A job worthy of retirement

One year ago I was laid off and until that day I hadn't thought about what my next link in the work chain might be. Suddenly I was forced into having to dust off my resume, tweak it to match the various position types I would be targeting, and by all means try to deceptively hide my age. Yes, that's right, even someone under the age of 40 worried about ageism. If I were to die tomorrow, I'm sure the words "she was so young" might be heard, but in terms of a job search, I'm old. I'm double the age of a recent college grad who comes armed not only with a degree, but youth and energy.

One year later I have finally started a new job, but I'm still in the trial period, so my future employment status remains a mystery. I really got comfortable not working. For the first time ever - I was able to be home full-time with my kids. I was able to be there. Be present. Volunteer. Enjoy a different quality of life. I pretended I was a trust fund baby.

Now that I am back in the game, I'm grateful for the opportunity to work again. Lord knows I need the money and medical benefits, but I can't help but wonder what job I can do that will offer me personal content and joy, yet be the type of job I can retire from?

Immediately after my layoff I wished I had gone to trade school. I spent a few years in college part-time while I worked full-time, but I never really had a career per se. I fell into recruiting completely by accident and for years I absolutely loved it, but I don't know if it's the kind of job I can feasibly continue to do for the next 25 years. There were days that I thought, if only I had a job at the post office, maybe I'd still be working. If only I had been a hair dresser, I'd have 20 years of experience and could probably be working out of my home, or at least setting my own hours, but my Mother dissuaded me from going to beauty school claiming I'd never make any money. Yet today we have reality shows about artists with scissors and indeed, if you are passionate about the work and talented, there is money to be made.

So here I sit scratching my head wondering what will I do for the rest of my life? I'm not an over achiever. I'm not motivated by money. I don't like sales. What I do know is that every job I've ever had that I loved involved working with people, and by people I mean customers, clients. I don't want to be a nurse. I need to work regular business hours, Monday-Friday (weekends are for family). I don't want long commutes anymore. I like jobs that allow for laughter and fun while you work. I like employers who are sympathetic to working Mothers, and I really like employers who believe in work/life balance (and mean it).

The question remains - what kind of job can I do that can carry me to retirement? The phone lines are open...