I'm less concerned with finances than in continuing to find "meaning" and importance in what I do. I'm a bit worried about being bored, but am thinking of learning to sail, getting back into scuba diving, joining a book club, and finding some other hobbies so that I'm not just sitting around. Perhaps some volunteering, but not sure in what sphere.
I'd love to do some supervision of newer therapists but that's a hard get, since most therapists in this area are attached to larger counseling centers and get whatever supervision they participate in at those sites.
They were teaching younger elementary school kids working on reading and math skills. Really enjoyed spending the time with the kids.
In one sense, you know "retirement" but to live it is something different. It takes some time to know and understand that you aren't control by an alarm clock, you can get up and go to sleep whenever you'd like and you don't answer to the boss or the job anymore. That freedom isn't (down deep) understood from Day 1. Once you've lived it for awhile and fully grasp it, then you really start to smile and live completely different. Then life gets good!!
So my advice is to just relax, take it easy and let "retirement" and what that means to you, come to you. Don't force anything. You WILL find your stride.
Personally I travel a lot more than I thought I would and I spend my summers volunteering, working with youth. Both I never planned for, they both surprised me when they came and I am loving every minute of it. Let your path come to you, it will.
I hope this helped.
Enjoy!
My advice is to find something that you feel passionate about that the world needs and that you're good at (or willing to work hard to become good at). The fact that you don't need to be paid for it opens up a lot of possibilities that otherwise wouldn't be there for you.
Enjoy, and congratulations!
If I actually did retire, I would also work on the issue of hunger in the communities where I spend time. It blows my mind that our society wastes so much food while some people are hungry. Just seems like a solvable problem.
Also volunteering is rewarding! I have been shopping/driving for seniors in my area.
Retire while you are still healthy and able to do things.
Enjoy!!!!!
Working on my house to prepare to sell. Planning to relocated to another state, That keeps me busy.
Once I relocate, I hope to find charity work that has meaning.
Consider joining a retirement forum or reading a retirement book.
http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/
Congratulations and good luck!
Retirement Rx (Amazon) - ( New Window )
I'm not single but if you are the opportunities are endless
We have an old farmhouse, so there is always a project or maintenance. I brew (and drink) my own beer, ride and work on bicycles, buy & sell on eBay and CL, garden (which got more interesting after 7/1 here in VT), walk the dog, etc
I would like to travel more, and once we settle my MIL's estate and sell her house that might happen.
FWIW, I was in education, which is a pretty people-intensive and often stressful job. I am very happy not to work, even part-time.
The 'ease out' , since it sounds like you want to keep on doing what you do , makes sense; then you can see if you still want in, or to get out fully. If not possible, check out part-time like Spike said, or volunteering those services or maybe an associated service to ,sort of do the same thing.
That all said, find some things you want to do, check them out NOW, to see if you really still want to do them; and pick 2 things or more in case you get disinterested in the one of them.
As someone said, find another passion, or 2: it'll keep you active; or else you become a couch potato. You may also come to realize: how did I do all those chores while still working when I can barely do them with all this free time?
As when mentioning money, rates are going up, so if you have a certain amount to invest, divvy it up, into 3 parts, at about 40, 35, and 25 %, and get the best short term CD ,with the first; do likewise with the 35 at the next increase of .25%+, and the same with the last on another increase. Since much depends on the fathom Fed, you never know what they'll do, but at least you're 'laddering' your $$$ to keep up with rates. When the first one comes due, you can roll it into the current higher rate; when it seems the Fed will slow or stop increases at least you'll have some money to dump into a higher rate, longer term CD.
And expect to live on 60-75% of your current net, since TAXES will still come into play.
Again, when it does happen, welcome to the club.
I hate to be critical, but going on what you say, nobody would ever retire. The market is never safe and is more volatile than before. The people in the know are only guessing most of the time. More people are trying to live off your savings than you are.
I retired two years ago from a 6 figure job because I was burned out from crazy regulation changes and company interference. My guys said I'd easily be able to make 4% to 6% with very low risk. Ha, maybe 2 or 3% because it is hard to figure what will actually be safe and still make payments or dividends...
The only thing in life that is certain is death and nobody is guaranteed tomorrow. Heard about several guys in my industry that were gone within 3 years of retiring.
I say if you want to retire and have a reasonable savings/pension go for it.
Plenty to do yatqb. Take the wife and travel. Make a good trip once a year to someplace you have never been.
If you like volunteering do it.
Wanna sit on your butt, do it.
Learn to golf, fly fish...
Eff it, you earned it. Enjoy it.
So, even though I could travel, or even go South for part of the winter, I'd be doing it on my own for some of that time. Not terrible, but perhaps not ideal either.
I appreciate all the comments. It's been a pleasure to read them. If anyone has any additional thoughts, I'd welcome them. Thanks again.
Yat
Taking 2-3 months down south once my wife retires is certainly something we've been considering, but going down full-time isn't likely in the cards.
They create charitable opportunities, volunteering opportunities, brotherhood, and keep you active - most to the extent you want to be.
such as:
Knights of Columbus
Freemasons
or even your local Rotary, Elks or other club.
For transparency I belong to one and I get a lot out of it, I'm one of the younger members, and joined for a specific reason, but they each have a lot to offer.
1. Make sure you have enough money to maintain your current lifestyle. Downsizing is emotionally risky.
2. Have two places to live so if you get bored with the same old routine in one place, you can spend chunks of time at your second place.
3. Find something significant to do that will give you a sense of accomplishment. In my case I took up running. As a result I developed friendships with new people, as well as staying healthy, and got pretty competitive in my age group.
4. Add a significant amount of traveling to your agenda.
5. Be an active part of and contributer to your family, especially grandchildren.
6. Pay personal attention to your finances and investments.
7. Be your own handy man.
Point 1, cost of living. No big Northeast City, too expensive. I live in MA and wanted no wear Boston. Good cost of living, not too far from Grandkids.
Point 2, as previously mentioned Active Adult community (over 55 ...) has many activities.
Lou
a generally accepted rule of thumb is:
if your burn rate, covering all expenses combined = 4% of your saved principle, you are good on the financial part of the decision. 4% is often referred to as a safe withdrawal rate.
for example,"they" say that if you need to pay 80k in expenses, you need $2M saved. in reality, with Social security and possible pension, your amount maybe less.
So your advice would be to invest in cash? At .50%? Really? With inflation running at 2% or so, you have a negative real return. We offer clients a low duration bond portfolio to manage the risk and squeak out 3.5%- 4.0%. But I always encourage clients to have some exposure to growth through equities.
Quote:
The Fed is raising rates and there is the inevitable market decline on the horizon. Both factors will make investment in fixed income more productive. There is also the inflation factor and your money might not fulfill your needs as time goes by. The best policy is to not retire until you have more money to invest than you think you will need
I hate to be critical, but going on what you say, nobody would ever retire. The market is never safe and is more volatile than before. The people in the know are only guessing most of the time. More people are trying to live off your savings than you are.
I retired two years ago from a 6 figure job because I was burned out from crazy regulation changes and company interference. My guys said I'd easily be able to make 4% to 6% with very low risk. Ha, maybe 2 or 3% because it is hard to figure what will actually be safe and still make payments or dividends...
The only thing in life that is certain is death and nobody is guaranteed tomorrow. Heard about several guys in my industry that were gone within 3 years of retiring.
I say if you want to retire and have a reasonable savings/pension go for it.
Plenty to do yatqb. Take the wife and travel. Make a good trip once a year to someplace you have never been.
If you like volunteering do it.
Wanna sit on your butt, do it.
Learn to golf, fly fish...
Eff it, you earned it. Enjoy it.
If you only earned a return of 3% in the last two years, you need a new"guy".
Why keep an even burn rate when you are more active in your initial retirement years? Why not plan to burn 6% initially then 3% later as you slow down?
Why keep an even burn rate when you are more active in your initial retirement years? Why not plan to burn 6% initially then 3% later as you slow down?
The problem with a burn rate is that it can often get beyond your control. Most of us would see your logic in going bigger early on when you're in good health and able to be more active. But as you age, you'll usually start incurring unanticipated.higher medical expenses that could screw up your plans.
I personally cannot wait, just need to get these damn kids thru school,,,
My advice:
1. Stay healthy by eating and drinking (if you must) in moderation. Exercise daily for at least 30 minutes. Join a gym.
2. Enjoy yourself: Take local trips and dine out more. Hire people to mow the lawn and shovel the snow. Make new friends and strengthen your relationships with your current friends and relations.
3. Take your Social Security as soon as possible. If you wait 10 years to take it, you may not want to (or be able to) do those things that you are planning to do with the higher SS payments.
Ideally when I retire, my time would be spent traveling and doing things I like but also my new part time job would be counting my daily Macros And trying to squeeze an extra 5 + strong years of life out
3. Take your Social Security as soon as possible. If you wait 10 years to take it, you may not want to (or be able to) do those things that you are planning to do with the higher SS payments. [/quote]
Good one Marty. I took mine right at 62. Difference for 4 1/2 more years would only be $750/mo (max payment). As I said earlier, you/we are not guaranteed tomorrow, never mind 4 1/2 years or the 15 years it takes for the higher rate to equal the lower rate (62 yr old).
But sounds like yatqb may be there anyway.
Yeah, I can imagine. My plan was always to have a limited practice in retirement. I am 51 now and can imagine myself walking away from the whole thing at some point now though. I still enjoy it, but I am starting to see that my view is changing over time. I don't know. Two of my colleagues retired within the last two years - a psychologist and a psychiatrist. I see them regularly and they don't miss seeing clients. I found that very surprising. They have kept their lives very full with other activities though.
People here are painting a better picture. My advice would be (in order):
1. Make sure your finances are in order. Do you have enough money to live if you live to 96? You should have a margin in case your pension or medical benefits are reduced in the future. Especially if you have a public pension.Can't emphasize how important this is. I ran into clients all the time who were running out of money because they did not leave a margin for contingencies. Don't just listen to you RPM guy. Figure it out yourself and then add 30%
2. I think Marty is right to say take it early. But remember the "break even" date is a little over 80 years. In percentage terms the way it works is: 70% at 62, 100% at 67 and 124% at 70.
3. I would strongly suggest travel and/or going to live in another part of the world for a while. In our work lives, we become creatures of habit and a lot of people carry that over into retirement. Get up at 6, have coffee, read the newspaper, play tennis etc . . . They turn retirement into an extended weekend. That might sound great to some but a lot of people get bored if you turn "relaxing" into a permanent state. Do something different. Something you COULDN'T do when you were working.
4. Reconnect with YOUR friends. Not your kids or wife's relatives. But the people you knew where maybe you got busy with life and didn't up the friendship as much as you should have. When you share a past with someone, you can never recreate that with anyone else.
5. Make NEW friends. Very important or otherwise you don't continue to grow. But also don't waste your shrinking years with people who are not worth it.
It's been said before, but I think it is true that finitude also creates a certain beauty, a "terrible beauty" Yeats called it. The more you can embrace that, the more meaning I think you give your retirement years. The clients who had no interests in reading, art, history, music etc are the ones who were the most querulous