Developing a positive, healthy mindset in retirement is an intentional act. But picking up hobbies and visiting family may not be enough. Purpose matters just as much as the “fun stuff.” It adds structure to our day, and reasons to leave the house. It’s easy to dismiss these concerns until you feel them. It may be before retirement, in your first month, or two years down the road.
There are many potential ways to solve this problem. One of them is becoming a volunteer.
Volunteering is a way to help retirees reconnect with their community. It’s one of the easiest (and most affordable, usually) ways to nurture a sense of purpose while staying socially active.
Let’s go over the top 5 reasons retirees should volunteer and how they can positively impact your retirement:
One of the most surprising benefits of volunteering is that it actually can slow down aging. A 2025 study found that volunteering 4 hours a week or more, has the greatest potential to biologically slow down the aging process. Scientists pinpoint this finding to the greater social, physical and purposeful interaction regular volunteers experience.
For many, what they do matters. A job isn’t only a title, but a mission. Retirement shifts that view of the world and it’s easy to feel lost without purpose. An in-depth review of several studies on the retirement transition found that money isn’t everything—meaningful activities are just as important.
Volunteering is one way to fill your life with purposeful work—without the overhead or admin stressors of a full-time job. From supporting pet rescues to tutoring or soup kitchens, there are many ways to get involved and find meaning.
Around one-third of retirees face depression in their golden years. Isolation, loss of self, and or perceived loss of personal autonomy can all contribute to this feeling.
While not a cure for clinical depression, volunteering can help alleviate many situational causes. Volunteering in retirement eliminates isolation and builds community. It offers meaning and a sense of purpose or direction. Furthermore, simple acts of kindness are mood boosters and can improve a retiree’s overall mental state.
Loneliness is a significant concern for retirees, both during the transition and after they’ve settled into their new life. Much of the problem stems from a lack of social roles. If you’ve worked full-time and raised a family, you’ve unlikely been able to make extensive and deep connections within the community.
Retirees who volunteer are able to strengthen their social roles. For example, if you volunteer at a soup kitchen on Sunday morning before church, you will strengthen faith-based friendships. Likewise, mentoring college students in your field or learning how to remove debris with a local disaster aid organization all create new social connections.
In most cases, volunteering is free: You only need to spend time. It doesn’t matter how much you have in your nest egg, there is a volunteer role for everyone across all types of causes. This low-barrier to entry is what makes volunteering a fantastic social activity. Whatever you choose to do, it’s unlikely to interfere with your retirement planning.
The only volunteering opportunities that typically have a price tag are international opportunities. But even then, they typically include room and board, as well as the chance to see the world from a new perspective—a potential opportunity for retired globetrotters.
Deciding to volunteer is just one consideration when developing your retirement plan. It’s easy to focus on the dollars and cents, but money alone isn’t enough for a successful and fulfilling retirement. Knowing what is important to you enables you to live aligned with your values. You can work your budget around this.
It helps to have an objective soundboard who knows you and your goals when developing this plan. A fiduciary advisor can help. Fiduciaries are legally bound to give you objective advice—no sales allowed. At the same time, they can guide you with tailored financial advice to ensure you can fiscally meet your goals.
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