Sharon Albrecht
- Sharon Albrecht, 84, works as an Uber driver and at a home healthcare company.Albrecht said the income is critical to maintain her lifestyle and supplement her Social Security.Despite not planning enough for retirement, Albrecht said she has few worries about her future.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Sharon Albrecht, an 84-year-old in Reston, Virginia. Albrecht works as an Uber driver and an independent contractor for a home healthcare agency. She said she didn't plan enough for retirement and has to work to stay afloat financially. Her quotes have been edited for length and clarity.
I have no major regrets because I feel that the universe is unfolding my life as it should. I'm 84, and I've just gotten started. I don't worry much about the future.
Still, I need to make between $1,500 and $2,000 a month to supplement my Social Security and cover my lifestyle. I do have five figures in investments and six figures in my condo in Virginia, but I don't feel it's enough.
That's why I still work part-time for both Uber and a home healthcare agency.
I grew up with parents who lived through the Great Depression
My very first job was cleaning houses to earn money for nursing school. I graduated in 1964 and worked in Washington, DC, in psychiatric care.
I lived in California in the '70s and started a successful massage therapy business, but I thought I was too young to plan for retirement.
In the '80s, I returned to psychiatric nursing and stayed until 2010. I retired in my late 60s because I felt it was time for me to leave.
When I retired, I had less than $1M in the bank, but I was working on real-estate investing on the side and had hopes of becoming a millionaire.
A friend of mine got me started with Uber in August 2016
I started driving at night and on weekends in DC, which was mostly fine except for a few sick riders. Over the years, nobody except one person has ever been really disrespectful.
Now, I don't drive after dark in DC, and I only drive there on the weekends when the traffic isn't as bad. If I need to make $100 in a day, it usually requires a longer trip, such as to the airport.
I make about $20 an hour, which is not much when you take the car expenses out. If I'm willing to go to DC and get a really great ride to the airport, I'll make $30 an hour. I only drive for three to four hours and stop when I feel tired.
Uber keeps track of your acceptance rate, so if I refuse to go to DC too many times, that lowers my acceptance percentage. I have to keep it above 70% in order to keep gold status.
I started spending the winters in Hawaii with my friend and her husband
I spent my first winter in Hawaii in 2016, and I was so happy that I bought everything I wanted and trusted that I was going to increase my income. I bought a car on Maui that year, which had big monthly payments for six years. I figured I'd use it for Uber driving there, too.
I made some other unfortunate investments, such as loan money that wouldn't get repaid. I stay for three months a year in Maui, as my friend is still repaying loans I gave her in free rent and food.
I was very impulsive and spontaneous, and I bought lots of smaller beauty and art objects. I maxed out my credit cards, which I had never done before.
I wish I had paid off my credit cards in 2019
I've spent thousands on real-estate investment courses and bought a rental property in 2006 for $395,000, which I sold in 2019. I always had good tenants, but the rent at that time just covered the mortgage. I took a $10,000 loss on the property.
I didn't pay my credit cards off with this money because I didn't think deeply enough about my financial situation.
Some of the money I made from the investment property I spent on a spiritual development course, which helped me finish healing from my childhood and forgive my father. I upgraded my self-esteem and self-worth significantly.
In the decade after retiring from psychiatric nursing, I worked with teenagers at a hospital
It was fulfilling and the highest-earning job I ever had. They had a very good retirement plan, and that's when I started saving for retirement. I always had some stocks and bonds, which I still have. I bought Apple when it was low and Tesla back in 2019.
My life is very happy and fulfilling. I enjoy what I'm doing. Freedom has always been my first priority, which is one of the reasons I'm not married.
I started working as an RN independent contractor for a home healthcare agency in 2024
My employer provides caregivers for home health to keep people out of nursing homes. The atmosphere in the office is like heaven on earth. My coworkers show me harmony, love, and respect.
My supervisor constantly tells me I'm doing a good job and compliments I never heard growing up. My inner child still loves it.
I feel strong and healthy
I have arthritis in my back, so turning my head to the right or the left requires a bit more work than it used to. As far as I can tell, my reflexes are as fast as they've ever been.
I took the senior driving course to reduce my car insurance payment. I talk to myself every day about safety and not taking chances. I got my first speeding ticket when I was 16, and I have many, but I haven't had any in the last four years.
I'm not sure when I'll stop working. The best-case scenario would be that I write a book, which could help a lot of people and open a lot of doors for me. I have a lot of expertise in nutrition, health, and supplements, so I could end up being a speaker.
I've also spent enough time practicing my piano and guitar that I could end up eventually performing my music somewhere.
