embracing life with the same curiosity, courage, and bohemian energy that motivated them in the 1960s.

We are looking after ourselves, exercising, having fun, following our quirky hobbies, looking after our grandchildren, and holding on to the things that matter.

How would you like to spend life after retirement? Have you already retired? If so, what advice would you give to the other members of our community who may be approaching retirement age? Please add your thoughts in the comments section below.