Close your eyes for a moment and imagine a blank calendar… Good. Now just think of how scary that would be if the blank sheet of paper was your life every day for the next two decades. As anyone who has ever been phenomenally bored will agree, it’s tortuously painful not having enough things to do when you retire. As experts on coaching people through this stage of life, here are our best suggestions for staying busy and happy in your golden years.
The average person has been a member of the working world for most of their adult life. Some people may have taken time off for life events such as maternity leave, illness/surgery, or unemployment, or a lucky few have gone on sabbatical and traveled the world. Typically, these experiences are limited to a year at most, not the 20 to 30 years that most people are staying retired nowadays.
It’s a pretty scary world when you get up in the morning with nowhere to go. And for retired people, here’s what the emotional consequences may be:
For all of the above reasons, you may end up driving yourself (and everyone else around you) crazy by failing to be thoughtful about how to spend time during retirement. That’s no way to live your final years and certainly not how you want to be remembered.
The solution? Stay busy, but do it on your terms.
Not knowing what to do when you retire is a serious problem. In fact, we’ve seen that it’s something people invest an enormous amount of energy avoiding.
As financial advisors, we’ve heard all the excuses in the book. For example, some people plan to work until they pass away. This sounds logical in theory, but in reality you may not have control over your physical health.
Don’t put yourself through this ridiculous game. Take it head on! Plan a life full of fun things to do when you retire, and make it happen!
Here are some ideas to get you started.
Here are some examples of how clients of ours have done it. Do these retirees sound lonely and depressed? Certainly not.
Retirement doesn’t have to mean sunny beaches in the Bahamas for everyone. Some clients prefer to work part time or even full time, but just at a lower stress level.
Case in point.
One of our clients loved being an attorney, but disliked being in a corporate environment. So, he took early retirement from his corporate job and found a flexible, part-time position at a small law firm near his home. He also teaches and volunteers with numerous charities.
He’s financially whole, intellectually fulfilled, and living every day at his dream job.
This is for you “Type A” personalities out there.
One of our clients was a successful business owner and CEO. In his mid-60’s, he was presented with an incredible offer to sell. He was certainly ready to step down, but found that retiring “cold-turkey” was not for him.
The solution presented itself in no time. After he and his wife moved to a retirement community, he chose to get involved with the many social activities they offer. He didn’t let his business skills go to waste, though – it wasn’t long until he was appointed as a leader of the community’s finance committee.
The result? He’s happy, physically and mentally fit, and most of all he’s part of a stimulating social circle.
What would you do if you had complete control and freedom over your schedule, without the mandates of work, family, and getting all those “must-dos” done in a specified time period? I mean completely: no work, family, friends, appointments, all of those obligations are off your plate.
How would you fill up that week? What would you want to do?
We’d love to have you complete the “Ideal Week in Retirement” activity. It is a tremendous way to plan out how to spend your time in retirement. Try it for yourself! For more information, send us an email at nicole@prismplanningpartners.com.