Keeping My Mind Sharp in Retirement
Eight months into retirement, I’m settling into a good routine and pace of life. Keeping both my mind and body sharp is key. Here’s how I keep my mind engaged.
For me, keeping my mind sharp means staying mentally active and challenging myself in different ways. These areas often overlap.
I stay active mentally
I actively read.
I vary genres to keep reading interesting and challenging. Right now I’m reading Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson, an epic fantasy and something new for me. I’m also reading Ryan Holiday’s Wisdom Takes Work and Sketching in the City by Toby Haseler.
To build the habit, I set a low daily goal of just two pages. It’s easy to start, and I usually end up reading more once I get going.
I keep a pocket notebook with each book for ideas, concepts, and new words to look up.
These three are physical books, but I also read on a Kobo, usually fiction, and keep a small notebook for quotes and thoughts.
I challenge myself mentally
Building a robot in Claude Cowork.
To challenge myself, I’m learning to build a “robot,” a personal assistant, in Claude Cowork. Writing its markdown files and setting up its tasks keeps my mind engaged and reminds me of building Excel macros in my working days.
The robot now handles routine tasks that used to take me a fair bit of time. It keeps track of my tasks and plans and challenges me on what I’m working on.
I never let the robot decide. It presents options, and I review its suggestions myself.
Creating art daily.
Creating art daily is enjoyable because I focus on the process rather than the outcome. My aim is to simplify complex subjects and express my own interpretation, not to pursue realism.
I even put the robot to work here. I fed it my art books, the courses I own, and some of the key artists I follow on YouTube, and it produced a first-pass daily art curriculum. I modified it to work for me, but it gave me prompts and skills to think about building.
I started making art just a few years ago and have enjoyed it ever since. It’s something you can pick up at any age. I’m clear about what I want to get out of it, so I measure my progress against my own goals, not other artists’ work.
The keys to a sharp mind are to challenge it intentionally, keep it active, and keep learning and growing.
What do you do to keep your mind sharp? Let me know in the comments below.