I'm a few days short of a year since my retirement from my engineering job.
Of course, there were adjustments in my life. Suddenly I had 40-50 hours a week back. No commutes to work. No thinking about what to pack for lunch. No business deadlines. The realization that I didn't have some excuses that I had before, and it was time to drop some pounds.
And some adjustments in our real estate business too. I had a retirement pension and 66 weeks of severance pay coming at the same time (there are some perks for 33 years of work for the same company), so we could be even more selective about our clients. That meant fewer "fluffy" clients, buyers that aren't really motivated to buy, sellers that aren't willing to listen to what the market is speaking. Nothing warm and fuzzy about spending time that you know will have no payoff at the end.
Flash forward to last June and my old job called me back as a Kelly temp doing the exact same work I did before, but this time without the fluff. Just 20 hours a week, completely flexible schedule, fully remote. I went in to the office about 5 times over the first two weeks to say hello, get a laptop, catch up on any procedure changes, and get full access to the online tools I needed.
Meetings are minimal. Extra projects? Not happening. My tasking is solely to focus on the core tasks of the role. Net effect? I'm getting as much done in my 20 hours as I used to get done in 40+ before because the fluff is gone. I enjoy the work and the people I work with. And even better for the team is it frees up other team members with different skill sets to do what they do best while I do what I do best.
The net for me personally of cutting out a bunch of the fluff? A better work-life balance then I've had in a long, long time. I'm a 40 pound bag of kitty litter lighter (although that's not to say I couldn't lose more!). My heart has had a tendency for years to skip beats due to afib, but I managed a 4 month stretch this year with zero irregular beats. I still have the occasional afib incidents, but instead of dragging on for days, maybe even more than a week, most times I return to normal heart rhythm within a day or two.
Our new house is getting closer to being done (this is the one aspect of our lives that has gone much, much slower than we expected!). Hickory floors installed and sealed. Interior painting done. Doors and trim done. Patio poured, deck ready for railings. Solar system and batteries installed. Cabinets, counters and appliances going in soon. Bath tiling in progress. Early 2026 is looking good.
Once we move, I'll have to reevaluate where the fluff is in my life, and what I need to change with the new conditions, but isn't that a part of life for all of us? Recognizing when change is needed, and deciding how to make it happen. Be it work or personal, very few things in life are static and without some level of change. It shouldn't take a major life change to make us take action, yet, we often need that extra little push don't we?
So if I can give you that nudge, go make the changes you know you need to make. Refer out the fluffy clients. Stop with the real estate activities that deep inside you know are just fluff. Do more of what you enjoy. Work with the clients that WANT to work with you and respect you.
Bye bye fluff.
Until next Tuesday, just Ask An Ambassador if you need help (I won't consider you fluff!),
Bill & Liz aka BLiz
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