Countdown to retirement

Even if you hate your job and have a “countdown to retirement” clock on your desk at work, you’ll still likely have difficulty when you finally give them the old heave-ho. I was lucky I left work with only one months’ notice. I made a decision to retire based on my wife’s medical decision to stop work not on my willingness or desire to retire.  At the time I did not realize that I was lucky as many find retirement hard.

Some say that leaving a career is similar to a break-up with your long-time spouse, it is sure to be difficult. You think the escape will be nothing but sunshine and rainbows, but it’s not always that easy.

The same is true of your job. Expect it.

Better yet, set up a future for yourself in other areas – self-employment, volunteering, or starting that part-time job. When you’ve already moved on to the next thing mentally, letting go of the old boat anchor becomes that much easier to do.

If you want to retire well and retire early, you should simply live modestly, get rid of all your debts, earn a solid income, forecast what you need (but be flexible) and invest heavily. That’s really all there is to it. Dig any deeper and you’re just wasting your time.

The most valuable information in your planning for retirement  is the ones that hardly anyone talks about:

·    Being willing to work after retirement.

·    Having an understanding that even the best-laid plans are futile, you’re never going to predict exactly what will happen over a 30-year span. It’s impossible.

·    Retirement is not all unicorns and angelic choirs. It’s just the next challenge in life worth conquering. It is part of your journey, not your destination.

·    Go in with the right mindset, understand what happiness truly means for you, and never stop working toward the goals that will take you there.