The concept of retirement is being reconfigured these days as more and more people are reaching the “age of retirement” and realizing they can’t afford the luxury of full-time leisure.

If you are among the 40% of boomers who do not feel they can afford a comfortable “retirement,” you are in good company. You are also in need of a plan, and a list of viable options. Here are a few to chew upon as you look toward the foreseeable future.

Keep your current job.
Whatever you’ve been doing to support yourself over the years may be exactly what you need to keep doing in the future. With one caveat. Create a budget, and save more money. Then, invest your savings wisely. You would also do yourself a favor by realizing that work has its advantages. It provides you with exercise, tests your mind, and offers you a network of people who depend on your services. All good for your health and well being. It also gives you a lifestyle that you could not afford without it. The key here is to appreciate what you have and how it enhances your life.

Pursue your passions.
If you have enough savings to see you through the next year or two, you might want to hedge your bets. Keep some form of work, part time, and follow your dreams the rest of the time. After a lifetime of working hard and following the rules, you have earned the reward. Whether it’s a book you want to write or a trip you want to take—whatever it is that excites you—you owe it to yourself to find a way to make it a reality. It really is now or never.

Find a new job.
If your last job is no longer available to you, or you have outgrown it, don’t despair that you are too old to start again. You are not. If you have a computer with access to the Internet, do a little exploring and you will find dozens of job websites dedicated to serving the employment needs of older workers like you.

Here is a small sampling of online resources:

Monster.com provides job searches that match workers with jobs that utilize their skills.    
PrimeCB.com was created by CareerBuilder.com to serve the needs of the older worker.
Jobs 4.0.com works with companies that value the experience of mature workers.

If you are not computer savvy, there are other ways to get connected with jobs. Call your immediate contacts, and let them do the digging for you. Check the classifieds in your local paper for ads, or place one of your own. Call companies for whom you would like to work and talk to their HR director.

Acquire new skills.

There may be a line of work that interests you but for which you may not have the requisite skills. Now’s the time to acquire them. Find out what the jobs you want require, and then take a class at your local high school or college or trade school and become qualified.

Maybe your retirement years will not be spent doing the things you had once envisioned for yourself, but maybe they will actually be more satisfying—more interesting, more creative. After all, once you’ve sat around doing nothing particularly productive for a while, then what?

Here’s to your non-retiring retirement!