When Early Retirement Turns Into a Total Bore<br />“We’re seeing a massive number of people who, after retirement, come back to the work force by freelancing,” according to Stephane Kasriel, chief executive of Upwork, a site<br />that freelancers use to connect with clients in a range of fields.<br />Since founding Patina Solutions nine years ago, well before the “gig economy” notion took hold, he wrote a book called “Career<br />180s.” It is about experienced workers living longer, getting bored — and starting whole new professional lives.<br />Or, Mr. Kasriel says, you could hire yourself out as more of a coach, offering “the wisdom acquired” from building a business.<br />“And apparently he’s pretty good at it.”<br />In the immediate term, Mr. Kasriel notes, a tight labor market makes experienced talent more valuable.<br />“We were built for a guy like this,” says Mike Harris, the company’s chief executive.<br />Upwork and the Freelancers Union commission an annual study on this segment of the work force and found<br />that in the United States 16 million people age 55 and up did freelance work in 2017.
