COMMENTS

6 responses to “Open Thread Update: Retirement. Ready?”

1. I am so happy to hear friends and other people having a successful retirement planning and/or enjoying a comfortable retirment life. I retired at 67, April, 2021 with the “permission” of my financial planner that I have adequate retirment funding. Unfortunately, after retirment and in the last 6 months, I did not have any part of the retirment life that I had envisioned, I was and still am confronted with non-stop maintnenace/repairs work in the condo I am living in and started to realize that my retirment asset will be draining away faster than I can catch my breath. I really like to learn from someone on how did they finacially plan their retirment. It seems that I have missed some important parts of the retirment planning. I would like to get advice from the readers.

   Reply to EC

2. Changing your lifestyle ,location and lliving affordably and luxuriously is not retirement necessarily ..but a new phase offering new possibilities and could be a dream come true. I’ve moved to warmer climate out of NYC to tropical locations abroad… And it’s been great for my health, my social and financial life adding many pluses and benefits to this extended lifestyle..

   Reply to Daryl Ries

3. My retirement is a work in progress that I’ve been working on since 2018. When I was 58, I started looking for the place to retire with the right amenities and good value. I did the research and followed advice from people and sources I trusted. I’m now 61 and found a place to live and have no mortgage. I have a financial planner and follow their advice. I can now retire on my timeline and this could be anytime from the end of this year up until my 67th birthday. It’s all about the planning.

   Reply to John Campbell

4. I’m 66 and ambivalent. I’m financially comfortable and currently work two days per week (at home due to COVID lockdown), though I could probably work more if I wanted to. On any given day I would rather not get up and work, but on a mega-level I can see that I get benefits from it – a professional identity, satisfaction of doing something I am good at and collaborating with other people to achieve goals, engagement with fellow humans and the universe in general, and a licence to pursue interests and experiences I would not otherwise have. Yes I could get some of those things as a volunteer, but volunteers rarely have the same level of agency as employees. And I haven’t quite got my head around doing stuff for free that I’ve always been paid for. People always say they plan to retire at X age, but I have no idea. Even if I retire from my regular job I think about doing freelance work. I’m hoping that one day it will just feel right and I’ll do it. Till then ?….?….?…..

   Reply to CLT

5. Don’t think of it as retiring “from” something; think of it as retiring “to” something else. And if you don’t know what that something else is, you’ve got a problem.

   Reply to Timothy Reynolds

6. The seed for retirement had been planted about 10 yrs. ago. It forecasts that I would retire Jan. 2022 at my FRA. The pandemic, though, changed things and I announced my retirement, effective July 2021. I thought I was well-prepared for the transition: financially and physically healthy, excited to enroll in continuing education courses at my community college, time to (re)discover hobbies, and quality time with family and friends. What I didn’t anticipate was this feeling of disconnect and loss of daily stimuli. Difficult to admit – after 25 successful years as an independent school Administrator, I was no longer in a position of power. All of the trappings that come with being the “Go-To Person” – suddenly gone. Shallow? Yes. Surprising to me? Totally Yes. I’m now taking the time to be introspective and gradually transition into my new way of life. This will guide me to my “what’s next.” The possibilities are endless. And that I will pursue with vigor!

   Reply to Dee Gee