‘Since my teenage years, I have been involved with boats. I always wanted to get my groot vaarbewijs (master’s certificate for inland navigation). Why? Well, every fool to his folly. You need a groot vaarbewijs for ships longer than 40 metres that are used commercially. But you can only take the exam after four years of sailing. That, of course, was not possible in my case.

After my studies, I had nearly 30 enjoyable years in jobs at the intersection of business economics and IT, working for large organisations. In 2011, I became self-employed. Things went well until a major assignment in 2014 ended unexpectedly early, and I had to start acquiring new clients from scratch. I saw an advertisement from Lovers, the canal cruise company in Amsterdam. They were looking for trainee skippers. I thought: You know what? I’ll write a letter.

At the age of 56, I obtained my MBO diploma for canal cruise skipper through a work-study programme. Two days a week at school, two days sailing. I found myself in a world where I was not readily accepted. For a while, I also faced resistance. I struggled with that. I was a trainee and dependent on experienced skippers, and they thought I was a strange bird.

I had been a director at Ordina and Logica CMG, earning €150,000 a year. And suddenly, I was a skipper, earning €17 an hour! I tried to downplay myself as much as possible, saying, for example, that I had worked in IT. But even that was too much. After more than four years at Lovers, COVID-19 hit, and the canal cruises stopped. With a groot vaarbewijs and a stack of professional diplomas, I was back on the street. Through temp agency Blue Amigo, I ended up working at bridges and locks.

At the time, I lay awake for three nights over my career switch. The first night from excitement, the second because I doubted whether I could afford it financially, and the third because it was such a definitive step. As a business economist, I had a knowledge- and network-intensive profession; if you’re out of it for a year, you’re out of the loop. But I have no regrets. I operate bridges and locks along the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal, Merwede Canal, and Vecht River, mainly in the summer. I’m outdoors, active. As long as I enjoy it, I’ll keep going.’

‘Not everything you do in life is rational. I definitely did not want to become an accountant, but I still did the training and started working at an office in Groningen. At the University of Groningen, I had learned how to conduct audits for clients, independently and with integrity. In the real world, commerce turned out to be dominant. I questioned this and was let go after a year and a half. Not suitable.

From then on, I held positions in the field that had already captivated me during my studies: administrative information management, or how to systematically handle information within an organisation. Since 1988, I also worked as a lecturer at the VU University Amsterdam for 40% of my time.

In 1995, I founded LJ Consultancy BV and became self-employed. Eighteen years later, I took a sabbatical. I was tired and wanted to recharge. After that, I did not return to work. I was 56; I was invited to apply for positions that suited me, but I was not hired. Fortunately, thanks to a professor at the VU, I secured a project with the municipality of Amsterdam in the public sector, specifically in the social domain. It was very useful work and quite different from the sector I came from. I continued until my retirement and, for the last seven years, also supported the province of Utrecht.

Looking back, I have been very lucky in many ways: with my jobs, with the house I was able to buy.

So far, I am thoroughly enjoying retirement. No more travelling. Starting the day at home with coffee and the newspaper. Listening to Radio Gelderland to hear about the traffic.

I do administrative work for the athletics club and am part of a running group with people my age. Personal records no longer interest me. I just want to make sure I stay active.

I have always said: When I retire, I want to explore the history of Zutphen. We have lived there for a quarter of a century, but I did not know the city well. Now, I lead city walks for visitors and work as a monument guide. At the VU, I interacted a lot with students. As a city guide, I am the younger one and meet people who talk about hips, knees, and pacemakers. That is quite a difference.’

JAN VAN DEN BELT (68)

STUDY > Economics, specialising in administrative computing (1977-1984), including two years of postdoctoral accountancy CURRENT STATUS > Retired since August HOUSEHOLD > Married to Marjanne (64); sons
Koen (30) and Sjoerd (28) live elsewhere HOME > Spacious town villa in Zutphen INCOME > Approximately € 4000 gross per month (state pension, pension, and annuities)

ERIC BEERHORST (69)

STUDY > Economics, specialising in administrative computing (1976-1982) CURRENT ROLE > Lock and bridge keeper HOUSEHOLD > Married to Marion (63) HOME > Corner house in Loosdrecht INCOME > Approximately € 4900 gross per month, including pension and state
pension (AOW)

They were in their mid-fifties and scratching their heads over how to
move forward with work and career. One alumnus of administrative computing made a fresh start after a sabbatical thanks to his network, while another
decided to make a bold move. He went back to school to become a skipper
and lock and bridge keeper.