Seniors, what is that WOW you so desire? This is your chance at living it. Some of us may think this WOW is beyond our means. Maybe it is. But this is the challenge, and having one at retirement makes life more exciting.
We are now retired for 20 years the joy of early retirement) and each year is an adventure. Some are fun and easy and smooth sailing. Others are more challenging, but all these contribute to what retirement is all about.
Before we retired, we struggled about what we will do. We had options laid out. We were clear about what we did not want, but we had no clue about what we wanted to do.
I remember our many walks on Siesta Key Beach in Florida, talking endlessly about what we wanted to do. Each of us is often left with thoughts on the implications of these possibilities.
We were concerned. We were uncertain. We were afraid of what the future held for us. We were afraid of where our dreams would bring us or how the dream of one of us would affect our lives. We hesitated to think as we did not want so many changes to our already happy existence.
But we knew that we could not just sit and watch endless streams of movies on television. We had to explore opportunities out there. We were still too young not to be engaged.
Once we started, we just kept going. We used our experience to create our consulting and did this for 20 years. We cannot even tell you how much we enjoyed it. Until now, we have friends and colleagues with whom we worked and shared life.
We would take contracts only scheduled for the winter months, which we wanted to avoid in Canada. Summer months were reserved for family. Our families lived in different parts of the world, so Summer became our particular time with each other.
Enough of my own experience. Now, back to you.
What image comes to you when retirement looms on your horizon? The end of fun? A quiet life? A trip somewhere? A life with family? Live your dream?
Most of us think of that day when we can do what we like. Often, we associate this with retirement. But I tell you honestly, many of us now retired sometimes feel that we still cannot do this.
Yes, we find that our days are spent in countless little errands that by the time the day is over, there is no more time to do what we like other than stretch out and have that glass of wine. Does this count? Most of our friends will say yes.
Of course, it depends on your own goal.
Many retirees enjoy doing little errands and taking care of grandchildren. Full-time grandmas fill up their time, and this is their life.
I know many of my friends do this, and they enjoy it. They accompany their grandchildren to their swimming practice and piano lessons or bring them to school. It depends on what you want to do.
My husband is not the only one. We just worked with someone who is 73 years old and already had three heart attacks. He loves to collect rare ceramics in blue, and he works to be able to buy the more expensive ones, which may overstretch his retirement pension.
Younger people now work harder and smarter to reach a much younger age to retire and live the lifestyle they want. Others declare early retirement and live it NOW.
The style you choose to live your retirement depends on you. Many people now retire early. Once they have achieved their commitment and goals, they’re gone. But many continue to get engaged. My husband retired when he was 53.
He was one of those lucky ones to have that freedom at such a young age, but he continued working until he passed on at 75. This time, he was doing what he liked. He was no longer responsible for an organization, so the stress was less, and he enjoyed what he was doing.
How will you live your retirement?
The quality of your retirement will largely depend on the plan you have laid out, not when you’re about to retire but early in your life.
There are retirement concerns you can plan for, but you will only discover others when you are retired. But planning for the ones you know will help you deal with those concerns that you only find out as you live your retirement.
The good news is you have more wisdom to deal with these challenges, so look forward to these as opportunities to expand your life. Having these challenges may still be the best thing to ever happen to you.
