5 Ways to Prepare for Retirement

We go through many transitions during our lifetime but the transition from work to retirement seems to be the worst. I’m not sure if it’s because of our thoughts about retirement or because of poor planning. I personally think it’s our thoughts about retirement and the implications tied to it. For years, retirement has literally meant the end. When a person decides to retire, they are older and they seem to associate retirement with the end of life. We need to change this notion. Retirement should be considered the beginning of another stage of life, not an ending.
Retirement will change your life. I repeat, retirement will change your life. Are you ready for this change? When you left high school, your life changed. When you got married, your life changed. When you had children, your life changed. It stands to reason, when you retire your life will change. Whether this change is good or bad is up to you. You’ve probably prepared yourself financially for this stage of life but what about emotionally? What will you do with your time? A permanent vacation might seem like the ideal way to live but will you be able to fill your time once you have this luxury? So much free time might get quite boring after a while. I was once told by a retiree that taking a vacation isn’t nearly as much fun if you don’t have to plan how you will get the time off from work.
You should start now to plan how you will spend your retirement years. These five tips will help you along the way:
1. Change how you identify retirement. Consider retirement as a beginning, not end.
2. Create an identity outside the workplace. Start a hobby or other interest not related to work.
3. Slow down. Instead of volunteering for additional work, delegate more.
4. Renew your relationships with family and friends. If you’ve always been too busy with work to enjoy a life, reverse your thinking and get busy living.
5. Don’t be too hard on yourself. The transition could be difficult but you can do it.
Remember, retirement isn’t an all or nothing event. If you find the retirement lifestyle too boring, go back to work, but on your terms. There are lots of opportunities for a retired person who wants to supplement income or just keep busy. Some find consulting to be fulfilling while others do part-time work or volunteer. How you spend your retirement is quite personal and you should tailor this to your wants and needs.