Retirement can be an awesome time in which you are free to pursue your passions and enjoy your new-found freedom. You just need to be ready for it, plan for it and then just live it!
Tips to retire
- Plan for your departure.
- Amass all the money you can muster and stuff it into a 401k plan.
- Be kind to your successor and work family by offloading all your work wisdom, whether it be tactical or strategic.
- Don’t be shy; share your knowledge.
- Decide if you want to offer your services back to the company after you go as a consultant.
And most importantly, really sit down and think about what you will do after you go. Make a plan that covers:
- How you will spend your time.
- How you will finance your new life.
- With whom you will spend your new life.
When it comes to tips to retire, consider “What shape is my health in and how can I improve it or keep it at an optimal level?” Retirement only feels as good as you feel.
Think about location
Where do you want to live? Do you want to go to a warmer climate, be adventurous and buy an RV and hit the road? Move closer to your kids if they moved away or just stay right where you are?
Think about your home
Consider the age of your current house— will it need a new roof soon, or is it time to modernize that kitchen or the master bathroom? All are decent expenditures that you can afford in your mid-sixties, but probably not in your mid-eighties.
Think about building your new social circles
Are you happy with your neighbors? Because you are about to spend a lot more time with them than you have previously. Do you see yourself making these neighbors part of your new intimate social circle?
If you’re a golfer, is the weekday crowd as good and fun as the weekend warriors you know so well? Or are they too old for you? How are your chauffer skills these days? Ready to drive your grandkids here and there because your daughter is busy building her career and she can really use your help?
Think about relationships
How about your relationship with your spouse? Did you know that the fastest growing group of the population divorcing is the newly retired? Yes, your new retirement lifestyle will also mean a change in the rules of engagement with your spouse. You see, if you think it’s going to be lunch every afternoon and then doing whatever you like, you should consider one of the most important tips to retire: start talking to your spouse about their expectations on how they want to spend their time with you daily. It might really shock you to find out their perspective.
Best tips to retire on your terms
- Ask a lot of questions of the ones closest to you on how they foresee your retirement.
- Think long and hard about your physical surroundings.
- Understand that most of your close work friends will fade away within the first year.
- And finally, ask yourself if the healthcare in your current surroundings is the best it can be. You’ll most likely need that sooner than you think.
Just because you no longer have to go to work doesn’t mean it’s ice cream and cake every day. What it means is you need to be ready to completely change your life again just like you did those few years after you graduated from college. But you might be saying to yourself —this time is different because I know a lot more—but is it really?
Without a plan that includes proven tips to retire, retirees flounder and get stuck on what is life all about now?
Don’t let that happen to you. Be wise and engage a Certified Retirement Coach to help you plan out that retirement of yours in a way that is free of anxiety and full of ice cream and cake!!
About Bob Foley
Bob Foley is your Retirement Lifestyle Coach and you can reach him by email at bob@retirementlifestylecoach.com or simply by scheduling time on his calendar.
