Your Retirement Experience/Lessons

[catdaddy]

1. What was your biggest surprise so far about retirement?

Not missing work in the least.

2. What have you learned since retiring that you wish you would have known before you retired?

Nothing I can think of. I did a considerable amount of planning and research in advance.

3. What's the best thing about retirement?

Having the time to concentrate on improving my health and quality of life. Less stress, more exercise and a better diet. Spending more time doing music, reading, and taking care of my animal friends.

4. What's the worst thing about retirement?

I have yet to discover any negatives.

5. Has anyone regretted retiring?

Not me. Not for a single moment.

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by ahorsewithnonam

Worked hard, saved, invested, blessed for sure.

Ok, I understand, it's semantics. It was just that you said you had no pension or "parachute".
Your pension and parachute are your investments and how you handled your finances.
We basically did the same, no pension, no parachute, just living below our means and making good financial decisions along the way...minus the place in Florida.

[evenkeel]

My wife and I retired just over a year ago. I turned 65 in July. We both worked for the same company, in jobs we both loved. We would have kept working but we had been at it for 17 years, my wife's parents needed more assistance. Our jobs were also very emotionally and physically demanding and at 64, it was just getting harder. Overall our decision to retire has proved to be a good, albeit difficult one. Certainly more challenging than expected.

My experience in retirement has been much different than my wife's. She has transitioned much better. There is not a day that goes by that I don't think about the job, what's going on. I have dreams about the job almost every night. While I don't regret the decision, it was time, I've been surprised by the emotions involved and how long that's gone on.

I have been busy. I have a small home recording studio and have been working with other local musicians producing demos, CD's etc.. That's been great fun. I've also been getting out a bit and playing my own music. But, another bit of a surprise is even in retirement central Florida the demand for old hokey, folky guys like me is VERY limited. The bars, coffee shops, festivals, farmers markets all want younger performers. I also do some volunteer work which is very satisfying.

So, don't be surprised if, at least in the beginning, the transition to retirement is more emotionally charged than you might think.

'keel

[Joe F]

Following.

I hope to discover my own answers to these questions too starting in January thanks to Santa coming early. The company I work for offered thousands of employees a 'Management Buyout' based on years of service. For me it equates to 14mo of continued pay, bonuses and all benefits. More than enough time to discover the answers to those questions I think.

[Kerbie]

Love these threads... thanks, guys! I may join the retired ranks in the next year or two. I'm so glad I learned how to save a long time ago. Then I spent 5 years in a prior life being a stockbroker/financial planner. So, I've been preparing for decades.

[Photojeep]

I will be joining the ranks of retired folks in a little over 4 years. Thanks to my wife's insistence (and many more attributes too numerous to mention) when I do I don't think I will see any difference in income. What I have researched is how much I won't be spending regularly due to not going to work (gas, specific clothing, etc.)

I am a bit worried about the Medicare hassle however. It seems to be a tremendously complicated enrollment process. And of course, the horror stories I've heard from retired friends hasn't helped...

Best,
PJ

[Silly Moustache]

Hi, I am now 70 and I retired -more like "was retired" when I was 59.

If I had stuck it out in the Corporate I'd worked in for 20 years, I could have retired on a better pension than I have now at 53, but it was driving me crazy. I left (with a golden handshake) at 45 (in 93) and spent much of the following three years unemployed. In '96 I got a job I wanted to do (in a quango) but with twice the commute and half the corporate income.

Those "lost" years taught me a lot about money management. I had a fair amount of cash but, effectively 24 months of not earning in three years.

Once I got into my "permanent" job (it lasted seven years) I had a very different approach to saving.

I learnt to minimise our outgoings and still live happily and take holidays abroad - but only one fortnight holiday abroad instead of two.

to your questions :

1. What was your biggest surprise so far about retirement?

That is can be much cheaper to live than when working.
You don't need to drink, by suits and other professional necessities, nor drive so many miles.


2. What have you learned since retiring that you wish you would have known before you retired?

That my stress levels would falls quickly and so rewardingly.

3. What's the best thing about retirement?

No pressure, I joke with my wife that I've got a busy day if I have three things to do.
I keep my own hours and do what I want when I want, or leave it until tomorrow, or next week.

4. What's the worst thing about retirement?

Knowing that all the money I have now is, effectively, all I'll ever have. (less withdrawals plus modest yields and minimal interest.

I met an old colleague who stuck it out in my corporate. I asked him if he had retired. He said no, but he'll have to the following year. He was dreading it. "What will I do?" he asked. So sad.

Seeing my wife and I getting older.

5. Has anyone regretted retiring?

Not me, but occasionally I see a job advertised and think, I'd like to do that ..../ but wait, I'm old and retired and ... I don't need to.

Assuming I manage to regain my health after last year's troubles, I intend to volunteer at one of the open air museums nearby. I wanted to do it this year but still wasn't fit enough.

Some of my friends who retired around the same time as me panicked about retirement, mainly about the reduced income but also about the status.

I was concerned about income but it has worked ok thus far. I didn't have the sudden shock of leaving work as the last 2-3 years I worked self employed and part time. I slid gently into retirement.

Hope that helps.

[ssjk]

Happy I retired --haven't done a lick of paid work for five years.

One new insight - I have a very clear financial plan and am pretty sure I can last way beyond my years unless something major happens. But even though I don't spend more than my planned amount, I still worry about it just because there is no money coming in. Trouble coming to terms with this whole "draw down" concept could take some fun out of it

And one old insight confirmed, thankfully not with me but by some friends still in the workforce. Depending on what your area of expertise is/was, you might want to think about whether there is any possibility that you could undo your retirement decision if you had to. I spent years in IT and consulting. My technical skills became obsolete within a year or so, and the folks I knew who are in position to do contracts are all gone from where they were also. I couldn't hit the undo button if I had to.

That said, go as soon as you can afford it and no longer enjoy the work. Gotta spend while your body still works.

[Imbler]

Originally Posted by Photojeep

I will be joining the ranks of retired folks in a little over 4 years. Thanks to my wife's insistence (and many more attributes too numerous to mention) when I do I don't think I will see any difference in income. What I have researched is how much I won't be spending regularly due to not going to work (gas, specific clothing, etc.)

I am a bit worried about the Medicare hassle however. It seems to be a tremendously complicated enrollment process. And of course, the horror stories I've heard from retired friends hasn't helped...

Best,
PJ

I enrolled my wife in medicare last year from my computer, and don't remember any hassle at all in doing so.

[Ozzy the dog]

I though retirement meant never having to work again - I was wrong.
It means never getting paid again. The difference is you just do the work you want.

Life is more important than money and you don't need as much money as you think to be able to enjoy life.

Weekends don't exist anymore, alarm clocks retire with you and there is no such thing as bed time.

However, It's often said by retired folk that they didn't know where they found time to go to work. Since I retired I have really enjoyed concentrating on my own projects which, ironically seem to be turning into a little business.

[JCave]

Originally Posted by Imbler

I enrolled my wife in medicare last year from my computer, and don't remember any hassle at all in doing so.

Medicare proved much easier for me than anticipated. Maybe there's been too much hype?

[BrunoBlack]

I’ve been retired 3 years and it’s working nicely for me. The position I held for the last 10 years of my career required 24/7 attention and was getting old. Retirement schedule is a big change because I now pretty much do what I want when I want. I made a deal with myself that I would not commit to new obligations for 1 year until I figured what I wanted to do. After working for 50 years, it’s easy to lose track of what you could become after work. That decision was a smart choice for me. During the second year I began some rewarding volunteer efforts and left professional pursuits behind. My financial situation is fine, health is good and plenty to do. Enjoy your new life!

[dkstott]

I retired 3 years ago. The only thing I miss is the Monday morning sports talk with the gang over coffee.

However, 3 weeks after I left the workplace, I was diagnosed with Stage 1 melanoma cancer on my face. Spent a year dealing with the surgery & the emotional aspects of being told you have cancer. Essentially, sitting on the couch blaming myself for getting it and scared to death that it would return.

A friend kicked me in the butt and told me to "live life like I don't have cancer".

Since then, I've exercised regularly, lost 60lbs & have begun to consider running a 5K in the spring. Retirement has done wonders for my guitar playing and ability to practice like when I was a teenager.

Yes, I do have a retirement plan. I plan on playing my guitar.

[JCave]

I left the paycheck at 56 and just ahead of the last recession. Was a computer operations manager in a huge data center. Company was changing and not in a good way. Not long after my departure, half of my friends lost their positions with lay off. Months later, the others were gone, the entire company sold. Long term employees found themselves without pensions they'd hoped and planned for. Now at 65 - 70 y/o, they're contractors. I did leave with a reduced pension and 401k. Finally started pursuing my artistic side.

I have been called "lucky" for leaving when I did. This isn't Reno, luck is not involved.

It's a conscious decision to retire into the unknown. Doing it on your own terms is highly recommended. You have to keep both your hands and mind busy. I've never been busier and my head is fully engaged lately.

[AX17609]

I'm generally the outlier when this issue is discussed. For the record, I'm 8 years into retirement.

1. What was your biggest surprise so far about retirement?
My general irrelevance. I thought I'd be more plugged in to something. Everyone else seems to be having more fun than I am.

2. What have you learned since retiring that you wish you would have known before you retired?
So many friendships were actually work relationships that vanished when I left the job. Once I vacated my elevated position, I was rendered invisible. The other thing is the financial instability. Even though I have a comfortable income, I always feel on the edge of looming disaster. I've bought and sold a couple of houses (when I didn't want to), and I've had to buy things I never thought I'd have to buy.

3. What's the best thing about retirement?
Not commuting.

4. What's the worst thing about retirement?
My general irrelevance. Literally, no one cares what I think, even on topics about which I have professional expertise. As for other topics, I might as well not even exist. For example, on this particular site, I simply gave up trying to be helpful in the instructional forum.

5. Has anyone regretted retiring?
Yes, I regret not staying employed in my profession. For better or worse, that was my life, and I miss it.