What if your next chapter didn’t start with a big decision or a bold leap but with something as small as a story you’ve told a dozen times before?
Picture this: it’s just after breakfast. The house is quiet except for the distant chime of the neighbour’s wind chime (slightly annoying but oddly comforting). You’ve made your tea, the mug warming your palms, and the laptop hums softly as it wakes up. No boss, no clock-in. Just you, the morning light filtering through the blinds, and the gentle thrill of someone leaving a comment saying, “I tried that recipe you shared; my grandkids loved it.“
Strange, isn’t it? The way little things you’ve done for years, tweaks to a stew, how you store your craft supplies, which hedge trimmers don’t chew your wrists to bits, are suddenly helpful to strangers. People are listening. They’re thanking you. And occasionally, when they click a link and make a purchase, you’ve recommended? You earn a little something back. A few quid here, a tenner there. It’s not a lottery win, but it’s not nothing, either. It’s satisfying. And slightly addictive, in the best way.
Now compare that to how things feel right now. Not bad, exactly. Just flat. Retirement was supposed to be this great exhale—freedom at last! And it is, at first. But then what? The hours are slow, the novelty wears thin, and a weird sort of fog rolls in. You’re not exactly bored, but the days lack much shape. No urgent tasks. No “great job!” emails. Just quiet.
And maybe you’ve looked at online income stuff before, right? Those headline-grabbing promises: “Make £5,000 a month from your sofa!“—please. You know better. Most of it’s either hype, hustle, or heavy tech, and none of that feels remotely real. You’re not interested in being an influencer or launching a brand (what is a funnel, anyway?). You just want to feel useful again. Do something meaningful. Maybe even make a bit of pocket money while you’re at it. That would be nice.
Here’s the thing most of those gurus don’t tell you: people over 60 are killing it online right now. Quietly, of course. No one’s bragging about it. But it’s happening. From book reviews to gardening blogs and hand-sewn crafts to simple YouTube tutorials filmed in cluttered kitchens, it’s real. Affiliate marketing, which involves recommending products you love, has grown to over £15 billion globally. And yes, retirees are part of that as well. It’s a bigger part than you’d think.
It’s not about tech. It’s about trust. And that’s where you shine.
Let’s say you’ve got a favourite brand of gloves you swear by. They’re soft, they last, and they don’t make your hands smell weird after pruning roses. So you mention them in a blog post, or a Facebook comment, or even just casually in a video where you’re repotting your basil. Someone clicks, buys, and, surprise, you earn a bit. That’s affiliate income. That’s it. No suit is required.
You might mess it up the first few times. We all do. I once spent three hours figuring out how to add a picture to a blog post, only to accidentally delete the entire thing. I thought I’d broken the internet. But you get there. You learn. Slowly, sure, but steadily.
And somewhere between the trial and error, the biscuit crumbs in the keyboard, and the moment your first “thank you” email lands in your inbox… you remember who you are. Not just someone with time. But someone with something to offer.
Because you have lived, you know things. You’ve burned cakes and fixed fences and managed life in all its messy, brilliant chaos. That experience? It’s gold dust.
There’s something wildly liberating about realising you don’t need to chase the newest trend, and you are the thing people are searching for. Wisdom, warmth, real talk. The kind of stuff AI can’t fake.
But I’m not here to sell you a fantasy. This takes work. Not hard labour, but heart work. You’ll second-guess yourself. There’ll be days when you think, What am I doing? And others where you’ll wonder why no one’s clicked your link yet. That’s okay. That’s part of it.
The shift begins when you realise you don’t need to know everything. You just need a starting point.
That’s why I created Marketing with Martin, a private and friendly Facebook group for retirees who are curious about earning money online without the pressure, jargon, or tech overwhelm. It’s where we share real stories (not highlight reels), swap tips that actually make sense, and gently support one another through the “Where do I even begin?” phase.
Whether you’re thinking about writing a blog, trying your hand at affiliate marketing, or just want to see what’s possible before diving in, this group is your quiet corner of the internet to explore it all, at your own pace, in your own way.
Because you don’t have to do this alone, you have to take that first step with people who get it and who are walking the same path beside you.
